Hong Kong filmmaker Ann Hui, who received the Camellia Award at the opening of Busan International Film Festival, shared her experiences of being a woman filmmaker in a male-dominated industry at a festival press conference, along with her thoughts on how Hong Kong cinema has evolved.

When asked how other women had helped shape her career, Hui said she’d had five women bosses when she entered the industry back in the ‘70s who had welcomed her and helped her to become established as a filmmaker.

“I was lucky because my first five bosses really supported me, gave me freedom and support, and allowed me to do what I wanted with the TV programs I was making. They were only criticizing me to make my work better,” Hui said.

“Afterwards I met people who were not so nice, so I really want to talk about these five women in my masterclass. Some were company bosses and there were some actresses as well. It’s true that I seem to learn much less from men. I don’t know why because I’m not unfriendly with them, but perhaps it’s like karma in Buddhism, I don’t work with them as well.”

Hui started her career working for Hong Kong broadcaster TVB, back then an incubator for Hong Kong’s new wave of pioneering filmmakers, before moving into features, many of which have won awards at major festivals, spanning the ‘80s to the present day.

Her body of work includes an early trilogy about the Vietnamese boat people – Below The Lion Rock, The Story Of Woo Viet and Boat People – which was followed by films in a variety of genres including The Romance Of Book And Sword, Eighteen Springs, All About Love, A Simple Life, which won best actress in Venice, and The Golden Era, which won best director at Taiwan’s Golden Horse. Her most recent work, Elegies (2023), a documentary about Hong Kong poetry, opened Hong Kong International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Horse Awards.

Looking back at developments in the Hong Kong film industry since the ‘70s, Hui also talked about the changing status of female filmmakers. “When I worked in TV in the ‘70s, and later when I made my first film, I tried my best to work on subjects like cops and robbers that men do,” Hui remembered. “I wanted to prove that women can do what men do.”

“But once I’d fulfilled that intention, I got back to subjects that really interest me; about the predicament of people in modern-day society, which is also quite a lot about women. It wasn’t intentional to make women’s stories, that’s just the way it turned out.”

She also observed that when she started her career, there were many women directors in television, but only two or three in the film industry. Now there are about 10-20 women directors actively working in the Hong Kong industry, she observed (including many that have had films screen in Busan, Hong Kong and Tokyo film festivals, including Norris Wong, Oliver Chan, Heiward Mak, Jessey Tsang and Cheuk Wan-chi).

“Nowadays their position has become much better,” she continued. “Back in the ‘70s, I felt under pressure to have very masculine habits and dress like a man. It was almost like pretending to be a man when I’m on set. But nowadays, the female directors do not hide their gender when they’re working, and don’t mind coming across as quite feminine. They’re also much more conscious in the way they’re trying to make films telling women’s stories, which I think is totally legitimate.”

While saying that she felt “very jealous” of developments in Korean cinema, Hui said she’s also encouraged by the new generation of Hong Kong filmmakers, who have a different approach to the freewheeling and commercially driven filmmakers of the ‘80s and ‘90s.

“Despite the lack of investment, the young filmmakers in Hong Kong are still very dedicated, hardworking, and talented. I feel that if they have an opening, they will be able to make better films than we did, because in the ‘80s and ‘90s it was all about entertainment. There was a lot of volume but very little content.

“But now the filmmakers are trying their best, perhaps because it’s so difficult to raise investment, they put a lot of effort into the planning and some of the films are really good.”

She also mentioned the big improvements in acting in Hong Kong cinema. “Back in our era, most of the actors and actresses came from soap operas or beauty pageants. Now they all come from the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, so they have a really solid foundation in acting. They also have really professional ethics.”

While accepting the Camellia Award at Busan’s opening ceremony, Hui mentioned that it was getting “more difficult” for her to make films as she turns eighty next year. She joked in the press conference about being worried that she’d trip on the red carpet because she’s not so steady on her feet these days.

But she also said that she still enjoys making movies and is currently developing some ideas, so she’s not ready to announce her retirement just yet. “My judgment and understanding has not been reduced, in fact experience gives you a deeper understanding. So I still want to make films because I want to convey this new understanding that I have now in my work.”

Jointly presented by BIFF and Chanel, the festival’s Camellia Award honors pioneering women filmmakers who advance the role of women in Asian cinema. Previous recipients have included Korean production designer Ryu Seong-hie (Decision To Leave) and Taiwanese filmmaker and actress Sylvia Chang (Love Education, Daughter’s Daughter).