Unfinished Return of Yu Man Hon revisits the story of Yu Man Hon, a 15-year-old boy who disappeared somewhere between Hong Kong and mainland China in 2000. The autistic and mentally disabled Yu first went missing at a subway station in Kowloon only to briefly resurface near the border across from Shenzhen. From there, however, he was mistakenly sent to mainland China because his appearance and speech were deemed not “Hong Kong” enough. He has been missing ever since. Evocatively reconstructing this incident, Wu’s camera follows the figure of a boy trekking through settings ranging from a snow-covered field to Hong Kong’s markets and stations. Delivered first in mainland China’s predominant Mandarin, then in local Cantonese, and finally in English, the narration is emblematic of Hong Kong’s complex identity as a former British colony now under Chinese rule. The composition of the light installation varies with each showing. In Seoul, it comprises a lamp sourced from a Hong Kong film prop warehouse placed on a chair reminiscent of those found at McDonalds, a significant place for Yu and his mother.
