Hong Kong is a major film production centre. During the year, it produced 92 films. Action films, romance and comedies were the main genres.

    Going to the cinema is a popular leisure activity, with patrons being able to choose from a good variety of foreign and local films. In 2002, there were 61 cinemas (with 184 screens) compared with 62 cinemas (with 186 screens) in 2001. The box-office hits of the year included Infernal Affairs ($55.06 million), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets ($38.26 million) and Spider-Man ($28.57 million).

Film Classification System

Hong Kong has a three-tier film classification system: Category I (suitable for all ages); Category II, which is subdivided into Category IIA (not suitable for children) and Category IIB (not suitable for young persons and children); and Category III (for persons aged 18 and above only). The objective is to allow adults wide access to films while protecting persons under the age of 18 from exposure to potentially harmful material.

    Category IIA and IIB classifications are advisory (no statutory age restriction is imposed) and are intended to give more information to movie-goers, parents in particular, to help them select films for themselves or their children. Age restriction is mandatory for Category III films.

    During the year, 1 944 films were submitted for classification, compared with 1 169 films in 2001. Of these, 1 110 were classified Category I (43 with excisions), 323 Category IIA (none with excisions), 369 Category IIB (13 with excisions), and 142 Category III (24 with excisions). Film trailers, instructional films and cultural films intended for public exhibition also require censorship but do not need to be classified into any category. During the year, 6 299 such items were approved for exhibition.

    Film classification standards are kept in line with society's standards by regular surveys of community views and consultation with a statutory panel of advisers, comprising about 270 members drawn from a wide cross-section of the populace. A public opinion survey on the film classification system conducted in 2002 showed that the vast majority (97 per cent) of the public considered the current film classification standards acceptable.

    Decisions on film classifications may be reviewed by the Board of Review (Film Censorship), a statutory body established under the Film Censorship Ordinance. The board comprises nine non-official members appointed by the Chief Executive, and the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology as an ex officio member. No review of the censor's decisions took place in 2002.

Government Support

The Government is committed to providing a favourable environment conducive to the healthy and long-term development of the film industry in Hong Kong. The Film Services Advisory Committee was established in May 1998 to provide a conduit for dialogue between the industry and the Government and to advise on the work of the Film Services Office, under the Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority, which facilitates film production in Hong Kong and promotes Hong Kong films locally and abroad. The committee is appointed by the Chief Executive and comprises the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology who is the chairman, three representatives from the Government/public bodies and nine non-official members.

    Since its establishment in April 1998, the Film Services Office has obtained the agreement of over 850 government departments and other organisations to let their premises for location filming and has published reference materials in this regard for the industry. To facilitate film production in Hong Kong, the Film Services Office provides one-stop service to the film industry on location filming requests of a more complicated nature. During the year, it dealt with 398 such requests, with a 99 per cent success rate. To assist the film industry in applying for lane closures for location filming purposes, the Film Services Office, in consultation with the Police Force, Transport Department and Highways Department, promulgated a set of guidelines in March 2001. Under the new mechanism, the Film Services Office is responsible for coordinating the processing of such applications by other departments; 58 applications for lane closures were approved in 2002. The Film Services Office also continued to organise the 'Support Filming in Your Community' publicity campaign to enhance the public's understanding of and support for location filming in Hong Kong.

    To promote Hong Kong films internationally, the Film Services Office facilitated the organisation of Hong Kong Film Festivals in London, Paris, Washington DC and Vancouver. The Film Services Office also promoted Hong Kong as a choice for location filming at the global expo 'Locations 2002' held in Los Angeles in April, and received a number of awards in the event including a top honour in the marketing awards (promotional video category).

    The $100 million Film Development Fund, which was established in 1999, provides financial support to a wide variety of projects that can enhance the professional and technological capabilities of the film industry so as to strengthen its competitiveness. By year-end, a total of $38 million had been approved for 47 projects to promote the development of the local film industry. They included training courses, workshops, seminars, consultancy studies, surveys, film awards presentation ceremonies, overseas promotional projects as well as sponsorship for Hong Kong films' participation in overseas film festivals.

    Subsequent to the Hong Kong Film Financing Symposium held in December 2001, a series of follow-up actions has been taken to facilitate the development of a film-financing system in Hong Kong. The Film Services Office organised two rounds of workshops in mid-2002 to brief local bankers on the film production process as well as to explore the possibility of establishing a lender-financing mechanism locally. An experienced banker from the United Kingdom was invited to share experience in risk assessment and management in film financing with local bankers. In October, a consultation paper on the proposed establishment of a Film Guarantee Fund to provide loan guarantees for commercial film productions was published for consultation with the local film industry, the banking sector as well as the public at large. The result of the consultation showed that the proposal was widely supported. With the endorsement of the Film Services Advisory Committee and the Legislative Council's Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting in November and December respectively, the Government aimed to submit a proposal to the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council in early 2003, to set aside $50 million from the Film Development Fund for the establishment of the Film Guarantee Fund.

    With the commencement of the Entertainment Special Effects Ordinance and its subsidiary legislation on March 16, 2001, a streamlined regulatory system is now in place to facilitate the use of pyrotechnic materials for producing special effects for films, television and theatrical productions. Under the new legislation, the Commissioner for Television and Entertainment Licensing is the Authority responsible for licensing special effects operators; issuing discharge permits; registering and regulating the supply, conveyance and storage of pyrotechnic special effects materials. In 2002, the Authority issued 520 discharge permits for producing special effects. Before the legislation came into effect, the maximum number of discharge permits issued each year was less than 260. This indicates that the new regulatory system has been well received and utilised by the industry.