Screening of 'Out of Frame' with Director’s talk

Screening of 'Out of Frame' with Director’s talk
Date:16/1/2020(SAT)
Time: 7:00pm – 9:30pm
Venue: Online Screening with Zoom share
Director talk: William Kwok

“The characteristic of artist is defying any system”

Over the years, Tang has insisted on painting in black. These so-called 'Black Paintings' are created by splashing black paint on black canvases; thus, all finished works look the same. Like most of the artists, he lives hand-to-mouth by selling his paintings one at a time. Life in the East Village is not any easier. There are tens of thousands of artists competing for an elusive kind of breakthrough. Tang, his fellow artists and dear friend Gold, must seize every single chance. However, the first exhibition they try to organise is shut down by the government. Tang starts to use his own blood to create Black Paintings as a protest to all kinds of violence and oppression. A female filmmaker Mary comes to the East Village to make a documentary called Real Artist and gradually becomes Tang’s anchor. Unfortunately, Tang was once again arrested during a private party/exhibition organised by Mary. Since then Tang starts to utilize the form of 'Performance Art' and his own body to express his reflections on this ruthless world. Tang finds the audacity to unleash his inner powers to fight for his artistic ideals till the end, amidst extreme oppression and introspective struggles, and becomes a prototype of free spirit.

In China, many artists, i.e. poets, writers, painters, filmmakers, are at high-risk ... of course, not everyone will get into trouble, as long as you obey the rules of the game.
For me, the essential nature of art is to precisely NOT subject to any authority or institution. But this principle does not apply in China. Official shackles on the freedom of expression and more insidiously, self-censorship both suppress the nature of the genuine artist. Market worth becomes the only recognized value in the art world.
Certain factions of society might even believe that these so-called “troublesome artists" are only putting on a political show to profit themselves and so on. I do not want to argue with them.
Because, shouldn’t we focus our attention to discuss and respect the art itself, rather than to suspect the artist’s intention, in the first place?

WARNING : THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH MAY OFFEND AND MAY NOT BE DISTRIBUTED, CIRCULATED, SOLD, HIRED, GIVEN,LENT, SHOWN, PLAYED OR PROJECTED TO A PERSON UNDER THE AGE OF 18 YEARS.

About Director
William Kwok
Film director and set designer
William studied Theatre and Entertainment Arts in Hong Kong Academy of Performance Arts. Then studied film in School of Visual Arts New York City. After he came back to Hong Kong, William started his indie film production, his film included “Darkness Bride”,”Out of Frame”.
William also has been working as set designer. He was nominated Best Set Design by The Hong Kong Drama Awards for his work in Actors' Family's productions of Under Construction and The Border Town in 2002. His other works include “Century-old Dreams of a Fishing Harbour Ep.III Awakening", "Beyond the Horizon by Theatre Horizon", "The Cherry Orchard and Beyond the Horizon" by Teatro Horizonte (Macau), "Bitter Sweet Charity Drama in 2009, "Beautiful Connection" by Hong Kong Repertory Theatre in 2008, "Once in a Life Time" by W Theatre in 2007, "Pine Tree Under the Moon" and "The Cat in Red Boots" by Windmill Grass Theatre.