Chu collaborated with young dancers and choreographers to explore prolific Hong Kong poet Yam Gong’s “Daily Life” (1987), which describes the nightmarish experience of falling seriously ill.
Ching’s parents are retirees ready to leave for Taiwan where a new chapter awaits them. The only thing holding them back is their daughter’s hesitation to join them. Unbeknownst to them, Ching is stuck in an affair with a married man. She is constantly teetering between trust and distrust, clinging on unfulfilled promises instead of letting go. Life has presented a difficult crossroad to her as she weighs between acting for her own good and following what the heart desires.
Poetry on Film is a moving image commissioning project for young and emerging Hong Kong filmmakers, motivated by the belief that poetry possesses an inherent cinematic quality. Its rhythmic cadence, vivid imagery, and emotional depth offer a rich tapestry for filmmakers to weave their visual narratives. Animator STEP C., narrative filmmaker Chu Hoi Ying, analogue film artist Jolene Mok, and documentarian Lee Wai Shing were asked to choose a contemporary Chinese-language poem written by a local writer, then visualise it using their personal cinematic language. The resulting shorts showcase the diversity of Hong Kong moving image practice, with unique approaches to medium, storytelling, cinematography, and sound.
On this day, an elderly Taiwanese mother and daughter, accompanied by a Burmese volunteer, journey from a rural area to an urban animal crematorium, tenderly carrying the body of their beloved cat, in hopes of ensuring that its final journey is marked by peace and grace.
Ching’s mother asks Ching to take her grandmother in until she is sent to a nursing home and that makes her ponder over her relationship with her mother. Three generations of women, each has their own share of pain.
