HK Protest Film 'lacks Artistry': Global Times

State-run tabloid Global Times says an Oscar-nominated documentary about the 2019 Hong Kong protests should not win an award because it "lacks artistry and is full of biased political stances".

An article in the paper cites comments from "Chinese film industry observers" saying the film "Do Not Split" should not be a documentary because it was filmed from the perspective of the protesters and did not show the "full picture of the movement".

One person was quoted as saying the documentary was "faked", and the article claimed "many netizens" on Weibo said it was ironic to see a filmmaker talk about basic human rights when he does not know what human rights are at all.

The article also cited comments from those in the industry as saying the Oscars are being turned into a "political tool" and warned that this will "hurt Chinese audiences' feelings and may lead to a heavy loss in the Chinese film market".

The Global Times article comes after some news outlets reported that Beijing has ordered mainland broadcasters not to transmit live coverage of the Oscars and to downplay the awards ceremony following the announcement that "Do Not Split" had been nominated for best short documentary.

But the documentary's director, Anders Hammer, did not appear too concerned in a response posted on social media on Thursday.

"Beijing is not happy after our documentary 'Do Not Split' about the Hong Kong protests got nominated for Oscars. But we are happy to draw attention to the critical situation in Hong Kong," he said.

The awards ceremony, which has been delayed because of the pandemic, is expected to take place on April 26.