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00:00Hong Kong, a vibrant metropolis home to millions, is increasingly feeling the grip of China's
00:14leadership.
00:16In July 1997, the former British colony came under the control of the People's Republic
00:21of China.
00:22The financial and art markets are still functioning, but Beijing has taken away the freedom of
00:28the people of Hong Kong.
00:29In 2019, they protested the growing restrictions on their basic rights.
00:37The increasing levels of censorship also affect the arts.
00:45What will become of Hong Kong?
00:48Has the global metropolis's identity come under threat?
00:56The design points to the direction of homogenizing, becoming more conservative, everything more
01:02becoming the same again, and less and less eclectic, and less and less cosmopolitan.
01:15Of course, the authorities can arrest me, but I don't care about that.
01:19I can hardly find words for my feelings.
01:22The world is out of control.
01:31Hong Kong's intellectuals and artists are faced with the question, to leave or to stay?
01:49We are the world, we are the children, we are the ones who never mind the pain, so let's
02:09I specifically wanted the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Union chorus to sing, We are the
02:32world, because the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Union, they are a trade union, but they
02:38are also traditionally sort of very pro-establishment and pro-Beijing, and they have a long history
02:42of that.
02:43All that time we avoid talking about politics, I never really clearly explained to them why
02:49I wanted them to sing We are the world, but they were at the end, so far, sort of very
02:57into it.
03:25Talking about politics in Hong Kong can only be done in whispers.
03:30This square on Victoria Harbour commemorates July 1st, 1997, the day this former British
03:36colony was handed back to China.
03:39The Golden Bauhinia is Hong Kong's national flower.
03:43According to the statue's name, it will bloom forever.
03:46The flower is also depicted on the regional flag, white on a red background.
03:52A symbol of Hong Kong's return to the red bosom of the motherland, the return to Chinese
03:57sovereignty.
04:01Hong Kong's special status of one country, two systems is supposed to be valid until
04:072047.
04:10But Hong Kong's special rights are already being eroded by the communist leadership.
04:24Hong Kong has always had a pretty active political life on the street.
04:29But of course, 2019 was a whole different scale and a whole different reach, even into
04:35communities that are previously not so involved.
04:40People were mad, people were not happy, and people wanted change.
04:50The trigger for the most violent protests in Hong Kong's history to date was the proposal
04:55of a new extradition law.
04:59For the first time, fugitives would be extradited to mainland China, a direct attack on the
05:05rule of law and the soul of Hong Kong.
05:09And reason enough for the people of Hong Kong to unleash two decades of pent-up anger with
05:15massive protests that were met with violence.
05:19The protests lasted for almost a whole year and were ended by the authorities.
05:35Hong Kong has changed since then.
05:38It is now virtually impossible to protest openly.
05:42For internationally renowned artist Samson Yeung, working with subtle codes is nothing
05:47new.
06:01I always tell people that I'm a multimedia artist, because that doesn't really mean anything.
06:08It just means that I work in different media.
06:13But my original training was in music, but then since that time I have branched out and
06:21started doing different things.
06:28In his audio-visual art installations, he deals with topics like war, migration, and
06:35traditional customs.
06:47He's attracted international attention in the art world with commissioned work at the
06:50New York Guggenheim and an exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
06:56His work has also been featured at the Venice Biennale and in Tokyo and New York.
07:07Drawings are also part of his repertoire.
07:11During the corona lockdown, he made one every day, each inspired by an event.
07:20This work comments on a newspaper report.
07:23Three months in prison for a man who held up six fingers.
07:27The gesture was one of the central protest symbols of 2019 and referred to protesters
07:33five demands and not one less.
07:36The gesture has since been banned in public.
07:47Is the artist putting himself in danger with this drawing?
07:54I think I try to not overthink it.
07:58I mean, that's my strategy, right?
08:00Because if you think about it all the time, it becomes more real.
08:03So my approach is just to keep doing what I'm doing until any real danger materializes.
08:13I think that's also kind of a good approach because it means that you don't play into
08:18that whole game of guessing where that line is.
08:22You just keep doing what you're doing.
08:26The real danger comes from the so-called national security law that was enacted in mid-2020
08:32in response to the 2019 protests.
08:36China's leadership is now intervening directly in Hong Kong's previously autonomous legal
08:41system.
08:49A new security department in Hong Kong is responsible for enforcement.
08:54Any kind of criticism or defiance of state authority is now potentially punishable by
08:59law.
09:08It generates a lot of anxiety.
09:10So it affected a lot of artists I know and it certainly affected me as well.
09:15I certainly have artist friends who have since left the city.
09:22Artists we always play with codes and we always play with layers of references.
09:25We have a lot of room to maneuver.
09:28If you are in journalism or if you are a documentary maker, then it's a whole different level of
09:37anxiety.
09:46Pro-democracy politicians, journalists and publishers have been arrested under the new
09:51security law.
09:55Probably the most prominent is Jimmy Lai, founder of the Apple Daily newspaper.
10:00Among other things, he's accused of cooperating with the U.S. to incite Hong Kongers against
10:05China's leadership.
10:07The editorial team had to shut down Apple Daily.
10:10The last issue was published on June 24, 2021.
10:22The arrests of Cardinal Joseph Zen and the popular singer and activist Denise Ho caused
10:27particular outrage.
10:41Director Kiwi Chow expects to be arrested at any time for his film, Revolution of Our
10:45Times.
10:53It's absurd and sad to see all these people being arrested.
10:57For small things, I, on the other hand, am still at large.
11:02I feel terrible, but I don't want to worry so much.
11:06I did the right thing.
11:10The fact that there are political prisoners at all is an indictment in itself.
11:17The prisoners, on the other hand, are heroes.
11:26In an intense two-and-a-half hours, his documentary tells the story of the 2019 protests.
11:47Kiwi Chow worked on the movie for two years, reliving the traumatic events over and over
11:52again.
12:18For the movie's title, Kiwi Chow used the protest's most famous slogan, a slogan that
12:24is now banned.
12:27The title alone could land the director in jail.
12:42This is not just a revolution for Hong Kong, but for the whole world.
12:47That's why the title is perfect.
12:54Previously, the director made romantic films and relationship dramas.
13:02His hit movie, Beyond the Dream, won numerous awards, including the Golden Horse Award,
13:08which is considered the Oscar of Asia.
13:16But China's growing influence convinced him to take on socially critical projects.
13:21The short film Self-Immolator tells the story of a student who sacrifices his life to fight
13:26for Hong Kong's independence.
13:33Four director friends filmed similarly dystopian visions of Hong Kong's future.
13:38In an anthology titled Ten Years, their short films were released in cinemas in 2015.
13:46Ten Years has since been banned in Hong Kong and mainland China.
13:55Revolution of Our Times, too, can only be shown outside Hong Kong.
13:59The film was screened in Cannes in 2021.
14:08Some of the footage was leaked to Kiwi Chow anonymously.
14:12But in an act of solidarity, the director took on full responsibility for the film himself.
14:21This documentary needed a director who would take responsibility, and that person is me.
14:28I'm responsible for everything.
14:31Anonymity would be inappropriate here.
14:37Kiwi Chow put his name to the cause.
14:40But with the film, he also preserved events that have since been officially suppressed.
14:51Once a young man approached me on the street.
14:56I didn't know him, but he seemed to recognize me.
15:02He was at the protests and told me he was very grateful.
15:08He hadn't been able to see my documentary yet, but just the fact that the film exists
15:14proves to him that the protests really took place, not just in his head.
15:21I was very touched by that.
15:26The fact that someone thanked me for the film shows me the power of such documentaries.
15:37Kiwi Chow documented what happened, which is precisely what makes the film dangerous
15:42for China's leadership.
15:54The communist leadership prefers to create its own facts.
15:58They would like to see the protests fade into oblivion.
16:08Like the Tiananmen Square massacre of June 4, 1989, China's open wound.
16:22Back then, hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated for weeks in Tiananmen Square
16:26for more freedom and democratic rights.
16:39Chinese troops crushed the peaceful movement using tanks and military force.
16:45Since then, great pains have been taken to erase the massacre from China's collective
16:50memory, as if it never happened.
17:07Public commemorations of the massacre were permitted in Hong Kong until 2019.
17:13In June 1997, a memorial was even installed in Hong Kong.
17:19The Pillar of Shame was designed by Danish artist Jens Galschut.
17:23An 8-meter-high sculpture, it was most recently located on the campus of Hong Kong University.
17:30Fifty bodies spiral up into a column, representing the victims of the Tiananmen massacre.
17:37Thousands of people used to gather every year on June 4 to remember the dead with flowers
17:42and to shine light on the crimes committed.
17:51But in December 2021, the university had the column removed during the night.
18:03Today, there are no traces of the former memorial.
18:27The Kowloon District, one of Hong Kong's most sought-after locations.
18:33Here, right on the waterfront, Hong Kong's city administration has taken steps to build
18:38a new cultural identity with the West Kowloon Cultural District, a recreational park with
18:45museums, opera and theatre.
18:50Hong Kongers have embraced it.
19:00This cultural project is one of the most expensive in Asia.
19:04The centerpiece is the M-PLUS Museum of Contemporary Visual Culture.
19:09Designed by Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron, the museum was opened in November
19:132021.
19:24Museum director Suhanya Ruffle is an expert in contemporary Asian art.
19:42M-PLUS is the only global institution in Asia that has visual culture at its core.
19:49We address design, architecture, moving image, visual art together.
19:56There is no other institution that does this in Asia in relation to the mid-20th century
20:02and into the future.
20:04It's really what M-PLUS stands for, museum and more.
20:08The PLUS stands for this power of what the 21st century and the future holds.
20:15It's a great emblematic title that describes the vision of this institution.
20:24The M-PLUS has an ambitious goal, to rewrite global art history.
20:30The collections of many Western museums are mainly based on European-American art.
20:36M-PLUS sees itself as a corrective, with its focus on Asian art.
21:05The SIG collection is particularly important.
21:08More than 1,500 works, most of them donated by Swiss collector Uli SIG.
21:24You can definitely say it's a dream come true for me.
21:28It's a magnificent machine, this M-PLUS museum.
21:33It's certainly the best in the world at the moment, and it has to be.
21:38I think it's a very, very good achievement.
21:43Uli SIG was the Swiss ambassador to China in the 1990s, just a few years after the Tiananmen
21:48massacre.
21:51Many people felt powerless in the face of Chinese state power, which was seen as cruel
21:56and arbitrary.
21:58Signs of cynicism and resignation were widespread.
22:11Chinese art in the 1990s reflected the mood, as exemplified in images of bitter laughter
22:16and shaven heads.
22:19For a long time, works critical of the system were only circulated underground.
22:24The art-loving Swiss ambassador was in the right place at the right time.
22:29He visited artist studios, recognized the value of the works, and took them abroad.
22:37Today, his encyclopedic collection is worth an estimated 200 million U.S. dollars.
22:47The SIG collection could not be shown on Chinese soil until the opening of the M-PLUS.
22:57I went through the exhibition with people from China.
23:00We took a closer look at some of the works in this museum tour.
23:04I commented on them and told their story, and at the end we found ourselves there, together,
23:11and several people cried.
23:14It was very moving for me, and you experience that again and again.
23:20People are very touched because they say, we didn't even know all that.
23:29With his donation to the M-PLUS, Uli Sigg has returned the now-historic works to their
23:34cultural origins.
23:38Back then, Uli Sigg also discovered Ai Weiwei.
23:41Sigg owns many of his works, like this installation, White Wash, comprised of 126 Neolithic vases.
23:59It is surprising to find Ai Weiwei's works in a Chinese state museum.
24:04After all, he is considered one of the biggest critics of the leadership in Beijing.
24:09The artist experienced police brutality first-hand when he was held in a tiny cell for 81 days.
24:15He deals with all of this in his art.
24:20Today, Ai Weiwei lives in exile in Portugal and England.
24:30Just like in all other Chinese cities, in Hong Kong, you are not allowed to publicly
24:35criticize the government or take to the streets with your political opinions.
24:43Freedom of the press and freedom of expression no longer exist.
24:53The dilemma of M-PLUS comes to light when dealing with politically critical works.
24:59Conceived in a liberal spirit back in 1997, the museum came under political pressure before
25:05it even opened.
25:06Nudes?
25:07Yes.
25:08Criticism of China?
25:10No.
25:15A political work by Ai Weiwei was deleted from the homepage.
25:19In the artwork, the artist demonstratively sticks out his middle finger in the direction
25:24of Tiananmen Square, a reproving commentary on the 1989 massacre.
25:31Of course, this shot with the middle finger towards Tiananmen Square was initially hyped
25:36up by politicians, with the accusation that it was stirring up hatred against the motherland.
25:42But there is also a photo with the middle finger in front of the White House.
25:48But it was very much about this figure, Ai Weiwei.
25:55In fact, other middle finger photos, like the one in front of the Mona Lisa or the parliament
26:00building in Bern, have not been deleted from the homepage.
26:04We have on our website images that we are able to show.
26:09And that is a fact.
26:10Again, that's a fact of wherever you are in whichever part of the world.
26:15It depends on the cultural dimensions of a city, which changes with time.
26:24I don't find my work particularly offensive.
26:29Above all, it's not that one is more offensive than the other.
26:34It's just that M Plus has the power to do this.
26:39I would say, you know, when we open new museums, it's very important that the people commenting
26:46on the museum actually come and see.
26:48That's the first thing I would say.
26:50Make up your own mind.
26:51Come and see and decide for yourself.
26:55The M Plus museum opened during the pandemic lockdown.
27:00So members of the foreign press, some of whom accused the M Plus of censorship, were not
27:04able to be present on site.
27:08The so-called freedom of art is reaching its limits in Hong Kong, because Hong Kong is
27:16under the control of the Chinese government.
27:21The museum has to submit to censorship when it comes to which artworks are shown and which
27:25are not, and how they are shown.
27:31There is censorship.
27:34And that has a big impact on the museum's work.
27:44Censorship has affected other artists as well.
27:47This wall was redesigned.
27:50Originally, the painting New Beijing by Chinese artist Wang Qingwei hung here.
27:56It depicts shot penguins on a bicycle cart.
28:00However, after museum visitors posted the artist's image on social media next to this
28:05iconic photo, taken during the Tiananmen Massacre, the museum's management had the work removed.
28:12The direct juxtaposition with the photo made it politically untenable.
28:16Even though wounded penguins are being carted away instead of people, the reference to the
28:20massacre is clear.
28:30It has since been replaced by a less controversial image by the same artist.
28:36Officially, for reasons of conservation.
28:48Despite the censorship, Uli Sigg has no regrets about giving his collection to Hong Kong.
28:53A large part of the Sigg collection can still be shown.
29:01I love that so much and thank you very much for this collection.
29:05My pleasure.
29:07As for the future of Hong Kong, you can only guess right now.
29:12Ever since this National Security Act came into force, we've been in a constant state of uncertainty.
29:19The law is very vague and it's not made for art.
29:23The scope is not really defined yet.
29:28I think 3,000, I want 1,000.
29:36For many creatives, Hong Kong is no longer safe.
29:40Many ask, what now?
29:43Hold out or emigrate?
29:59Countless people have decided to emigrate.
30:03Taiwan is an obvious place of refuge.
30:06Culturally similar, the island republic offers all the freedoms of a democracy.
30:18The political repression has triggered a huge wave of emigration.
30:23Some speak of between 100,000 to 150,000 people.
30:30Casey Wong is one of the Hong Kongers who emigrated to Taiwan.
30:34The famous performance artist has dedicated himself to protest art.
30:39He played a key role in the Hong Kong protests, including the Umbrella Movement in 2014 and the 2019 protests.
30:48Dressed in various costumes, he campaigned for civil liberties in his art performances.
30:55Whether as a police officer beating up protesters and throwing them in prison,
31:02or as Moses, recording the protesters' five demands on a stone tablet,
31:07Casey Wong has mobilized masses.
31:11According to Hong Kong's 2020 national security law, loud protest art is prohibited in public.
31:17But Casey Wong finds it impossible to be quiet.
31:31Anyone who stays in Hong Kong must either change their views or their nature.
31:38That means self-censorship, or only harmless, decorative art.
31:45But that's not the art I make.
31:50I want to make art that reacts to current events.
31:57Should I lie? Or be forbidden to speak?
32:02I can't do that.
32:05The only solution for me was to leave Hong Kong.
32:10Here in Taiwan, I can do what I want in front of the whole world.
32:19Tomorrow, for example, I will take part in an exhibition on the Tiananmen Square Massacre in Taipei.
32:28All that is no longer possible in Hong Kong.
32:32But of course, a part of me will always remain in Hong Kong.
32:44Casey Wong seems torn.
32:47He's paying a high price for his freedom.
32:50He feels guilty.
32:52He now works tirelessly in Taiwan, initiating public art performances to raise awareness of Hong Kong's situation.
33:00He is committed to those who have remained in Hong Kong.
33:04This is a passport with the inscription,
33:07Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times.
33:11Of course, I had it produced in Taiwan.
33:15It would be too dangerous in Hong Kong.
33:18It's an exact copy of the former British passport that was issued to Hong Kong.
33:23It's a copy of the Hong Kong passport that was issued to Hong Kong.
33:27It's a copy of the Hong Kong passport that was issued to Hong Kong.
33:31It's an exact copy of the former British passport that was in circulation before 1997.
33:38The one with the black cover.
33:44Like the original, there are boxes to fill in at the top and bottom.
33:50I have entered the name of my cat, Wong Bobo.
33:54Inside you'll find the lyrics to the protest anthem, Glory to Hong Kong.
34:02黎明來到,要光復這香港
34:07共行而旅,為正義時代革命
34:17在我心,隨我徬徨不厭
34:22在我心,隨我徬徨不厭
34:28在我心,隨我徬徨不厭
34:40黎明來到,要光復這香港
34:47共行而旅,為正義時代革命
34:53在我心,隨我徬徨不厭
34:59在我心,隨我徬徨不厭
35:22黎明來到,要光復這香港
35:33Leaving Hong Kong is out of the question for director Kiwi Chow.
35:39He wants to stay and continue making films.
35:42But he has taken security precautions to protect himself and his family.
35:53I sold the copyright to a friend overseas.
35:59I trust him. He now owns all the rights.
36:04That's why you can say that legally this movie no longer belongs to me.
36:09Of course the state can find reasons to arrest me, but that doesn't concern me.
36:14According to the law, it's no longer my movie.
36:18Strictly speaking, it is now a foreign film.
36:25Meanwhile, Revolution of Our Times is also available as video on demand in Hong Kong.
36:31Hong Kongers can now watch it in private, just not in theatres.
36:39Some people are calling for my arrest because my name is mentioned in the movie.
36:44Legally that would be possible, but it hasn't happened. At least not yet.
36:49I can hardly find words for my feelings. The world is out of control.
36:57I think I'm still free because the government doesn't want the movie to get any more attention.
37:04My arrest would mean publicity for the movie.
37:09And that, that's something they really don't want.
37:40Let's go, let's go.
37:52I'm asking you, do you think we need to do more?
37:55If you don't want to do it, then don't do it.
38:00Kiwi Chow continues to make films in Hong Kong, but not socially critical ones.
38:06The new film censorship law prohibits it.
38:10The director has just finished shooting a romantic comedy.
38:14After Revolution of Our Times, many actors and financiers turned their backs on Kiwi Chow.
38:20And the authorities still have him in their sights.
38:26I'm sorry.
38:29Cut.
38:34A lot of people think I'm very brave.
38:38But I'm often afraid. I just fight it.
38:42Nobody knows what the future holds, but I don't stop.
38:46I keep going with all my strength.
38:51His friends urged him to go abroad with his family.
38:56But so far, he has stayed.
38:59We've made a decision as a family, after much deliberation, many tears and prayers.
39:06I would like to reassure everyone at this point, we are fine.
39:11If I had left Hong Kong, I would have left out of fear, and that's against my principles.
39:18It wouldn't give me freedom or salvation.
39:23Yes, I'm doing the exact opposite of what everyone else is doing.
39:28I'm staying in Hong Kong and facing the danger.
39:32That's the only way I can escape it.
39:48Oh, boy!
39:55Samson Young has it easier.
39:58His sound installations are too complex and coded to be deciphered as explicit protest art.
40:05He continues to produce new sounds and sends his message out into the world.
40:12I thought about going abroad.
40:16Me and my husband even talked about it.
40:20But I'm staying put because I will be where my husband is.
40:26My husband is the main caregiver for his aging parents.
40:31So right now is not a good time to even contemplate being elsewhere and being far away from them.
40:39So it's more like a practical reality than anything else.
40:45For Hong Kong, one thing is clear.
40:49There will be no way back.
40:52Freedom and independence remain at a critical juncture.
40:57But it's not the end of the world.
41:00It's not the end of the world.
41:03It's not the end of the world.
41:06It's not the end of the world.
41:09It's not the end of the world.
41:12Freedom and independence remain at an unattainable distance.
41:17Many Hong Kongers stay and carry on, looking for their own way to confront censorship and rebel against it.
41:25They swim neither with nor against the tide.
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