Exclusive Interview｜Oscar-winning director's reorganization amendment scandal Cowens: I hope Hong Kong people can solve the hatred

In June 2019, an unprecedented turmoil against the amendments broke out.

Malcolm Clarke, winner of multiple international film festival awards and two-time Oscar winner for Best Documentary Short, was in Hong Kong at the time. Like journalists from all over the world, he led the shooting team to the streets of conflict, and compiled what he saw and heard into a ten-episode documentary, "Malcolm Clarke". Hong Kong: The Covered Up (Hong Kong Returns).

In an exclusive interview with "Hong Kong 01", Ke Wensi bluntly said that he was angry that the European and American media simplified the incident into "a battle between cowboys and aborigines", and hoped that the documentary could fill in the blanks and make the audience think more; he also described that Hong Kong in 2019 " It is not a happy place." I hope Hong Kong people can put aside their prejudices, respect each other and resolve conflicts.

"Hong Kong 01" is authorized to broadcast "Hong Kong: The Covered Up Truth", which will broadcast two episodes a day from tomorrow (June 23), presenting readers with the "dangerous era" in the eyes of the British director.

Indignant European and American media reports biased

restructuring amendments turmoil to balance all parties

British documentary filmmaker Curwens, who has won 4 Oscar nominations, 2 Academy Awards for Best Documentary Short, 16 Emmy Awards and 5 CableACE Awards, has not yet become an independent producer. Previously, he worked for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

In an exclusive interview with "Hong Kong 01", he described the media industry and the film industry as "his world", but was angry and disappointed by "that world"'s biased report on Hong Kong's anti-amendment turmoil.

"This conflict was simplified by the European and North American media as 'a group of young people bravely pursuing democracy against a hegemonic China'. I am outraged by these reports because they are untrue and inaccurate. . This matter is more complicated than what they described in their reports." Ke Wensi pointed out at the outset that there was a discrepancy between the Western media's reports and what he saw on the streets of the demonstrations, so he decided to put himself and his team in Hong Kong. The filmed and collected videos are compiled into the documentary "Hong Kong: The Covered Truth", hoping to balance the information of all parties.

The documentary ran through almost the entire anti-amendment turmoil. From the demonstrations on June 9 to the "Siege of PolyU" at the end of November, many key conflict scenes were recorded.

Cowens further broadened his thinking to "deep-level contradictions" and began to explore the root causes of contradictions from the British colonization of Hong Kong. He believes that one of the major problems is that Hong Kong has not properly handled the "colonial mentality".

Curwens won the Best Documentary Short at the 86th Academy Awards in 2013 for "Lady No. 6".

(Associated Press)

Committed to exploring the causes from different

angles , but Hong Kong is "difficult to achieve balance"

Ke Wensi also interviewed NDP Executive Council member and Legislative Council member Yip Liu Shuyi, former Environment Bureau Director Christine Lok, who is regarded as a "centrist", Eric Wishart, former editor-in-chief of AFP, and chief executive of the South China Morning Post. News editor Yonden Lhatoo and others hope to understand the causes of the turmoil from the perspectives of different stakeholders.

However, the documentary rarely includes scenes involving police enforcement disputes, including excessive use of force and shooting.

Cowens explained that he had asked the police to let them film with the team, but the police did not seem to want to take unnecessary risks and refused.

He believes that the police did have an overly violent response, but the demonstrators' behavior was also hardcore.

In addition, the documentary does not feature direct interviews with pro-democracy figures.

Ke Wensi said that he tried to talk to people from various camps during the interview, but he admitted that due to the implementation of the "Hong Kong National Security Law", some interviews that he thought were very good could not be presented in the documentary, "This is Hong Kong's A problem that is difficult to balance.”

"Hong Kong 01" is authorized to broadcast "Hong Kong: The Covered Up Truth", which will broadcast two episodes a day from tomorrow (June 23), presenting readers with the anti-revision turmoil in the eyes of the British director.

(provided by respondents)

In the face of personal safety issues

, Hong Kong people want to let go of their prejudices

"When I came to Hong Kong, I originally planned to shoot other documentaries, which were about the transformation of friendship, love and family between different camps under the anti-amendment movement. However, I found it difficult to shoot. Because people from both (yellow and blue) camps are in fear and are unwilling to be filmed.” Talking about the difficulty of filming, Ke Wensi recalled that during a demonstration in Central, he planned to photograph the demonstrators changing under the umbrella. The scene of cross-dressing ended up being "threatened" by demonstrators to destroy their filming equipment, "so personal safety is the most important difficulty encountered."

Cowens said frankly that he is not a reporter, and the documentary reflects only his personal views.

He knows that the release of the documentary may cause controversy, such as causing some people to hate it, but he still hopes to use the short film to supplement the unreported side of the mainstream media in Europe and the United States, so that the audience can think more, instead of only showing one side's opinion.

Ke Wensi also hopes that the Hong Kong people who have been torn apart for many times can put aside their prejudices, respect each other, strengthen communication, and resolve conflicts: "Hong Kong is a very complicated place, and it is obviously not a happy place, at least not in 2019. I don't live in In Hong Kong, I am obviously not an expert on Hong Kong research. With my limited knowledge of Hong Kong, I only know that this matter is not a simple "cowboy and aboriginal dispute". If the media does not present (the truth), then there must be a Personally do it.”

Ke Wensi admitted that he is not a reporter, the documentary only reflects his personal views, and he knows that the short film will evoke reactions from different people.

(Provided by interviewee/Photo by Talia Goodwin)

Oscar-directed documentary "Hong Kong: The Covered Up" (1)｜Hong Kong people take to the streets