I was glad to have had the opportunity to attend the Hong Kong/New York Home Student Film Festival and Exchange event at Hunter College on April 5th. The films, and the discussion and reception that followed, created a unique experience that made me further appreciate the diverse artistic range of short documentary films created and presented by student filmmakers from both Hunter College and the Hong Kong Baptist University. It was an impressive line-up of aesthetic and cultural aspects reflected in each screened film. The documentaries that grabbed my attention most were the films presented by Hong Kong students because of their culturally distinct perspectives and subject matters. Greenland by Zhang Wang and Yellowing by Chan Tze Woon were two particular cinematic standouts. The former is an animated film depicting an existential coming-of-age tale of a boy evaluating his life while traveling on the road with his father. The audience is taken into a psychedelic-like dream sequence filled with abstract images suggestive of a deep and universal state of disconnection with the rest of the world. In contrast, Yellowing is a political narrative that highlights the 2014 Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. This brief movement exposed the issue of oppression of Hong Kong civilians by corrupt law enforcers. The external struggle driven by a repressive system led to ongoing pressure for civil justice. The date of organized mass protest occurred on September 27th, which caught my attention since this is my birthday date; this made watching the display of social activism especially engaging and poignant for me. Two films by Hunter students were unexpectedly masterful as well. Kate Flynn’s Bay Ridge Ladies and Tarek Bouraque’s Ground Zero Peace each do a superb job in highlighting the determination and endurance of people living in impoverished neighborhoods in America. The films capture ordinary people’s commitment to making positive changes in their respective communities. Flynn’s film focuses on the lives of a group of church ladies keeping their faith alive in spite of their personal struggles with aging and loss, while Bouragque’s film follows what happens when a group of displaced Jewish worshipers are taken in by a Bronx Mosque due to harsh socioeconomic conditions. A universal theme of home and belonging connected these and the other passionate and meaningful documentaries shown at the Festival. It left me feeling a sense of hope and connection on both an intellectual and personal level.
Monday, April 16, 2018
Extra Credit Blogging Assignment
Media 160 Spring 2018:
I was glad to have had the opportunity to attend the Hong Kong/New York Home Student Film Festival and Exchange event at Hunter College on April 5th. The films, and the discussion and reception that followed, created a unique experience that made me further appreciate the diverse artistic range of short documentary films created and presented by student filmmakers from both Hunter College and the Hong Kong Baptist University. It was an impressive line-up of aesthetic and cultural aspects reflected in each screened film. The documentaries that grabbed my attention most were the films presented by Hong Kong students because of their culturally distinct perspectives and subject matters. Greenland by Zhang Wang and Yellowing by Chan Tze Woon were two particular cinematic standouts. The former is an animated film depicting an existential coming-of-age tale of a boy evaluating his life while traveling on the road with his father. The audience is taken into a psychedelic-like dream sequence filled with abstract images suggestive of a deep and universal state of disconnection with the rest of the world. In contrast, Yellowing is a political narrative that highlights the 2014 Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. This brief movement exposed the issue of oppression of Hong Kong civilians by corrupt law enforcers. The external struggle driven by a repressive system led to ongoing pressure for civil justice. The date of organized mass protest occurred on September 27th, which caught my attention since this is my birthday date; this made watching the display of social activism especially engaging and poignant for me. Two films by Hunter students were unexpectedly masterful as well. Kate Flynn’s Bay Ridge Ladies and Tarek Bouraque’s Ground Zero Peace each do a superb job in highlighting the determination and endurance of people living in impoverished neighborhoods in America. The films capture ordinary people’s commitment to making positive changes in their respective communities. Flynn’s film focuses on the lives of a group of church ladies keeping their faith alive in spite of their personal struggles with aging and loss, while Bouragque’s film follows what happens when a group of displaced Jewish worshipers are taken in by a Bronx Mosque due to harsh socioeconomic conditions. A universal theme of home and belonging connected these and the other passionate and meaningful documentaries shown at the Festival. It left me feeling a sense of hope and connection on both an intellectual and personal level.
I was glad to have had the opportunity to attend the Hong Kong/New York Home Student Film Festival and Exchange event at Hunter College on April 5th. The films, and the discussion and reception that followed, created a unique experience that made me further appreciate the diverse artistic range of short documentary films created and presented by student filmmakers from both Hunter College and the Hong Kong Baptist University. It was an impressive line-up of aesthetic and cultural aspects reflected in each screened film. The documentaries that grabbed my attention most were the films presented by Hong Kong students because of their culturally distinct perspectives and subject matters. Greenland by Zhang Wang and Yellowing by Chan Tze Woon were two particular cinematic standouts. The former is an animated film depicting an existential coming-of-age tale of a boy evaluating his life while traveling on the road with his father. The audience is taken into a psychedelic-like dream sequence filled with abstract images suggestive of a deep and universal state of disconnection with the rest of the world. In contrast, Yellowing is a political narrative that highlights the 2014 Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. This brief movement exposed the issue of oppression of Hong Kong civilians by corrupt law enforcers. The external struggle driven by a repressive system led to ongoing pressure for civil justice. The date of organized mass protest occurred on September 27th, which caught my attention since this is my birthday date; this made watching the display of social activism especially engaging and poignant for me. Two films by Hunter students were unexpectedly masterful as well. Kate Flynn’s Bay Ridge Ladies and Tarek Bouraque’s Ground Zero Peace each do a superb job in highlighting the determination and endurance of people living in impoverished neighborhoods in America. The films capture ordinary people’s commitment to making positive changes in their respective communities. Flynn’s film focuses on the lives of a group of church ladies keeping their faith alive in spite of their personal struggles with aging and loss, while Bouragque’s film follows what happens when a group of displaced Jewish worshipers are taken in by a Bronx Mosque due to harsh socioeconomic conditions. A universal theme of home and belonging connected these and the other passionate and meaningful documentaries shown at the Festival. It left me feeling a sense of hope and connection on both an intellectual and personal level.
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