PRESS, PUBLISHING, BROADCASTING, FILMS AND TOURISM 261
The nature and size of the market available to these films presents a financial problem. China does not import Hong Kong films, and so, apart from local audiences, Hong Kong productions are shown mainly to the Overseas Chinese of South-East Asia and in Taiwan, although now and again they are exported to the United States for exhibition to Chinese audiences there. The demand of Overseas Chinese cinema audiences for films of Chinese theme told in their own language is insatiable, but the total possible market is not large enough numerically to guarantee an economic return unless production costs are kept at a minimum, so that quantity rather than quality is generally the aim of Hong Kong production. In spite of this, however, the Colony made a good showing in April at the Fifth Film Festival of the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia at Manila; out of four films entered by Hong Kong producers, 'Our Sister Hedy' won for Motion Picture and General Investment Co., Ltd. the award for the best film shown at the Festival, while Shaw Brothers' 'Diau Charn' took five awards-for the best direction, best music, best scenario, best editing and the best actress (Miss Lin Dai).
Two foreign feature films-one for a Philippine company and the other for a German company-have been shot partly in Hong Kong, and the J. Arthur Rank Organization began shooting towards the end of the year for 'Ferry to Hong Kong', a feature film directed by Lewis Gilbert in which Orson Welles, Curt Jurgens and Sylvia Sims are playing; the whole film will be shot in the Colony, and a temporary studio has been built for the interior
scenes.
Hong Kong has also been the setting for several documentaries made for television services in the United Kingdom, France and the United States, the B.B.C. alone sending three units during the year.
The cinema is a popular recreation in Hong Kong, and although several theatres closed during the year, some of them are being rebuilt, and other new ones were opened. The total is 65 (66,966 seats)-25 on the Island (28,172), 26 in Kowloon (29,732) and 14 in the New Territories (9,062). The majority of the buildings are modern and air-conditioned, and all but a few are equipped to show wide-screen films.