# 49th Hong Kong International Film Festival

The 49th Hong Kong International Film Festival (Chinese: 第49屆香港國際電影節) is set to take place from 10 April to 21 April 2025. Louis Koo was selected as the Filmmaker in Focus for this edition and masterclasses led by Albert Serra, Juho Kuosmanen, and Leos Carax will be featured.
The festival is set to open with the Japanese crime film The Brightest Sun by Tetsuya Nakashima and the Malaysian-Hong Kong drama Pavane for an Infant by Chong Keat Aun, and closes with the Norwegian drama Dreams (Sex Love) by Dag Johan Haugerud. This year, 195 films from 69 countries were screened, including six world premieres, two international premieres, and fifty-two Asian premieres. Angela Yuen was chosen as the new ambassador of the HKIFF starting this edition, succeeding Karena Lam.

## Background

The theme of the 49th Hong Kong International Film Festival is "Dialogue - Conversation of Film". The festival's poster, designed by local company Trilingua Design, features sound tracks as the background, accompanied by classic quotes from international films. Angela Yuen was named the new ambassador of the Hong Kong International Film Festival in late January 2025 starting from this edition, succeeding Karena Lam. Louis Koo was announced as the Filmmaker in Focus for the festival on 7 February 2025. Albert Lee, the executive director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, explained that Koo, who served as the HKIFF ambassador for five years starting in 2014, was chosen for both his acting career and filmmaking efforts through his production companies, which embody the essence of Hong Kong cinema to both the industry and the public. A commemorative book on Koo will be published in collaboration with Moleskine.
Catalan filmmaker Albert Serra and Finnish filmmaker Juho Kuosmanen were announced as features in the Masterclass section later that month, with both presenting at the festival in person and marks Kuosmanen's first visit to Hong Kong. French filmmaker Leos Carax and Japanese actress Sakura Ando were also announced as features in the Masterclass and Focus section respectively in March. A full lineup was announced on 17 March 2025. Other notable guests at the festival included Chinese filmmakers Wang Bing, Vivian Qu, Japanese filmmaker Shinobu Yaguchi, and Taiwanese actor Lee Kang-sheng. A total of 195 films from 69 countries were screened, featuring six world premieres, two international premieres, and fifty-two Asian premieres. Ticket prices ranged from HKD$55 to $100. The film festival is set to take place from 10 April to 21 April 2025.

## Program sections
### Opening and closing films

The following films were chosen as the opening and closing features of the film festival, marking the world premiere of The Brighest Sun:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Opening film ||||
| The Brightest Sun | 時には懺悔を | Tetsuya Nakashima | Japan |
| Pavane for an Infant | 搖籃凡世 | Chong Keat Aun | Malaysia, Hong Kong |
| Closing film ||||
| Dreams (Sex Love) | Drømmer | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |

### Gala Presentation

Two Hong Kong films, which had only premiered at Busan International Film Festival and Tokyo International Film Festival in 2024, have been selected for screening in the Gala Presentation section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Valley of the Shadow of Death | 不赦之罪 | Jeffrey Lam, Antonio Lam | Hong Kong |
| Montages Of A Modern Motherhood | 虎毒不 | Oliver Chan | Hong Kong |

### Cinephile Paradise

The following films have been selected for screening in the Cinephile Paradise section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| April | აპრილი | Déa Kulumbegashvili | France, Italy, Georgia |
| Bel Ami | 漂亮朋友 | Geng Jun | China |
| The Girl with the Needle | Pigen med nålen | Magnus von Horn | Denmark, Poland, Sweden |
| Girls on Wire | 想飞的女孩 | Vivian Qu | China |
| Kill the Jockey | El jockey | Luis Ortega | Argentina, Mexico, Spain, Denmark, United States |
| Limonov: The Ballad | — | Kirill Serebrennikov | Italy, France, Spain |
| Parthenope | — | Paolo Sorrentino | Italy, France |
| Queer | — | Luca Guadagnino | Italy, United States |
| Stranger Eyes | 默視錄 | Yeo Siew Hua | Singapore, Taiwan, France, United States |
| Teki Cometh | 敵 | Daihachi Yoshida | Japan |
| Vermiglio | — | Maura Delpero | Italy, France, Belgium |
| When Fall Is Coming | Quand vient l'automne | François Ozon | France |

### Firebird Awards
#### Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language)

The following films were selected to compete in the Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language) at the Firebird Awards.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| All Quiet at Sunrise | 世界日出時 | Zhu Xin | China |
| Blue Sun Palace | 藍色太陽宮 | Constance Tsang | United States |
| The Botanist | 植物學家 | Jing Yi | China |
| Eel | 河鰻 | Chu Chun-teng | Taiwan |
| Green Wave | 前程似錦 | Xu Lei | China |
| My Friend An Delie | 我的朋友安德烈 | Dong Zijian | China |
| To Kill a Mongolian Horse | 一匹白馬的熱夢 | Jiang Xiaoxuan | Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, United States |
| Valley of the Shadow of Death | 不赦之罪 | Jeffrey Lam, Antonio Lam | Hong Kong |

#### Young Cinema Competition (World)

The following films were selected to compete in the Young Cinema Competition (World) at the Firebird Awards.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Black Ox | 黒之牛 | Tsuta Tetsuichiro | Japan, Taiwan, United States |
| The Devil Smokes | El diablo fuma | Ernesto Martínez Bucio | Mexico |
| Horizon | Horizonte | César Augusto Acevedo | Colombia, France, Luxembourg, Chile |
| Peacock | Pfau - Bin ich echt? | Bernhard Wenger | Austria, Germany |
| Perfumed with Mint | Moattar Binanaa | Muhammed Hamdy | Egypt, France, Tunisia |
| The Things You Kill | — | Alireza Khatami | France, Poland, Canada, Turkey |
| Wondrous is the Silence of My Master | Otapanje vladara | Ivan Salatić | Montenegro, Italy, France, Croatia |
| Yunan | يونان | Ameer Fakher Eldin | Germany, Canada, Italy, Palestine |

#### Documentary Competition

The following films were selected to compete in the Young Cinema Competition (Documentary) at the Firebird Awards.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| An American Pastoral | Une pastorale américaine | Auberi Edler | France |
| The Guest | Gość | Zvika Gregory Portnoy, Zuzanna Solakiewicz | Poland, Qatar |
| Holding Liat | — | Brandon Kramer | United States |
| Paul | — | Denis Côté | Canada |
| Riefenstahl | — | Andres Veiel | Germany |
| Seeds | — | Brittany Shyne | United States |
| Songs of Slow Burning Earth | Pisni zemli, shcho povilno horyt' | Olha Zhurba | Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden, France |
| Yalla Parkour | — | Areeb Zuaiter | Sweden, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Palestine |

### Pan-Chinese Cinema
#### Filmmaker in Focus

Louis Koo was announced as the Filmmaker in Focus for the film festival on 7 February 2025, showcasing ten of his previous works.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Year of release | Production countrie(s) |
| The Suspect | 極度重犯 | Ringo Lam | 1998 | Hong Kong |
| Bullets Over Summer | 爆裂刑警 | Wilson Yip | 1999 | Hong Kong |
| Naked Ambition | 豪情 | Dante Lam | 2003 | Hong Kong |
| Throw Down | 柔道龍虎榜 | Johnnie To | 2004 | Hong Kong |
| Run Papa Run | 一個好爸爸 | Sylvia Chang | 2008 | Hong Kong |
| Connected | 保持通話 | Benny Chan | 2008 | Hong Kong |
| Accident | 意外 | Soi Cheang | 2009 | Hong Kong |
| Drug War | 毒戰 | Johnnie To | 2012 | Hong Kong |
| Paradox | 殺破狼・貪狼 | Wilson Yip | 2017 | Hong Kong |
| Warriors of Future | 明日戰記 | Ng Yuen-fai | 2022 | Hong Kong |

### Masters and Auteurs
#### The Masters

The following films were selected for screening in the Masterclass section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| By the Stream | 수유천 | Hong Sang-soo | South Korea |
| Hard Truths | — | Mike Leigh | United Kingdom, Spain |
| I'm Still Here | Ainda Estou Aqui | Walter Salles | Brazil, France |
| Iron | Dzelzs | Vitaly Mansky | Latvia, Ukraine, Czech Republic |
| Megalopolis | — | Francis Ford Coppola | United States |
| Phantosmia | — | Lav Diaz | Philippines |
| Scénarios / Exposé du film annonce | — | Jean-Luc Godard | France |
| Separated | — | Errol Morris | United States, Mexico |
| Youth (Spring) | 青春（春） | Wang Bing | France, Luxembourg, Netherlands |
| Youth (Hard Times) | 青春（苦） | Wang Bing | France, Luxembourg, Netherlands |
| Youth (Homecoming) | 青春（歸） | Wang Bing | France, Luxembourg, Netherlands |

#### Leos Carax: The Glamour of Decadence

The following films were selected for screening in the Masterclass section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Year of release | Production countrie(s) |
| The Night Is Young | Mauvais Sang | Leos Carax | 1986 | France |
| Les Amants du Pont-Neuf | — | Leos Carax | 1991 | France |
| Annette | — | Leos Carax | 2021 | France, Germany, Belgium, United States, Japan, Mexico, Switzerland |
| It's Not Me | C'est pas moi | Leos Carax | 2024 | France |

#### The Subversive Cinema of Albert Serra

The following films were selected for screening in the Masterclass section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Year of release | Production countrie(s) |
| Honor of the Knights | Honor de cavalleria | Albert Serra | 2006 | Spain |
| Birdsong | El cant dels ocells | Albert Serra | 2008 | Spain |
| Story of My Death | Història de la meva mort | Albert Serra | 2013 | Spain, France, Romania |
| Liberté | — | Albert Serra | 2019 | Spain, France, Germany, Portugal |
| Pacifiction | — | Albert Serra | 2022 | Spain, France, Germany, Portugal |
| Afternoons of Solitude | Tardes de soledad | Albert Serra | 2024 | Spain, France, Portugal |

#### The Empathetic Touch of Juho Kuosmanen

The following films were selected for screening in the Masterclass section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Year of release | Production countrie(s) |
| The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki | Hymyilevä mies | Juho Kuosmanen | 2016 | Finland |
| Compartment No. 6 | Hytti nro 6 | Juho Kuosmanen | 2021 | Finland, Germany, Estonia, Russia |
| Silent Trilogy | Mykkätrilogia | Juho Kuosmanen | 2024 | Finland |

#### Les Auteurs

The following films have been selected for screening in the Les Auteurs section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| The Blue Trail | O Último Azul | Gabriel Mascaro | Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Netherlands |
| The Damned | — | Roberto Minervini | Italy, United States, Belgium, Canada |
| Eight Postcards from Utopia | Opt ilustrate din lumea ideală | Radu Jude, Christian Ferencz-Flatz | Romania |
| Kontinental '25 | — | Radu Jude | Romania |
| Ernest Cole: Lost and Found | — | Raoul Peck | United States, France |
| The Invasion | — | Sergei Loznitsa | Netherlands, France, United States |
| Misericordia | Miséricorde | Alain Guiraudie | France, Spain, Portugal |
| An Urban Allegory | Allégorie citadine | Alice Rohrwacher, JR | France |
| Sex | — | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |
| Love | Kjærlighet | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |
| Dreams (Sex Love) | Drømmer | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |

### Global Vision

The following films have been selected for screening in the Global Vision section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Asia ||||
| The Land of Morning Calm | 아침바다 갈매기는 | Park Ri-woong | South Korea |
| Santosh | — | Sandhya Suri | India, France, United Kingdom, Germany |
| Super Happy Forever | — | Kohei Igarashi | France, Japan |
| Viet and Nam | Trong lòng đất | Minh Quý Trương | Vietnam |
| Europe ||||
| Diciannove | — | Giovanni Tortorici | Italy, United Kingdom |
| Drowning Dry | Sesės | Laurynas Bareiša | Latvia, Lithuania |
| Ghost Trail | Les Fantômes | Jonathan Millet | France, Germany, Belgium |
| Harvest | — | Athina Rachel Tsangari | United Kingdom, Germany, Greece, France, United States |
| The New Year That Never Came | Anul Nou care n-a fost | Bogdan Mureșanu | Romania, Serbia |
| Of Dogs and Men | על כלבים ואנשים | Dani Rosenberg | Israel |
| On Falling | — | Laura Carreira | United Kingdom, Portugal |
| Quiet Life | — | Alexandros Avranas | France, Germany, Sweden, Estonia, Greece |
| Souleymane's Story | L'Histoire de Souleymane | Boris Lojkine | France |
| The Sparrow in the Chimney | Der Spatz im Kamin | Ramon Zürcher | Switzerland |
| To a Land Unknown | — | Mahdi Fleifel | United Kingdom, Germany, France, Greece |
| Toxic | Akiplėša | Saulė Bliuvaitė | Lithuania |
| The Trail Left by Time | Los restos del pasar | Luis Soto Muñoz, Alfredo Picazo | Spain |
| Waves | Vlny | Jiří Mádl | Czech Republic, Slovakia |
| America ||||
| Baby | — | Marcelo Caetano | Brazil, France, Netherlands |
| Beloved Tropic | Querido Trópico | Ana Endara | Panama, Colombia |
| Carnival Is Over | Os Enforcados | Fernando Coimbra | Brazil, Portugal |
| The Message | El mensaje | Iván Fund | Argentina, Spain, Uruguay |
| Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed | — | Hernán Rosselli | Argentina, Portugal, Spain |
| Universal Language | Une langue universelle | Matthew Rankin | Canada |
| Africa ||||
| Everybody Loves Touda | في حب تودا | Nabil Ayouch | France, Morocco, Belgium, Denmark |
| On Becoming a Guinea Fowl | — | Rungano Nyoni | Zambia, United Kingdom, Ireland |

### Fantastic Beats

The following films have been selected for screening in the Fantastic Beats section, marking the world premiere of the Japanese romance film Sato and Sato.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Unreachable | 片思い世界 | Nobuhiro Doi | Japan |
| She Taught Me Serendipity | 今⽇の空が⼀番好き、とまだ⾔えない僕は | Akiko Ōku | Japan |
| Sato and Sato | 佐藤さんと佐藤さん | Chihiro Amano | Japan |
| The Red Envelope | ซองแดงแต่งผี | Chayanop Boonprakob | Thailand |
| Bird | — | Andrea Arnold | United Kingdom, France |
| Kneecap | — | Rich Peppiatt | United Kingdom, Ireland |
| Angry Squad: The Civil Servant and the Seven Swindlers | アングリースクワッド 公務員と7人の詐欺師 | Ueda Shinichiro | Japan |
| Ravens | — | Mark Gill | Japan, France, Belgium, Spain |

### Restored Classics

Eight restored film classics from various eras and regions were selected for showcase at the festival:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Year of release | Production countrie(s) |
| The Wind | — | Victor Sjöström | 1928 | United States |
| Man's Castle | — | Frank Borzage | 1933 | United States |
| Pépé le Moko | — | Julien Duvivier | 1937 | France |
| Seven Samurai | 七人の侍 | Akira Kurosawa | 1954 | Japan |
| Murdering the Devil | Vražda ing. Čerta | Ester Krumbachová | 1970 | Czechoslovakia |
| Bona | — | Lino Brocka | 1980 | Philippines |
| Tasio | — | Montxo Armendáriz | 1984 | Spain |
| The Sweet Hereafter | — | Atom Egoyan | 1997 | Canada |

### Focus
#### Ando Sakura: A Beautiful Metamorphosis

The following films which starred Japanese actress Sakura Ando were selected for screening in the Focus section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Year of release | Production countrie(s) |
| 0.5 mm | 0.5ミリ | Momoko Andō | 2014 | Japan |
| 100 Yen Love | 百円の恋 | Masaharu Take | 2014 | Japan |
| Shoplifters | 万引き家族 | Hirokazu Kore-eda | 2018 | Japan |
| Bad Lands | バッド・ランズ | Masato Harada | 2023 | Japan |