This work was created to reflect a constant wanderer’s overdue homecoming before yet another departure.
The numerous possibilities of navigating Hong Kong are truly extraordinary. The film’s basic premise is to show Hong Kong’s unique cityscape visualised through land, sea, and air. For example, various mass transit vehicles traverse the city recurrently and are juxtaposed with free-flying sparrows living in their very own humble neighbourhoods.
I am drawn to the poetry found in mundane, everyday scenes in Hong Kong. I wanted to magnify this uniqueness and beauty by using the analogue medium of black and white 16mm film. I hand-processed the film stock myself. The flaws that appeared during the film-handling process, such as the dust traces and scratch marks, are important assets that work with a beautiful poem by Hong Fu to present an orchestrated work to audiences.
—Jolene Mok
Suppose a Few Birds Fly By
Suppose a few birds fly by
and you see the light
glimmering
inside the silence is a place
that belongs to you
—Hong Fu
Translated by Eleanor Goodman
Credits
- Director
Jolene Mok
- Cinematographer
Andy Li
- Production Manager
Doris Poon
- Field Recordist
AK Kan
- Sound Design
AK Kan
About the Commission
As a moving image commission project for young and emerging Hong Kong filmmakers, Poetry on Film is motivated by the belief that poetry possesses an inherent cinematic quality. Its rhythmic cadence, vivid imagery, and emotional depth offer a rich tapestry for filmmakers to weave their visual narratives.
Poetry on Film follows in the footsteps of the M+ short-film commission project Hong Kong as Mise-en-Scène (2023), which explores the city’s vibrant cultural landscape through moving image works. The idea for Poetry on Film was inspired by Ann Hui’s Elegies (2023), a documentary that looks at Hong Kong through the works of some of the city’s most innovative poets.