ifva

The 30th ifva Awards

Open Group Finalist Showcase

Programme 1

Open Group Finalist Showcase

9/10 (Fri) | 7:30pm | Louis Koo Cinema, Hong Kong Arts Centre | 83' | HK$ 85/68*

Landing On Ice

Jane Leung

Hong Kong / 22'41'' / In English and Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles

Hong Kong figure skater Wing Yee traveled to Toronto alone for advanced training, aspiring to compete on the international stage. Encouraged by her coach and peers, Wing Yee experienced significant improvement in her skills. Her roommate, Christy, was friendly and welcoming, which helped Wing Yee settle into local life smoothly...

Passing By

Leung Chak Long

Hong Kong, Taiwan / 25'00'' / In Mandarin with Chinese and English subtitles

An ophthalmologist numbs his past with eye drops, drifting into visions born of childhood trauma. When he meets a mysterious patient named Pin-Hong, the line between reality and illusion begins to blur. As his assistant Eve prepares to leave his fractured world, he must face a painful choice: to remain in the gentle comfort of illusion, or to truly see the world as it is.

Burning in Dreams

Benson Koo

Hong Kong / 11'43'' / No dialogue with English subtitles

Memories of dreams are like a piece of paper filled with words in our minds, leaving only burnt fragments upon waking. If these memory snippets are edited together, would it be a documentary of nightmares? Or a stream-of-consciousness short film akin to collage art...

Life (cycle) of the Hong Kong Newt

Fung Hon Shing

Hong Kong / 09'50'' / No Dialogue with Chinese and English subtitles

A Hong Kong Newt once resided in a narrow irrigation channel, believing it would be confined there forever. However, an unexpected flood swept it away, carrying it through a dark passage until it arrived in a serene, azure pond. The newt found companionship among its kind and thrived in the aquatic haven. But as it ventured back onto land after the breeding season, it encountered unforeseen threats.

Boiling Point

Ying Ze

Hong Kong / 13'27'' / In Mandarin with English subtitles

Lao Dong, a regular at the bar, gets into a heated argument with two livestreamers. To prove his toughness, he’s forced to drink 120-degree boiling water in front of a crowd. As the temperature rises, so does the number of onlookers, both in the bar and online...

Programme 2

Open Group Finalist Showcase

10/10 (Sat) | 7:30pm | Louis Koo Cinema, Hong Kong Arts Centre | 103' | HK$ 85/68*

Saddle the Wind

Tsang Ming Sum

Hong Kong / 14'20'' / In Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles

Saddle the Wind unfolds over a humid summer night, closely following a Little Bullet crew known as “Day and Night.” Led by their captain Ah Lun and vice-captain Panda, the riders move through the city’s arteries—between neon lights and glistening asphalt—where the hum of wheels and rush of wind form a rhythm of their own...

The Red Kiss

Steve Li, Chan Tsz Kwan Amy

Hong Kong / 24'28'' / In Cantonese and Mandarin with English subtitles

Two 16-year-old girls, Qian and Vicky, are torn between the lines of friendship and romance, unsure where they truly stand, as they rehearse for a love drama in summer holiday. Before the school starts, the secret kissing plot is exposed and their show is banned. Yet, it unfolds Qian’s courage that she decides to make a bold move on the first school day.

Eternity in the Universe

Tong Ho Yin Thyestes

Hong Kong / 23'00'' / In Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles

After their parents divorced, a brother and sister were placed in a foster home by social workers and learned to take care of each other. Millennium bug crisis, doomsday prophecies, times go by, nothing remains the same...

Mint Condition

Tsoi So Man

Hong Kong / 23'30'' / In Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles

Lok Chen, a primary school student, was sent by her father to a school that champion perfection. Anything that is less is intolerable. With a grading scheme of either a full 100 or 0, those who fail to perform to perfection will be modified for improvements. Soon, Lok Chen discovers that the system itself is flawed with dystopic intent. Will she survive the system now becomes the question.

Once upon a time there was a Mountain

To Chun Him

Hong Kong / 17'20'' / In Cantonese, English and Mandarin with Chinese and English subtitles

At the end of summer, a group of friends bid farewell to their childhood with a final football match and embark on a daring escapade, each about to embark on a different path in life.