TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Hong Kong Motion Picture Industry Association (MPIA) on Tuesday (Sept. 13) told its members in a letter to “exercise caution” in dealing with the 59th Golden Horse Awards.
“The association has always dedicated itself in promoting Hong Kong’s cinema culture… However, regarding the 59th Golden Horse Awards taking place on Nov. 19, the association sincerely asks members to exercise caution,” a screenshot of a letter published on Ming Pao read.
“As everyone knows, regional political tension has been on the rise lately, severely affecting cultural exchanges between China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan and inevitably casting a shadow over film award ceremonies held during the period,” the MPIA wrote. “Additionally, the Golden Horse Awards has become increasingly politicized in recent years, with many Taiwanese directors or actors repeatedly makes statements unrelated to film art, mixing politics and film and tainting film’s nature as an independent art form. This drags the entire event into an alley filled with controversy.”
The MPIA concluded, “Therefore, the association especially wrote this letter to ask members intending to participate in the Golden Horse Awards to make sure to consider carefully so as to avoid becoming involved in senseless disputes despite committing no offense and paying the price for it.”
According to Ming Pao, the letter was sent to over 180 film businesses on its registry. MPIA Chair Hong Cho-sing (洪祖星) claimed the association was not motivated by political intent; it merely shouldered its responsibility and took care of its members and gave them a reminder.
Regarding the incident, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Spokesperson Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) said, “We are always actively supportive of exchange activities that promote mutual understanding and agreement between people across the Taiwan Strait. However, this is not the case for politicized activities.”
The Golden Horse Film Festival was cited by Ming Pao as saying that the Golden Horse Awards has always abided by the principles of fairness, openness, and freedom to encourage outstanding films and filmmakers. It has always kept its doors open to Chinese-language films from all over the world despite turmoil.