North American Premiere
Director Tsang Tsui Shan documents her hometown and one of its defining traditions in this moving film. Ho Chung Village lies in the hilly rural area of Hong Kong; once a decade, its citizens hold the Peace and Light Festival as a tribute to their village, its departed souls, and the gods that preside over them all. Tsung returns to Ho Chung in 2020 to document the preparations for the festival; soon the town is caught up in confusion and confinement due to COVID-19… Throughout the film, Tsung shows herself to be finely attuned to humanity: among the citizens featured are a Filipino nanny, set to depart Hong Kong as soon as she’s allowed; twin brothers who are trying to get a village newspaper project off the ground; and an elderly woman chafing against pandemic confinements. As a record of a place and its people, Winter Chants is fascinating, and as a portrait of civic communion, it’s quite poignant.
Supported by
Series Media Partner
Hong Kong
2023
Insights
In Cantonese and English with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits
Producer
Teresa Kwong, Ken Hui
Cinematography
Mak Chi Kwan Mike
Editor
Mary Stephen, eason Keung, Tsang Tsui Shan
Original Music
Masamichi Shigeno
Director
Tsang Tsui Shan
Tsang Tsui Shan was named the Best New Director at the 31st Hong Kong Film Award in 2012. In 2008, her first feature film Lovers On the Road (2008) won the Best Drama Film Award at the 8th South Taiwan Film Festival. Her second feature Big Blue Lake (2011) won the Jury Special Award of the 2013 Golden Koala Chinese Film Festival in Australia and the Asian New Talent Jury Prize of the 2012 Shanghai International Film Festival. In addition to film production, Tsang has also participated in advertisements and online TV productions. Her latest feature film The Lady Improper was released in April 2019.
Filmography: Lovers on the Road (2008); Big Blue Lake (2011); Flowing Stories (2014); Scent (2014); The Lady Improper (2019)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Marcel the Shell With Shoes On
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is a heartwarming film for all ages. Marcel, a tiny shell, lives with his grandmother Connie in a human house. When a filmmaker discovers Marcel, they team up to search for his long-lost relatives. Rated: G
Nechako: It Will Be a Big River Again
In the face of environmental destruction, two Nations fight to restore their river and a way of life.
Fairy Creek
Considered the largest act of civil disobedience in Canadian history, the Fairy Creek blockade led to more than 1200 arrests. What Jen Muranetz's film gives us is the story from the front line from the activists' point of view (often, from the treetops).