Hong Kong Film Delegation Showcases Talent at 76th Berlin International Film Festival and Celebrates Michelle Yeoh's Achievement

CCIDA and Hong Kong Film Development Council lead industry delegation to participate in 76th Berlin International Film Festival in Germany

The Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDA) under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau (CSTB) and the Hong Kong Film Development Council (FDC) led an industry delegation to participate in the 76th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in Germany. A series of exchange activities themed "Hong Kong Cinema @ Berlin 2026" was held to promote Hong Kong cinema internationally and support emerging Hong Kong filmmakers in exploring overseas markets. The delegation also attended the Opening Ceremony of Berlinale at which veteran actress Michelle Yeoh was presented with a Berlinale life achievement award.

The Assistant Commissioner for Cultural and Creative Industries and Secretary-General of the FDC, Mr Gary Mak, attended the Opening Ceremony of Berlinale on February 12 (Berlin time), where Yeoh received the Honorary Golden Bear. He conveyed congratulations and gratitude from the CSTB to Yeoh, in appreciation of her contributions to the Hong Kong and global film industry.

CCIDA and the FDC organised a Hong Kong Night networking reception on February 13 (Berlin time) as a key event during the festival, which attracted over 200 filmmakers and industry professionals from around the world. The event aimed at helping Hong Kong filmmakers to expand their international network. Speaking at the event, Mr Mak remarked that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and the FDC have actively supported the development of the Hong Kong film industry. By participating in international film festivals, Hong Kong filmmakers with promising potential are provided with opportunities to showcase their work and exchange ideas with global filmmakers.

To nurture new film talent, four emerging Hong Kong filmmakers were included in the delegation, including producer of "The Trough" Lorraine Ho; coproducer of "Shambhala", which was selected for the main competition of the 74th Berlinale, Fanny Chong; director and scriptwriter of "Smashing Frank" Trevor Choi; and Nicole Chu, who was selected for the 2026 Berlinale Talents from more than 3 000 applicants worldwide. CCIDA sponsored Ho, Chong and Choi to participate in the Berlinale Co-Production Market, and also invited FDC member Mr Frederick Tsui as a delegate to facilitate more collaborations and exchanges between the emerging filmmakers and international counterparts. CCIDA aims to make good use of this international platform at Berlinale and assist Hong Kong filmmakers in promoting new cross-regional projects.

During the festival, CCIDA members also met with representatives from various international film institutions and festivals, including the French National Centre of Cinema, the Toronto International Film Festival, the Udine Far East Film Festival and Bridging Visions, to continue expanding global opportunities for the Hong Kong film industry.

The Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and the Hong Kong Film Development Council led an industry delegation to participate in the 76th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in Germany and organised a Hong Kong Night networking reception on February 13 (Berlin time). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and the Hong Kong Film Development Council led an industry delegation to participate in the 76th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in Germany. Photo shows the Assistant Commissioner for Cultural and Creative Industries and Secretary-General of the Hong Kong Film Development Council, Mr Gary Mak (second right), meeting with representatives from the French National Centre of Cinema on February 13 (Berlin time). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and the Hong Kong Film Development Council led an industry delegation to participate in the 76th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in Germany. Photo shows the Assistant Commissioner for Cultural and Creative Industries and Secretary-General of the Hong Kong Film Development Council, Mr Gary Mak (centre); the Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Berlin, Mr Indiana Wong (fourth right) and other delegation members attending the Hong Kong Night networking reception on February 13 (Berlin time). Hong Kong director Ray Yeung (third left) who was invited by the festival to serve on the jury of Berlinale Teddy Award this edition also attended. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Remarks by SFST on enhanced regulation of licensed money lenders at media session

Following are the remarks by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, at a media session after attending a radio programme this morning (March 15):

Reporter: About the money lenders regulations, so what are the impacts of these new measures that you are expected? The second question is regarding the Middle East situation. Can you recap in English, what's the situation's impact on Hong Kong's, especially financial and family office business? And how would it affect the foreign investment? Thank you.

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury: In response to your first question about the measures that we put together in the money lenders regime. I would say that the proposed measures that we have are very targeted in terms of issues that we need to deal with. I think one of the issues that we come across very often is that many households are being used as referees in some of these lending activities of their domestic helpers. So that's why from August 1 this year, we require that no more such requirement can be imposed on in the lending activities, in a sense that no referee will be required in such lending activities with a view to protecting our citizens.

Secondly, I would say, in terms of the overall approach that we take to deal with this money lending regime is that we are applying a rather equivalent requirement, not just to domestic helpers but everybody with a monthly income below $12,000. In this regard, we have applied a ratio which is applicable to the proportion of money on a monthly basis that need to repay the debt, and at the same time to make sure that all the lenders in this regime will be able to share information such that there's no one single individual who try to borrow from different lenders can circumvent the requirement.

In response to your second question about how we see the Middle East. As you all can see, on the financial services side, the stability, the safety and also sophistication of financial centre are more robust than ever in terms of how we are being viewed internationally and also domestically. That's why against this backdrop, we are proposing some measures to strengthen our role as an asset and wealth management centre in the current regime where many investors would like to diversify their investments. And that's why we have a law in place to be proposed to the legislature with a view to extending the tax concession that we are going to give to family offices and also to the funds that are eligible, in such a way that they will be qualified for tax concession for a wider spectrum of products. At the same time, in two weeks' time, we are going to launch our annual Wealth for Good Summit for family offices such that we can bring these advantages to the international family office ecosystem. As we gather from Invest Hong Kong, in fact a few of the Middle Eastern families are already in town, trying to anticipate our event and at the same time to know more about what we have to offer for family offices and also corporate investors in terms of our asset management businesses.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the remarks.)

Source: AI-found images