Last week, some of Hong Kong’s best-known film personalities as well as promising, newer filmmakers went on a trip to Vietnam, in search of new audiences and collaborators. Mathew Scott tagged along.

Wilfred Wong has a plan. He wants to steer the Asian Film Awards Academy (AFAA) and the Hong Kong Film Development Council (HKFDC) — both chaired by Wong — in ways that can help inject life back into the local film industry.

While things might look bleak at home — what with a struggling box office, falling production rates and a spate of cinema closures — opportunity lies abroad, and with an audience Hong Kong once held in the palm of its hand.

“The economics speak, the business speaks, so that’s why we need to go outside Hong Kong and not just rely on the local box office,” is how Wong puts it.

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These plans are playing out in real time through a series of “Hong Kong Film Gala Presentation” red-carpet events, along with screenings and seminars that have so far taken the city’s box-office successes and their stars to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Phnom Penh and Jakarta.

Most recently, the road show took to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. This writer went along for the ride.

Nov 6, morning …

We’re sitting in a suite inside the Hilton Saigon hotel with views stretching across the Saigon River and out over vast reaches of Ho Chi Minh City, but our attention is focused on a city around 1,500 kilometers away.

Tonight, the AFAA and HKFDC, along with a host of local partners, are presenting Hong Kong actor Louis Koo and actor-filmmaker Sammo Hung at a gala presentation of director Soi Cheang’s smash hit Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In.

It’s part of a three-day set of screenings that also includes Herbert Leung’s action-focused Stuntman, Robin Lee’s ultrarunning documentary Four Trails, and the Jill Leung romance Last Song for You. The promotion harks back to a time when Hong Kong ruled Asian cinema — the “Golden Era” of the ’70s through the ’90s, when hundreds of movies were made, and crowds from around the world flocked to watch a John Woo film and the like.

It’s a point not lost on Wong.

“The golden era happened because filmmakers could sell, they could distribute to all kinds of markets: Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia,” he says. “I met the chairman of the local chamber of commerce last night and he said, ‘Oh, the Vietnamese people like Chow Yun-fat, Andy Lau, and Leslie Cheung!’. People here still remember these stars, right? So now we need to introduce our films to the next generation.”

To that end, Wong and his team have been hitting the road — bringing filmmaker Anthony Pun (Cesium Fallout) and actor Sean Lau (Papa) to Bangkok; presenting megastar Aaron Kwok in Kuala Lumpur; and this time in Ho Chi Minh City. The hope is that Asia’s growing markets will look to Hong Kong for their content, and Vietnam is a great destination, especially seeing that last year its box-office returns reached around $185 million — the highest ever.

“Here, people my age know Hong Kong films, but the 15-year-olds probably have not seen them. So how do we reach that market?” asks Wong. “Going on a circuit like this, we’re making sure that there’s enough attention. The Chamber of Commerce boss said they were so happy because they haven’t seen us — the Hong Kong movie people — in Vietnam for 20 or 30 years.”

Nov 6, afternoon ...

Between them, Koo and Hung have starred in around 250 films, and tonight they will walk the red carpet before the screening of Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In at the Galaxy Cinema on the third floor of the Thiso Mall Sala.

Right now, though, sitting in a Hilton suite, the duo reflects on the roles they play in the film, harnessing their star power for the cause of Hong Kong cinema.

Koo believes Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In is part martial-arts thriller, part celebration of Hong Kong — an ideal production to showcase both the city and what its film industry can achieve.

“I think that besides promoting our movies, it can also promote the unique culture of Hong Kong,” he says. “I believe that in coming over here, there is also the hope that this market can take another step to accept our Hong Kong films, and screen them.”

Set in the famed Kowloon Walled City slum — and featuring old-school Hong Kong martial arts-inspired action, Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In was Hong Kong cinema’s success story in 2024, collecting a staggering $119 million at the global box office.

In Vietnam, it pulled in an impressive $2 million, approximately. Hung, who has been at the forefront of martial-arts cinema since the late ’60s, believes that the film was a timely reminder to the world of what Hong Kong does best.

“It has good directing and exciting action —these are the things we are famous for. It has great characters as well, and that is what has made our movies so popular,” he says.

Nov 6, evening …

Lam Thanh Mai is 24 and works in retail. She also absolutely adores Koo.

“There are many Louis fans here in Vietnam, but this is the first time I can see him in person,” says Lam. “We all love Hong Kong movies.”

A few hundred Koo fans wanted to greet the star at the city’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport on his arrival the previous night, but their hopes were dashed by local authorities. This evening, there’s a good number of them here inside the Thiso Mall Sala. A slew of Koo badges, posters and signs, and even a few Koo T-shirts, are sighted on either side of the red carpet.

Their screams ring out when the star arrives. Hung and his entourage too are similarly greeted. The healthy presence of Vietnamese media will hopefully help spread the Hong Kong message.

“It’s very lucky that people like Sammo and Louis are willing to do this for the next generation,” says Wong. “What we’re all trying to do is to extend the reach of the market.”

Nov 7, afternoon…

While the previous night’s focus was entirely on celebrating Hong Kong cinema history, this afternoon it is very firmly on the future. We gather inside a meeting room as microphones are handed to Stuntman director Leung and Vietnamese director Tran Thanh Huy (Rom), panelists on a seminar titled “Directing Stories across Hong Kong and Vietnam”.

Besides discussing their own works, the directors also dwell on the influence of Hong Kong cinema across the region, and how Hong Kong filmmakers can network with their contemporaries from other Asian cultures.

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Earlier, Wong had mentioned that the road shows were also designed to encourage young Hong Kong filmmakers to explore new markets, and Leung — whose movie will screen later in the day — reveals that emerging talents such as him are taking notice.

“I believe that there will be opportunities for us,” he says. “Coming here and showing our films and meeting fellow filmmakers are a great way to start.”