Hong Kong documentary to screen in Italy three years after pullout

A Hong Kong award-winning documentary pulled from cinemas three years ago over interviewee consent issues will screen at Italy's Far East Film Festival. The film, directed by Mabel Cheung Yuen-ting, follows six girls from Ying Wa Girls’ School over a decade.

Hong Kong director Mabel Cheung Yuen-ting's documentary To My Nineteen-year-old Self will screen at the Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy, from April 24 to May 2. It is one of 24 titles in the festival's "out of competition" section, announced on Thursday, featuring films of "extreme value" that do not meet certain event requirements.

The film, which follows the lives of six girls from Ying Wa Girls’ School over 10 years, was pulled from Hong Kong cinemas just four days after its February 2023 release amid controversy over lack of consent from interviewees. It is award-winning.

Cheung and co-director William Kwok Wai-lun, along with a producer, two unit directors, and a post-production coordinator, are on the festival's guest list. Cheung reportedly said the screening was handled by the film's distributor, Golden Scene.

The South China Morning Post has reached out to Cheung, Golden Scene, and Ying Wa Girls’ School for comment.

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Ah Ling, one of the students featured in the award-winning Hong Kong documentary To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self, has objected to its upcoming screening at Italy's Far East Film Festival in Udine. The Ying Wa Girls’ School alumna said she was notified late and not consulted on edits to her segments.

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