Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival 2025
Hong Kong Arthouse Festival Spotlights Rising Talent in 2025 Awards
This week marked the 11th year of the Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival. The official selection featured 30 wonderful independent films, carefully selected out of the numerous submissions from all over the world. The festival’s Streaming Selection, remains available until 17 July, more info on the website: https://www.hongkongfilmfestival.com.
Kris De Meester, the curator of the Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival, expressed great satisfaction with this year's event turnout: “Looking back on this year’s HKAFF, I’m filled with gratitude and pride. Curating a bold, thought-provoking selection of both local and international film gems—and seeing them light up a packed theatre—is nothing short of a dream. We’re incredibly fortunate to receive such a wealth of daring, original submissions year after year. And honestly, I can’t wait to dive into the next edition.”
We are pleased to share with you today the 2025 Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival award winners, chosen by the jury panel:
Best Narrative Feature Film
Marry, Fuck, Kill (United States) by Ian Berry
Best Documentary Feature Film
Rojek (Canada) by Zaynê Akyol
Best Narrative Short Film
A Mother Goes To The Beach (Portugal) by Pedro Hasrouny
Best Documentary Short Film
The Other Side of Despair (Switzerland) by Varsy Buchmann
Best Animated Film
The Core (Romania) by Robert Obert
Best Experimental Film
Gaslight (Hong Kong) by Bijou Octavia, Chloe Brooke
Best Underground Film
Ahead, Far Ahead (Hong Kong) by Leong Hin Wu
Best Super Short Film
When the hawk comes (Armenia) by Lilia Li-Mi-Yan, Katherina Sadovsky
Best Music Video
Wood Dove (United States) by David Jonathan Orr
Best Hong Kong Film
The Light (Hong Kong) by Angus Wong
Congratulations to all filmmakers! The festival would also like to say a big thank you to The Bigger Screen for their continued support, and to all guests for coming out for a great evening of cinema. See you back next year!
Official selection 2025:
The Other Side of Despair (Switzerland) by Varsy Buchmann
First Night (United States) by Haneol Lee
The Cascade (Mexico) by Pablo Delgado
The Core (Romania) by Robert Obert
The Light (Hong Kong) by Angus Wong
F**k-a-Fan (Netherlands) by Muriel d'Ansembourg
Wood Dove (United States) by David Jonathan Orr
A Mother Goes To The Beach (Portugal) by Pedro Hasrouny
As We Flow to the Sea (Hong Kong) by Nelson Chi
The Steak (Canada, Iran) by Kiarash Dadgar
Violet (Germany) by Laura Engelhardt
Latchkey Kids (Norway) by Sindre Mangen Haram
Gaslight (Hong Kong) by Bijou Octavia, Chloe Brooke
Longed for Home (Hong Kong) by Song Fang Ng
On the way home (Hong Kong) by Lee Yat Fung
Lonely Together (Hong Kong) by Kwan Yin Sham
Ahead, Far Ahead (Hong Kong) by Leong Hin Wu
Rojek (Canada) by Zaynê Akyol
Marry, Fuck, Kill (United States) by Ian Berry
Coexistence (Dominican Republic) by José Gómez De Vargas
A Hunt For Hedgehogs (Hungary) by Mihály Schwechtje
Emperica (Belgium) by Kris De Meester, Ron Chiers (out of competition)
A Human Ride (Germany) by Kristian Gründling
Tangle (Belgium) by Carla Hoogewijs, Frank Stevens
Happy Birth Day (Korea, Republic of) by SANG CHEON JANG
Insanely Perfect (Slovakia) by Lukáš Vízner, Miriam Fulmeková
Dragonfly (Shanghai) by Edward Liu
Iris (Canada) by Gabriela de Andrade
Knife, Chocolate (Iran, Islamic Republic of) by Hooshmand Varaei
When the hawk comes (Armenia) by Lilia Li-Mi-Yan, Katherina Sadovsky