HONG KONG 2004 - Recreation, Sport and the Arts

Held annually in February and March, the Hong Kong Arts Festival is the most important international festival in Asia and has become highly regarded worldwide since it began in 1973. With a fine array of performers taking part, the 2004 festival attracted over 93 700 audience who attended 112 performances, with an average attendance of 87 per cent.

Presented by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, the 28th Hong Kong International Film Festival offered a wide range of programmes over a 16-day period. Altogether, 347 films from over 40 countries were showcased under special topics such as Director in Focus, Indie Power and Hong Kong Panorama (2003-04). Seminars, forums and exhibitions were also held. In addition, the Hong Kong Film Archive contributed classics of Cantonese melodrama in the 1950s and 60s.

The Festival continued to present a number of awards, namely the FIPRESCI (International Film Critics Federation) Award, Firebird Awards for Young Cinema, Asian DV Competition and Humanitarian Awards for Documentaries, and the latest addition SIGNIS Award.

The LCSD presented the six-week International Arts Carnival in summer to provide children, youth and families of Hong Kong with cultural programmes and interactive activities of a healthy and educational nature. Prior to the carnival, three drama outreach teams were lined up to promote arts activities in 110 kindergartens, primary and secondary schools as well as foyers of civic centres and shopping arcades to arouse community interest. The carnival presented the programmes in four major series. Apart from the innovative Fun HeARTS Linked series and the New Generation series for the youth, the 'ABC, Come and See' series was tailor-made for children aged from three to six and the Sporting Leonardo series was specially designed to celebrate the Olympic Year. Other than the well-received overseas programmes, the carnival also commissioned local artist groups to produce new interactive performances for parents and their children with a great success. Other carnival activities included a Graphic Design Competition open to all primary and secondary school students, intensive arts workshops, day camps and summer fun carnival. About 165 000 people took part in 491 events that featured 43 local groups and nine overseas groups.

To encourage Hong Kong people to expand their cultural and artistic vision to the international front and promote Hong Kong as a cultural metropolis in Asia, the department presented the New Vision Arts Festival from October 19 to November 21. The programming direction was set on the presentation of innovative and outstanding cross-cultural performances with contemporary Asian arts as the focus. Apart from the main stage programmes, the Festival also offered free community and extension activities ranging from outdoor performances, exhibitions, workshops and forums to performance tours to schools and master classes at universities. Some 87 cultural events, featuring 10 local groups and 13 overseas groups, were presented for some 55 000 participants.