今年的A e s o p 戶外放映， 我們將送上兩套別樹一格的亞洲新戲，分別為韓國電影《福岡》及不丹電影《不丹是教室》。

《福岡》由張律執導，講述一對大學時期的好兄弟，因事反目後不相往來。鄰家少女突然闖入，令往日回憶不滅反增，更形成了三人行的局面，令當初塵封的友誼再起波瀾。電影寫實的感情中又帶點神秘的氛圍，令人深思。

美不勝收的壯麗景色令《不丹是教室》製作團隊甘願忍受位置偏僻且設施匱乏的缺點，在喜馬拉雅冰川的學校完成拍攝。全片以太陽能供電進行拍攝，加上故事中男主角對未來路向掙扎間帶來的反思，實在極具意義。

We are proud to present two brand-new films at the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival’s Aesop Outdoor screening this year: Chinese-Korean filmmaker Zhang Lu’s Japan-set drama Fukuoka, and the picturesque Bhutanese film Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom.

The latest of Zhang Lu’s city-hopping titles, Fukuoka revolves around a pair of best friends who drifted apart and faded from each other’s lives after college. Now jaded adults, the two men meet again at the instigation of a bubbly young woman. Boasting the sincerest of emotions and an enigmatic narrative unfolding along winding Japanese streets, Fukuoka fits perfectly with the downtown location of the outdoor screening.

Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom, meanwhile, offers a stark contrast with its location in the Himalayas. Made with a small crew and cameras driven by solar-powered batteries, Bhutanese director Pawo Choyning Dorji’s debut follows a wannabe pop singer’s clash of cultures with rural folk as he takes up a job as a schoolteacher in a small village. It’s a beautiful film one could readily enjoy under the stars.

報名詳情將稍後公布，敬請留意香港亞洲電影節的網頁、Facebook及Instagram。
Please stay tuned for details of the registration on HKAFF website, Facebook and Instagram.

從60年代至今，柬埔寨走過繁華盛世又經歷過極權苦難，在一片頹垣敗瓦中緩緩重生。今屆亞洲電影節選映多齣柬埔寨電影，正是這段歷史之見證。60年代現代化經濟起飛，柬國電影迎來黃金時代，豪華製作還是低成本恐怖片各有所好，諷刺上流或血腥奇情任君選擇，享受創作自由。70年代赤柬崛起，以恐怖政治統治國民、殘殺異己，連電影也被視為禁忌。人民死的死、逃的逃，電影銷毀破壞不計其數，柬埔寨文化被活生生劃上休止符。有人劫後餘生重回舊地，拍攝被蹂躪過的大地，只怕傷痕永遠難以癒合。亦有在外國長大的第二代電影人，只能透過鏡頭從回憶碎片中重塑失落的痛苦歷史。柬埔寨電影與歷史發展緊緊相連，導演周戴維及Sok Visal 將來港舉行講座，與觀眾分享柬埔寨電影的前世今生。

When Cambodia emerged from the Khmer Rouge’s four-year tyranny in 1979, the country no longer hosted even an operational cinema, let alone a film industry as such. Four decades onwards, however, Cambodian cinema has regained its cinematic vigour, all thanks to the work of a community of veteran and young directors, as well as archivists trying to connect Cambodian cinema’s vibrant present with the “golden age” of yore. Visiting Hong Kong for the HKAFF’s Cambodian showcase, directors Davy Chou (Golden Slumbers) and Sok Visal (Gems on the Run) as well as representatives from Rithy Panh’s Bophana Audio-visual Institute will discuss the ebbs and flows in the history of Cambodian cinema, and how a new generation of filmmakers are seeking to reshape the country’s film scene.

一直以來，香港電影製作出名快手、靈活、轉數快。得志之時，其每年產量超過200套；但低潮時期也曾面臨過年產僅30多套的困境。當時，不少人都曾說這是香港電影的危機，甚至說：香港電影的歷史責任已經完成。然而近年來許多本土電影導演頻頻交出令人眼前一亮的作品。縱使市場和資金不如從前的黃金年代，創作者卻勇於另闢蹊徑，似乎又促成了另一個創作良機，為香港導演和本土電影贏回掌聲。

今年香港亞洲電影節選映多齣香港電影，更難得邀請到多位不同背景的本地電影製作人聚首一堂，分享電影製作的種種秘辛。各製作人將從製作層面切入，探討香港電影如何突破現實制肘，繼續創作出富有本土文化且勾起觀眾共鳴的作品。

As the spectre of social and economic uncertainty hovers over Hong Kong, the situation begs the question: is this the best or worst of times for the city’s young and brazen filmmakers?

This year’s Hong Kong Asian Film Festival goes beyond mere screenings by gathering our new talents for a discussion about the opportunities and challenges awaiting them, as they attempt to establish a footing and make a stand in the local film industry.

Featuring local directors from various backgrounds, this meeting-of-minds promises to deliver interesting and intriguing insights about the mysterious ways in which Hong Kong cinema moves – and how our young cinematic voices today could ring in a brighter and better tomorrow.

香港亞洲電影節今年特設紀錄片鑒賞會暨研討工作坊！我們誠意邀來香港紀錄片導演黃肇邦及卓翔擔任私人導師，他們將分別於11月3日及11日中午12:30開班授徒！屆時，參加者將先在戲院內共同觀看兩部風格題材各異的精選紀錄片，繼而在導師帶領下進行小組形式的深度討論，學習如何以創作者角度深入剖析作品。工作坊中當然少不了導演的獨門分享，範疇涵蓋題材處理、影像敘事，以至與拍攝對象互動關係，在開放的氣氛下，啟發參加者理解紀錄片的力量。

穆罕默德拉穌羅夫堅持以電影批判社會，作品往往劍指伊朗獨裁統治和社會不公，充滿張力的畫面下飽含怒火。儘管屢次揚威國際，他的電影卻從來沒有在伊朗上映。他身上有禁拍令，被沒收護照禁止出境，最近伊朗更以「危害國家安全」和「宣揚反伊斯蘭政府訊息」為由，判他監禁一年。伊朗影評人Mehdi Abdollahzadeh將詳談穆罕默德拉穌羅夫電影，以及在伊朗用電影揭露社會真相的重重困難。謹以這一系列放映和講座，遙向獄中的導演致敬。

Exposing the reality of living under a dictatorial and impervious government has been the subject of most of Mohammad Rasoulof’s films. On top of the ban on making films and leaving Iran, the filmmaker was recently sentenced to one year in prison due to accusations of “endangering national security” and “propaganda against the Islamic government”. Mehdi Abdollahzadeh, a film critic, programmer and specialist of Iranian cinema, will share his insights into Rasoulof’s films, as well as the hardships of defying state censorship.

Mehdi Abdollahzadeh
為著名伊朗電影影評人、策展人。曾擔任不同國際電影節評審，更多次在歐洲舉辦伊朗大師級導演的回顧展。
A film critic, programmer and specialist of Iranian cinema. He has served on juries for different international film festival and collaborated with film festivals in Europe in showcasing retrospectives for iconic Iranian filmmakers.