The Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) has now for 24 editions stuck to its guns and to its mission of providing a platform through which the process of making movies all begins, even as the industry fortunes continue on their roller-coaster ride.
Recent success stories include the Golden Horse Best Animated Feature award-winner Another World (directed by Tommy Ng Kai-ching) and Berlin Perspectives pick Light Pillar (directed by Wu Zao)and HKIFF industry director Jacob Wong – the program’s overseer – was all smiles when tracked down on the sidelines of this year’s Filmart, while behind him, tucked away in little booths, the prospects of around 40 new projects were being discussed and dissected.
“It’s very exciting,” said Wong. “It’s always very exciting. It’s our second year of doing animation, the genre section is back and looking very healthy. We all know money is tight, and audiences are looking for something a little different. These are difficult times, I think, but people still want to make movies.”
In exploring animation and genre projects, HAF is keeping pace with the mood of the moment in Asia. Another way it has been doing so in recent years is expanding into sales through the HKIFF Collection initiative, which places HAF projects in the international shop window.
“This year’s HAF catalogue is very diversified across genre and style, with projects offering both strong festival appeal and commercial potential,” says Yiran Song, founder and CEO of Beijing-based sales company Monar Films, which shops the HKIFF Collection titles at select international markets throughout the year.
Highlights of the HKIFF Collection initiative from last year included Zhang Lu’s Chinese road filmGloaming in Luomu, whichwon the best film at the Busan Film Festival, and Lu’s Mothertongue, winner of best director and best actor at the 2025 Tokyo Film Festival.
The The Hollywood Reporter team has dug deep into this year’s HAF selections and picked out five titles with standout potential.
The film: Life is Yours (Dir: Emma Kawawada; Japan)
The companies: Toei, Loaded Films
The buzz: Producer Eiko Mizuno-Gray has form at HAF, having brought the Chie Hayakawa-directed Plan 75 (2022) here before it went on to become Japan’s Oscar hope. On the surface it looks like a tale of revenge – wronged woman wants payback against the corporation that caused her husband’s death – but director Emma Kawawada’s background as part of the Hirokazu Koreeda team means we can expect plenty of layers and twists to the tale.
The film: 131 (Dir: Sasha Chuk, Hong Kong)
The company: The Flow of Words Limited
The buzz: Arthouse veteran Stanley Kwan (Rogue) is onboard; director Sasha Chuk has previous with the acclaimed drama Fly Me To the Moon (2013). Hong Kong cinema tends to explore local flavors almost exclusively these days and here we have a tale that looks local – a mainland Chinese immigrant seeks solace and maybe even a little love by heading across the border – but might resonate globally, given its universal themes.
The film: Good Trip (Dir: Norris Wong Yee-lam, Wong Hoi; Hong Kong)
The company: Tango For Four Production Limited
The buzz: Veteran filmmaker Mabel Cheung (The Soong Sisters) is a dab hand when it comes to drama and here she’s throwing her weight behind one of Hong Kong’s most promising talents. Norris Wong Yee-lan shone with the lyrical My Prince Edward (2019), being named Best New Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards, and here trains her focus on a young woman who’s caring for her ailing father, and decides to take him on the trip of a lifetime.
The film: Zsazsa Zaturnnah (Dir: Avid Liongoren; Philippines)
The companies: Rocketsheep, Ghosts City Films
The buzz: Much ink has been splashed on the rise of Asian animation and here we have a production that taps into the Philippines rich history of komik super heroes (Darna, anyone?). Meet Zsazsa Zaturnnah, mild-mannered gay hairdresser by day, zombie-fighting female superhero by night – all while trying to mend a broken heart. Part of the Work in Progress section of the 2025 Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and a Philippine-French co-production.
The film: Searchers: Blood in the Grass (Dir: Park Kiyong; Mongolia/South Korea)
The company: Hulegu Pictures
The buzz: Mongolian cinema continues to evolve and has recently made a huge impression at HAF, thanks mainly to the Jiang Xiaoxuan–helmed To Kill a Mongolian Horse (2024) which picked up a major post-production prize. Here, veteran South Korean director Park Kiyong takes on a tale of murder on the high steppes, with a former military police gumshoe drawn into a world of gangsters, drug smuggling, and environmental destruction – and forced to work with a disapproving and difficult father-in-law.