HKIFF50 Names Firebird Awards Juries
The 50th Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF50) is spotlighting innovative cinema with its Firebird Awards juries [https://asianmoviepulse.com/2026/03/hkiff50-names-firebird-awards-juries]. Jurors include acclaimed filmmakers like Ildikó Enyedi and Ben Rivers [https://asianmoviepulse.com/2026/03/hkiff50-names-firebird-awards-juries]. The Firebird Awards are known for highlighting emerging voices in global cinema.
The Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF), founded in 1976, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year with the theme "50 and Beyond: Framing the Future". The festival will run from April 1 to 12. To mark the milestone, a retrospective exhibition titled "50 and Beyond: The Hong Kong International Film Festival Golden Jubilee Exhibition" is being held at the Hong Kong City Hall from April 1-12. The exhibition will showcase rarely seen photos of master filmmakers and stars who have attended the festival over the past five decades. Ildikó Enyedi, one of the jurors, is a Hungarian film director who won the Golden Bear at the 67th Berlin International Film Festival for "On Body and Soul". Enyedi's latest film, "Silent Friend" (2025), starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai, premiered at the 82nd Venice Film Festival and won the FIPRESCI Prize. Ben Rivers, another juror, is a British artist and filmmaker whose work often blends documentary and fiction. Rivers' film "Two Years at Sea" (2011) won the FIPRESCI Prize at the Venice Film Festival. He has also won two Tiger Awards at the Rotterdam Film Festival. The Firebird Awards have three categories: Young Cinema Competition (Chinese Language), Young Cinema Competition (World), and Documentary Competition. Past winners include "Life After Life" by Zhang Hanyi (2016), "Totem" by Lila Avilés (2023), and "Apolonia, Apolonia" by Lea Glob (2023). In 2024, "Snow in Midsummer" by Chong Keat Aun won the Firebird Award for the Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language). "Sons" by Gustav Möller won the Firebird Award for the Young Cinema Competition (World). "Favoriten" by Ruth Beckermann received the Firebird Award for Documentary Competition. Besides the Firebird Awards, HKIFF Industry presents other awards, including the AimMedia Potential Award and the Red Sea Fund Award. There are also the White Light Post-Production Award and the HAF Goes to Cannes Programme. The festival will also feature masterclasses and face-to-face sessions with filmmakers, including Juliette Binoche. A special retrospective called "Juliette Binoche: The Choreographer of Emotion" will showcase three films that won her Best Actress awards.
