In descriptions of Hong Kong cinema, and Hong Kong itself, one invariably encounters two keywords: “globalization” and “speed,” with speed being a factor of globalization, in the rapid production, circulation, and consumption of cultural commodities. The conspicuousness of these terms in studies of the region is partly due of course to the shifting dominion over Hong Kong during its modern history – once a British colony, once Japanese-occupied territory, and now a “Special Administrative Region” for China's “one country, two systems” project – as well as its status as one of the most active financial centers in the world. As a site of a number of distinct streams of immigration (and emigration) throughout the 20th century, the city has long been described as a place of transit, from the West to the East and vice-versa, and its cosmopolitan sensibility has been compared by one critic, for example, with an airport. Hong Kong has even registered itself as a brand name welcoming globalization, with its slogan “Asia's World City.” Aside from the transfer of its capital – that is, the move of well-known film personnel to Hollywood – the globalization of Hong Kong cinema is a tale told in its circulation via film festivals, but more emphatically so in video outlets, cable television, and internet sales and discussion – moving, it appears, at a speed for the most efficient circulation.

Speed: Political Economy and Film Form

Consider, for an example of the deployment of “speed” as a keyword in Hong Kong film and cultural criticism, this passage from Esther Yau's introduction to her anthology At Full Speed: Hong Kong Cinema in a Borderless World:

Yau is alluding here to the quick production and distribution pace of Hong Kong studio films, that once put out an enormous amount of material, but have now declined in annual output (although mainstream feature films are still made relatively quickly compared to Hollywood productions).