Backlit by Hong Kong’s constant struggle to strike a balance between the expansion of international presence and the preservation of local culture, Episode I provides a foundation for the series by introducing Hong Kong’s most locally-debated phenomenon: Cantonese-English code-mixing. Linguists and laypeople alike share research-supported evidence and heartfelt beliefs as the intricacies of this social practice are revealed.

Synopsis: On a hot summer day in 2004, researcher Katherine Chen surveyed Hong Kong pedestrians for Cantonese-only translations to a commonly code-mixed sentence, “Today I must present a project.” While searching for the answer, the film has parallel explorations into who code-mixes in Hong Kong, why they do it, what attitudes people have toward it, and what social meaning it holds.

Opening Sequence Preview Clip (59 seconds)

© 2005-2007 Katherine Chen and Gray Carper