Summer Family Cine Fest Offers 40+ Film Screenings Across Hong Kong This July and August

Summer Family Cine Fest to take families on fantastical cinematic adventures

The Film Programmes Office (FPO) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department will present the Summer Family Cine Fest (SFCF) from July 12 to August 16, offering over 40 fun-filled film screenings at the Hong Kong Film Archive, Hong Kong City Hall, the Hong Kong Science Museum, the Hong Kong Space Museum (HKSpM) and the North District Town Hall. The programme is one of the highlights of the International Arts Carnival (IAC).

The Feature Films section features 15 works. Blending animation and live action, "Diplodocus" (2024) tells the story of a cute little comic dinosaur, which, in order to save itself and its family, must help its creator regain his confidence to create. In the animated film "Into the Wonderwoods" (2024), while on the way to visit his grandmother, 10-year-old Angelo is accidentally left behind in the wild. With his imagination and courage, he embarks on a solo journey while braving monsters and demons in the forest.

In "Fox and Hare Save the Forest" (2024), a selfish beaver causes a flood in the forest, and other animals bravely come together to save their home. "Tummy Tom and the Lost Teddy Bear" (2024) follows a cat on an adventurous journey to find its favourite cuddle toy bear. In "Benjamin Bat" (2024), a little bat named Benjamin is bullied by his brothers for loving singing and becoming friends with a bat's sworn enemy, a bird. For himself and his friend, he needs to muster his courage to stand up against the odds. A cute penguin in "Thelma's Perfect Birthday" (2024) accidentally travels from the Land of Ice to the warm Great Forest and learns the meaning of growth through this whimsical journey.

"Buffalo Kids" (2024) from Spain tells the story of two young siblings and their disabled new friend teaming up to battle wits and strength against outlaws of the Wild West in a thrilling adventure of courage and inclusion. Starting from the parents of a young boy building a sailboat in their home garden, "A Boat in the Garden" (2024) tells a story of perseverance and dedication of a family of three in the pursuit of dreams.

The Swedish film "The Pinchers' High Voltage Heist" (2023) delivers a comedic portrayal of a quirky family of thieves and their hilarious lives together. In the award-winning "Coco Farm" (2023), three youngsters strive to build a business guided by conscience. In "Lampo, The Travelling Dog" (2023), a social media-famous dog and a sick girl cross paths at a train station, leading to a heartwarming tale of mutual care between human and canine. "Greetings from Mars" (2024) tells the story of how Tom turns his passion for space exploration into strength when his mother has to travel a long way away.

The SFCF also features three sports-themed films. "King Richard" (2021) depicts the parenting story of tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams' father and coach, who meticulously guided them to success. Lead actor Will Smith won Best Actor awards at the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards and British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards for his performance. "Lioness" (2023) follows a South American migrant girl in the Netherlands pursuing her dream of becoming a football player in a strange land. "The Hill" (2023) delivers a passionate and inspiring true story of a baseball prodigy overcoming adversity despite suffering from a degenerative spinal condition.

In addition, the FPO will co-organise with the HKSpM to present the dome show, "The Great Solar System Adventure!" (2024), at the Space Theatre of the HKSpM. Audiences will be guided through an exhilarating journey across the solar system. After the screenings, audiences will be invited to join a post-screening activity at the HKSpM Lecture Hall to make Mars paper models and learn about the major discoveries of various Mars exploration missions. This activity will be conducted in Cantonese.

Veteran dubbing artists Yip Ka-man and Kinson Lai will perform live Cantonese dubbing for "Thelma's Perfect Birthday", "Benjamin Bat" and "Into the Wonderwoods" with no subtitles. "The Great Solar System Adventure!" is in Cantonese, with English available through the headphone system, with no subtitles. Other films will feature Chinese and English subtitles.

Apart from the feature films, the FPO has hand-picked 20 animated short films from around the world to present three World Animation & Shorts programmes, titled "All About Love", "Is That OK?" and "Craving For Food!". Professional actor and drama tutor Man Jai (Raymond Chan) will host an introduction in Cantonese for the programmes.

The FPO will also present a two-day event titled Summer of Light: Cinematic Adventure at Sai Wan Ho Civic Centre on July 12 and 13. The event consists of free activities and ticketed workshops for the public to participate. Details will be available in early June on the FPO website www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp.

Tickets are priced at $88 and will be available from tomorrow (May 16) at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2734 2900 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/fp/en/listing.html?id=75.

For details of other IAC programmes, please visit the website www.hkiac.gov.hk.

Summer Family Cine Fest to take families on fantastical cinematic adventures Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Summer Family Cine Fest to take families on fantastical cinematic adventures Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Summer Family Cine Fest to take families on fantastical cinematic adventures Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Summer Family Cine Fest to take families on fantastical cinematic adventures Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Summer Family Cine Fest to take families on fantastical cinematic adventures Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

EDB reminds parents to choose primary schools under Central Allocation process for their children

The Education Bureau (EDB) today (January 12) reminded parents that children who have joined the Primary One Admission (POA) System for 2026 but have not yet secured a discretionary place can take part in the Central Allocation process for a Primary One (P1) place in a government or aided primary school. Parents concerned should make their choice of schools within the period from January 19 to 25.

Digitalisation of POA

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In line with the Smart Government strategy, the EDB has fully implemented digitalisation of the POA. Parents who have registered as POA e-Platform (ePOA) users and have bound their account to "iAM Smart+" may submit the Choice of Schools Form for Central Allocation from January 19 to 25 through the ePOA. Please refer to the related videos and Parent's Guide on the EDB's website (www.edb.gov.hk/en/edu-system/primary-secondary/spa-systems/primary-1-admission/poa_eplatform/index.html) for details of the procedures for activating and logging into an ePOA account and for making school choices for the Central Allocation of POA via the e-Platform.

Making school choices at Central Allocation Centres

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The EDB will send letters to parents on January 14 inviting them to make their choice of schools. To cater for the needs of different parents, parents can still submit the Choice of Schools Form in paper form by visiting the designated Central Allocation Centre at the suggested time slot (i.e. 9.30am to 12.30pm or 1.30pm to 4.30pm on January 24 (Saturday) or 9.30am to 12.30pm on January 25 (Sunday)) stated in the letter.

Parents who are ePOA users may choose to submit the Central Allocation Application via the ePOA or in paper form to the Central Allocation Centre but should not submit duplicate applications. Parents who have not yet received the letter by January 19 should call the School Places Allocation Section of the EDB (Hotline: 2832 7700) as soon as possible.

Only one parent of an applicant child is required to complete the school choice-making procedures. Parents are advised not to take their children to the Central Allocation Centre if possible. Parents who cannot make school choices within the suggested time slot can go to the designated Central Allocation Centre from 1.30pm to 4.30pm on January 25. The Choice of Schools Form will be sent together with the letter to parents who have submitted a paper Application Form at the Discretionary Places stage for filling out in advance.

In the event of adverse weather or other special conditions on any day during the period of making school choices, please pay heed to radio or television announcements on the relevant special arrangements.

Unable to submit application within specified choice-making period

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For individual parents who are unable to use the ePOA or go to the Central Allocation Centre to make school choices, they can authorise in writing a representative to bring the completed Choice of Schools Form and their signed Letter of Authorisation to the Central Allocation Centre to proceed with the related procedures.

To apply for POA 2026 for their children after January 25, parents need to complete necessary procedures with the School Places Allocation Section, which will separately arrange P1 places for the applicant children in June.

Change of residential address

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An EDB spokesman reminded parents that, if they have recently moved their residence or have such plans in the near future, they are required to inform the School Places Allocation Section as soon as possible so that they can make school choices in the POA School Net where their new home is located. Parents should fill in the actual residential address of their child. If they provide a false address for securing a P1 place, the POA application of their child will be rendered void and the P1 place allocated will be withdrawn.

The EDB has put in place a monitoring mechanism to verify the residential addresses of applicant children as given by the parents. Random checks have also been stepped up. The public may call the School Places Allocation Section to report suspected cases of using a false address by parents for their children's POA application. The EDB will take action against false address cases.

Mechanism of Central Allocation

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Central Allocation is composed of two parts. Part A, which takes up 10 per cent of the P1 places earmarked for Central Allocation, is for unrestricted school choices. Parents can choose up to three government or aided primary schools in any school net. Part B takes up the remaining 90 per cent of the P1 places earmarked for Central Allocation. Parents of applicant children residing in the school net concerned are to select schools from the "Choice of Schools List for Central Allocation (Primary One Admission 2026)" of their school net, while parents of applicant children who intend to commute daily to schools in Hong Kong are to select schools from the "2026 Choice of Schools List for Central Allocation (For Applicant Children who intend to commute daily to schools in Hong Kong)". Parents should fill in the Choice of Schools Form in the order of their preference.

The mechanism of the Central Allocation is based on parents' choices in general. The computer-programmed allocation will first process the school choices in Part A and then the school choices in Part B. For oversubscribed schools, the order of priority in allocating places will be determined by random numbers generated by the computer for individual applicants to ensure fairness.

For information about the procedures for Central Allocation, please call the EDB's 24-hour automatic telephone enquiry service at 2891 0088.

Release of Central Allocation results

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For parents who have already activated their ePOA account via "iAM Smart" or "iAM Smart+", they will receive their Central Allocation results through the ePOA from 10am on June 3. Parents who wish to receive the allocation results via SMS on June 3 may choose such an option in the Choice of Schools Form. In addition, the allocation results will be sent to parents by post on June 3 and 4.

Source: AI-found images