Pole Dance Injury, Copyright Storm Hit Hong Kong Film Ahead of October Release
AM730 · 1 SOURCESabout 3 hours ago5 MIN
Summary
Hong Kong actress Karen Chau Ga-yi sustained a significant injury while training for pole dancing scenes in the upcoming film Mother's Days, pushing through the pain to complete filming despite being unable to perform the physical moves. The movie is now facing a copyright storm after model and multimedia artist KITKAT publicly accused the production of using her photos without permission in the official trailer. Director Hu Tsui-yi has reached out to KITKAT with a formal apology.
Key Points
- Mother's Days (媽樣年華), directed by Hu Tsui-yi, is a finalist project from the Seventh First Feature Film Competition (大專組) and is scheduled for theatrical release on October 23
- The cast includes Karen Chau Ga-yi (周家怡), Kam Yinling (金燕玲), Chan Zhan-wen (陳湛文), Liza Yeung Ya-man (泰妹楊雅文), and Zhang Di-wen (張迪文)
- Chau revealed that during pole dancing practice, she suffered an injury so severe she could not even climb the pole, yet she persevered through psychological pressure to complete the shoot
- KITKAT discovered her photos appeared in a scene where Chan Zhan-wen's character views his phone in a restroom, and she stated neither she nor her Japanese agency received any prior notice or authorization
- The production claimed the photos were licensed through a company called Jdaily two years prior, but KITKAT stated she never collaborated with or signed any contract with that company
- Director Hu Tsui-yi has apologized and committed to adding KITKAT's name and the Japanese photographer's credit in the film's end credits upon official release
Why It Matters
The incident highlights growing concerns about copyright due diligence in Hong Kong's independent film industry, especially for productions relying on third-party licensing companies. As Mother's Days is a student film program winner with limited resources, the controversy may prompt other emerging filmmakers to implement stricter verification processes for all visual materials used in their productions .
The incident highlights growing concerns about copyright due diligence in Hong Kong's independent film industry, especially for productions relying on third-party licensing companies. As Mother's Days is a student film program winner with limited resources, the controversy may prompt other emerging filmmakers to implement stricter verification processes for all visual materials used in their productions .