Anthony Chen’s ‘We Are All Strangers’ to Open Hong Kong Film Festival

The landmark 50th edition of the Hong Kong International Film Festival will open with Anthony Chen‘s “We Are All Strangers” and close with Philip Yung’s “Cyclone,” with both films receiving their Asian premieres at the event.

HKIFF50 runs April 1-12 under the theme “50 and Beyond: Framing the Future,” presenting 215 films from 71 countries and regions, including 11 world premieres, four international premieres, and 49 Asian premieres.

Chen’s film, which opens the festival April 1 at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, is the concluding chapter of his Growing Up trilogy, probing the nature of family and belonging beyond conventional blood relationships. Starring Yeo Yann Yann and Koh Jia Ler, it recently became the first Singaporean film to compete at the Berlin Film Festival.

Yung’s “Cyclone,” starring Liu Yuqiao, Edwynn Li, and Jenny Suen, centers on transgender identity and the experience of social exclusion. The film had its world premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam earlier this year, and its HKIFF50 screenings April 12 will mark its Asian debut.

A roster of internationally prominent filmmakers is set to attend, including Filmmaker-in-Focus Jia Zhangke, Juliette Binoche, Chen Kaige, Tian Zhuangzhuang, Huang Jianxin, Ann Hui, Tsai Ming-Liang, Ildikó Enyedi, Pen-ek Ratanaruang, Edwin, and Ben Rivers.

For its Golden Jubilee, HKIFF50 has named Taiwanese actress Gingle Wang – winner of the Best Lead Actress prize at the 22nd Taipei Film Festival – and Thai actor Metawin Opasiamkajorn, recipient of the Asian Film Awards Academy’s Asian Rising Star Award in 2024, as Asian visionary ambassadors. They join festival ambassadors Angela Yuen and Tony Wu.

The festival will also host three sold-out performances of the Asian premiere of “In the Mood for Love – In Concert,” a collaboration with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra featuring live accompaniment and a new interpretation of the score from Wong Kar Wai’s classic film. A free exhibition, “50 and Beyond: The Hong Kong International Film Festival Golden Jubilee Exhibition,” will run at Hong Kong City Hall.