Guest post: White Light, G2D present post-production awards at HAF

Lee Chatametikool, right, hands over the White Light Post-Production Award to makers of the Vietnamese film The Third Wife.

Keith Barclay is editor of the New Zealand film industry publication Screenz. A sponsored journalist covering Filmart, he offers Wise Kwai's Thai Film Journal tailored coverage of Filmart, the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum and the Asian Film Awards.

Story and photo by Keith Barclay

The 14th edition of the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) handed out 14 awards, although not to 14 filmmakers as a number of projects got to visit the stage more than once.

Thai Director Rooth Tang's March April May didn't win an award, but that didn't make the event a failure for him. Bangkok post-production facility White Light sponsored one of the awards, which was won by Vietnamese director Nguyen Phuong Anh's The Third Wife. Nguyen's project also won the headline HAF award.

HAF received a record 350+ project submissions, naming 31 from 15 countries and regions for this year's edition. Not all projects are eligible for consideration for all prizes, but the value of the awards was almost HK$1.5 million in cash and in-kind services.

Organised by the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, the event saw the festival's former vice chair return for a second year running. Taiwanese actress, director and producer Sylvia Chang last year opened the HKIFF with Murmurs of the Heart. This year, René Liu's Lieutenant Yi, produced by Chang, took HAF's Wanda Film Award.

Other well-known filmmakers visiting the podium were Filipino Lav Diaz, whose A Lullaby To The Sorrowful Mystery recently won a Silver Bear at the Berlinale. In Hong Kong, Diaz's project When the Waves are Gone took HAF's Paris Coproduction Village Award, which will send him back to Europe for the Champs-Elysèes Film Festival's project market.

Three projects took two awards each. Wang Bing's Hong Kong-China documentary project Border Bride took the Fushan award for development and G2D award for post; Wen Muye's China project Dying to Survive took the Artention incubator and iQIYI special awards.

Film financing forum/project market HAF (14 – 16 March), ran as part of the Hong Kong Entertainment Expo, which also includes FILMART (14 – 17 March), and the Hong Kong International Film Festival (21 March – 4 April).

The HAF Awards were presented 16 March in Hong Kong. The winners were:

HAF Awards
Presented by Create Hong Kong, Hong Kong Film Development Fund and the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF). Two cash awards of HK$150,000 (approx. US$19,350)

• Hong Kong project award: Vampire Diary, Director Anthony Yan  and Hang Chiu, Producer Ha Yu and Mani Man
• Hong Kong International project award: The Third Wife (working title), Director Nguyen Phuong Anh, Producer Tran Thi Bich Ngoc, Vietnam

iQIYI Special Award
Cash award of HK$100,000 (approx. US$12,900) to encourage and support young film talents from Chinese speaking territories

• Dying to Survive, Director Wen Muye, Producer Ning Hao, China

HAF/Fox Chinese Film Development Award
Cash award of HK$100,000 (approx. US$12,900) to encourage the development of Chinese-language cinema

• Brothers, Director Jong Yu, Producer Jin Ong and Roland Lee, Malaysia

HAF Script Development Fund
Cash award of US$10,000 (approx. HK$77,500) to encourage Chinese-language scripts

• Heavy Craving, Writer/Director Pei-Ju Hsieh, Producer Jing Wang

Wanda Film Award
Cash award of HK$100,000 (approx. US$12,900) to a Chinese-language feature film project for its originality and creativity

• Lieutenant Yi, Director René Liu, Producer Sylvia Chang and Patricia Cheng Lai-chan, Taiwan

Fushan Documentary Award
Cash award of HK$100,000 (approx. US$12,900) for development of a documentary feature

• Border Bride, Director WANG Bing, Producer Isabelle GLACHANT, Hong Kong, China

Wouter Barendrecht Award
Cash award of HK$50,000 (approx. US$6,450), dedicated to the memory of the late Wouter Barendrecht, one of the founders of HAF and Fortissimo Films

• Inking a Last Masterpiece, Director Uchijima Usuke, Producer Kawabata Kohei, Japan

The Artention Film Award
Cash award of HK$50,000 (approx. US$6,450) to encourage projects that exhibit high artistic and commercial potential. Winner will also receive priority entry into Artention Film Incubator

• Dying to Survive, Director Wen Muye, Producer Ning Hao, China

Paris Coproduction Village Award
In-kind award of Euro 4,000 (approx. HK$36,000) for a round-trip ticket to participate in the Paris Coproduction Village of Champs-Elysèes Film Festival 2016

• When the Waves are Gone, Director Lav Diaz, Producer Bianca Balbuena and Bradley Liew, The Philippines

Network of Asian Fantastic Films Award
In-kind award of US$2,700 (approx. HK$20,900) for a round-trip ticket and hotel accommodation to the filmmaker whose project is selected for NAFF

• Hypnotize the Jury, Director Paul Sze Pak-lam and Kenneth Lai Siu-kwan, Producer Tin Kai-man, Hong Kong

Wutianming Post Production Award
In-kind award of RMB 300,000 (approx. HK$350,400) for a selected HAF Chinese project to receive post-production services at Wutianming's post-production base in Tianjin

• Lhamo and Skalbe, Director Sonthar Gyal, Producer Sonam Rinchen Gyal, China

White Light Post-Production Award
In-kind award of US$15,000 (approx. HK$116,200) for post-production services by White Light Studio in Bangkok

• The Third Wife (working title), Director Nguyen Phuong Anh, Producer Tran Thi Bich Ngoc, Vietnam

G2D Post-Production Award
In-kind award of US$10,000 (approx.HK$77,500) for post-production works at G2D in Bangkok

• Border Bride, Director Wang Bing, Producer Isabelle Glachant, Hong Kong, China