The Wang family arrived in Hong Kong from Shanghai in 1949 and T.C. Wang, the father of Salon Films Chairman Fred Wang Cheung-yue, opened a photography store in Causeway Bay. The shop was a runaway success - to this day people in Hong Kong tend to say "Salon photo" to refer to a good print.

In 1956, when the first TV station was born in Hong Kong and black-and-white TV films became popular, T.C. Wang found it a good opportunity for the photo shop to get involved in the film business. That also led to young Fred Wang developing a love for the art of filmmaking.

At the end of 1958, when Hollywood was in dire need of revitalization to retain audiences over the lure of TV, Wang's father spotted an opportunity to help Hollywood make color films in different real-life locations.

His shop morphed into Salon Films in 1959, making its mark in the international movie arena by supplying equipment to Hollywood studio Paramount Pictures when they shot The World of Suzie Wong in Hong Kong.

As one of Asia's leading suppliers of production logistics and equipment to filmmakers and studios, Salon Films, which does not make movies itself, has been involved in the making of nearly 1,000 feature films over the past several decades. It is credited with introducing key pieces of equipment, notably the Panavision camera and lens system and the Chapman dolly.

It features in the credit rolls of acclaimed movies like the 1993 biopic Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, Mission: Impossible III (2006), Rush Hour I and II (1998 and 2001) and Ang Lee's multiple Oscar-winner Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000).

Recent films it has helped supply include Chow Yun-fat-starrer From Vegas to Macau II (2015) and Love in a Puff director Pang Ho-cheung's Women Who Flirt (2014).

As many lament the passing of the golden era of Hong Kong cinema, when kung fu capers and gangster movies ruled, Wang noted that the problem for the local film industry is a lack of fundamentals. The city lacks a single proper financing system for the movie industry, with no bankers qualified in film financing, said Wang. "Also, the technology system, from pre-production to the making and showing of films, is totally outdated and old-fashioned. We could have made it totally modernized, efficient and automated," he asserted.

Moreover, the industry is struggling with the lack of a unified distribution network, and a sophisticated payment and marketing system for local films to spread all over the world, observed Wang.

"Just talking about kung fu movies or gangster movies can never save the industry," said Wang. "If the industry lacks market infrastructure and solid building blocks, it is only like a Picasso painting hanging on the wall of a museum, waiting to be viewed."

Wang believes exciting opportunities for the Hong Kong' film industry can come from the Chinese mainland, where the city's film talents can enjoy higher budgets and better production plans. And initiatives like "One Belt, One Road", and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank could be a wonderful chance for Hong Kong talents because of their proximity to the mainland.

"Banking on the growth of every industry in the region, Hong Kong's film industry can follow suit and pick up steam," said Wang.

The SAR government wants to promote the brand equity of Hong Kong films on the mainland, as noted by Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying in this year's policy address. Wang believes this will not spark a fierce rivalry at the box office but rather give rise to more opportunities for cooperation.

Wang said the core problem for the mainland movie sector is the lack of an industry system. This is where Hong Kong, with its experience and expertise, could play a leading role across the border.

sophia@chinadailyhk.com

From a Causeway Bay photography store in the late 1950s to a major equipment supplier for the cream of Hollywood and Hong Kong filmmakers has been a long and colorful journey for Salon Films, one that has only helped to make its leading man Fred Wang more passionate about the industry he serves. Roy Liu / China Daily

(HK Edition 09/21/2015 page8)