My primary area of research is Hong Kong cinema, literature and culture. With my comparative literature, cultural studies and sinological training from Hong Kong and Europe, I am keen on developing interdisciplinary approaches to textual and visual narratives, popular culture, creative industries, and identity studies. In one of my latest projects, I explore film, television and sport spectatorships in post-handover Hong Kong, in order to understand how creative expression and audience activities affect cultural (industry) practices, the construction of identity and the relationship between content producers, distributors, and spectators, and vice versa.

I have been appointed as a Green College Leading Scholar for the 2023-2025 cohort. I am also the co-organizer and co-curator of the UBC-based Asian Independent Cinema Showcase (with filmmaker Jimmy Lo).

Hong Kong literature, cinema and culture; Asian screen cultures; Media narratives; Creative industry and spectatorship; Identity and cultural flows; Critical theory; Postcolonialism; Thing theory; Taiwan; Asia

Peer-Reviewed Monograph

Wu, Helena. 2020. The Hangover after the Handover: Places, Things and Cultural Icons in Hong Kong. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press.

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles (Selected)

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Community Building Through Screen Sharing: Community Screening as Cultural Practice in Postmillennial Hong Kong and Beyond.” Journal of Current Chinese Affairs 53.2: 231-253.

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Distance and Proximity: the Spectatorship of Trauma and Film Viewing in Postmillennial Hong Kong.” Cultural Studies 38.1: 36-68.

Wu, Helena, and Ray Lai. 2023. “The spirit of the local in translocal film collaboration in Asia: From Ten Years Hong Kong to the Ten Years International Project.” Screen 64.2: 233–250.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “The Worlds of the Jianghu: Loyalists, Revolutionists, and Secret Societies in Late Qing and Early Republican China.” HKU Journal of Chinese Studies 1.1: 1-26.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “The Making of Citizen-Spectator in Postmillennial Hong Kong: Authorial and Spectatorial Engagement with Independent Documentary Films.” Asian Cinema 33.2: 191-207.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “Sports as a Lens: The Contours of Local and National Belonging in Post-handover Hong Kong.” Global Media and China 5.2: 138-153.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “Imagining the Future in Post-millennial Hong Kong Cinema: Visualizing the Local, the National and the Global in Cultural Imaginaries.” Journal of Chinese Cinemas 14.1: 32-49.

Wu, Helena. 2018. “The Travelling of Ten Years: Imagined Spectatorships and Readerships of Hong Kong’s Local.” Interventions: International Journal of Postcolonial Studies 20.8: 1121-1136.

Wu, Helena. 2012. “A Journey Across Rivers and Lakes: A Look at the Un/translatable Jianghu in Chinese Culture and Literature.” 452°F: Journal of Theory of Literature and Comparative Literature No. 7: 58-71.

Peer-Reviewed Book Chapters

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Hong Kong’s Digital Literary Field: Serialisation, Adaptation, and Readership.” In Digital China. Edited by Jessica Imbach, 75-97. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “Revisiting Hong Kong’s Myth of Success: Alternating Utopian and Dystopian Forces in the (New) Lion Rock Spirit.” Sinophone Utopias. Edited by Andrea Riemenschnitter, Jessica Imbach, and Justyna Jaguścik. New York: Cambria Press, 329-350.

Wu Helena. 2022. “Shangshan ruoshui / seung sin yeuk seui / excel like water”: Media Dynamics and Multiple Realities.” In Concepts: A Travelogue. Edited by Bernd Herzogenrath. New York: Bloomsbury, 75-86.

Wu, Helena. 2019. “Zai ben tu di” [Local]. Hong Kong Keywords. Edited by Yiu-wai Chu. Hong Kong: Chinese University of Hong Kong Press, 185-196.

Wu, Helena. 2018. “Transposing Jianghu in Chinese Martial Arts Cinema from the 20th Century to the 21st Century.” Chinese Martial Arts and Media Culture: Global Perspectives. Edited by Tim Trausch. London: Rowman & Littlefield, 21-50.

Encyclopedia and Reference Articles

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Healthy Realism.” Encyclopedia of Taiwan Studies Online: Cinema and Documentary. Brill.

Book and Film Reviews

Wu, Helena. 2024. “A Catalog of Such Stuff as Dreams are Made On, by Dung Kai-cheung; translated by Bonnie S. McDougall & Anders Hansson.” Asian Studies Review 48.1: 201-202.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “Black Bauhinia.” Pacific Affairs 96.4.

Non-Peer Reviewed Work

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Voices of Their Times: The Poetics of Theme Songs by James Wong and Joseph Koo.” Hong Kong: Taikwun.

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Shengyin, yingxiang yu wenhua jiyi: Gu Jiahui yu Huang Zhande dianying yinyue shijie 聲音、影像與文化記憶：顧嘉煇與黃霑的電影音樂世界” [Sound, Image, and Cultural Memory: The Musical World of James Wong and Joseph Koo]. Hong Kong: Taikwun.

Presentations

Scholarly Conference Presentations (selected)

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Materiality, Visuality, and Spectacle: The Street Writing of Tsang Tsou Choi.” Urban Mediations: International Conference on the Narratives, Ecologies, and Poetics of the City. City University of Hong Kong, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. December 5-6.

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Playing with Marginality: “King of Kowloon” Tsang Tsou-choi and His Street Writing.” Marginality and Migration: Narratives of Resilience and Belonging Conference. Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong. July 25-26.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “Spectatorship.” Theory Hong Kong: Conference in Cantonese. University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. December 14-15.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “Spectator(ship)s and Hong Kong Film and Television Audiences.” State of Hong Kong Studies Workshop. University of British Columbia, Canada. June 9-11.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “The Spectatorship of Trauma in Hong Kong Popular Culture: The Case of Zombie Narratives.” Association of Asian Studies 2023 Annual Conference, Boston. March 16-19.

Wu, Helena. 2023. “The Travelling of Jianghu.” Jianghu: A Workshop. University of Cologne, Germany. February 22-24.

Wu Helena. 2022. “The Worlds of Jianghu: Exploring the Place-Making Agency of an Imaginary Space.” Site, Image, Object: Rethinking Place in Chinese Visual and Material Culture. Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory, University of British Columbia, Canada. December 7-9.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Spectators as Spectacle: The Agency of the Audience of Hong Kong Popular Music in Times of Crisis.” The 21st Conference of the International Association for Study of Popular Music. Daegu, Korea. July 5-9.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Community Screening as a Mode.” Society for Hong Kong Studies Annual Conference. Society for Hong Kong Studies. June 24.

Wu, Helena. 2021. “Please Stand behind the Yellow Line: Seeking Safe Zone Through Digital Writing and Reading.” Society for Hong Kong Studies Annual Meeting. Society for Hong Kong Studies. June 25-26.

Wu, Helena. 2021 “Mapping Things and Places in Hong Kong through the Lens of Cultural Icons.” Journées de la Relève en Etudes Asiatiques et Orientales. University of Geneva, Switzerland. May 30 – June 1.

Wu, Helena. 2021. “Where Have Our Zombies Gone? Community Building in (Post-)Apocalyptic Hong Kong.” Hong Kong Popular Culture: Imagining a Research Field. The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Baptist University, and the University of British Columbia, Canada. May 1.

Wu, Helena. 2021. “(Be)Coming of Age between Humans and Things in Postmillennial Hong Kong.” American Comparative Literature Association Annual Meeting. American Comparative Literature Association. April 8-11.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “Representing the City in Hong Kong’s Web Fiction.” Wired China. University of Zurich, Switzerland. November 27-28.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “The Song Emperor’s Terrace.” Mapping Hong Kong—A History Workshop. University of British Columbia, Canada. May 29-31.

Wu, Helena, and Lai, Kwok-wai. 2019. “A Trans-local Collaboration of Local Imaginaries: From Ten Years Hong Kong to the Ten Years International Project.” Society for Hong Kong Studies Annual Conference. Society for Hong Kong Studies, Hong Kong. June 22.

Wu, Helena. 2019. “Between Locality and Local Relations: The Case of Sung Wong Toi.” The Question of Locality: Hong Kong Literature and Culture Annual Conference. School of Chinese, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. May 30-June 1.

Invited Scholarly Presentations (selected)

Wu, Helena. 2024. “Exploring Translocal Relations Through the Lens of Cultural Icon.” Hong Kong’s Global Localities: A Transdisciplinary Discussion. Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. December 4-5.

Wu Helena. 2023. “Through the Lens of Cultural Icons: Translocal Relations, Community Building, and Shared Experiences.” National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taiwan. May 12.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Rivers and Lakes and Beyond: Jianghu as a Traveling Concept.” University of Cologne, Germany. November 17.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Graffiti Artist x Flâneur: The ‘King of Kowloon’ and his Street Calligraphy in Hong Kong.” Visual and Material Culture Research Seminar. Museum Of Anthropology. Vancouver, Canada. October 13.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Fans: The Spectacle of Hong Kong Cantopop.” Symposium: Celebrating 70th Anniversary of Cantopop. University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. August 26-27.

Wu, Helena. 2022. Book Talk: The Hangover after the Handover: Things, Places and Cultural Icons in Hong Kong. University of California,USA. April 20.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Sharing Screen: Community Building and Creative Engagement in Hong Kong.” Asia Days. St. Gallen University, Switzerland. March 16.

Wu, Helena. 2022. “Hong Kong and the Freedom of Speech.” Digital Dialogues: Digital Harassment Across Asia. Association for Asian Studies. February 16.

Wu, Helena. 2021. “Community Screening and Alternative Spectatorship in Hong Kong.” Hong Kong Uncharted Webinar Series. Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. May 7.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “Hong Kong’s Lion Rock: A Local Icon, a Myth and More?” St. Gallen University, Switzerland. November 10.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “Sports as a Lens: The Making of Athletes’ and Spectators’ Identities in Postmillennial Hong Kong.” Global Media and China webinar series. October 29.

Wu, Helena. 2020. “The Worlds of Jianghu: Loyalists, Revolutionists and Secret Societies in Late Qing, Early Republican China.” University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. July 6.

Wu, Helena. 2019. “The Spectatorships and Circulation of Ten Years in Hong Kong.” International Workshop: New Media, Creative Industries and Cultural Entrepreneurs in China. St. Gallen University, Switzerland. December 5.

Awards and Grants (Selected)

Public Humanities Engagement Award, 2024. University of British Columbia.

SSHRC Connection Grant, 2023-2024. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Government of Canada.

Public Humanities Hub Seed Grants, 2022, 2023. University of British Columbia.

Hampton New Faculty Grant Award, 2022. University of British Columbia.

Canada Research Chair (Tier 2), 2022 – now. Tri-agency Institutional Programs, Government of Canada.

Talks and Panel Discussions (selected)

2025

Conversation with Filmmakers: Documentaries from Taiwan. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. March 13.

Conversation with Graphic Novel Artist Ruan Guang-min. LunarFest. Vancouver, Canada. February 13.

Conversation with Filmmaker Dieu Hao Do. LNY Splash and Vancouver International Film Festival. Vancouver, Canada. February 8.

Conversation with Filmmaker: Kissing the Ground You Walked On. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. Feb 6.

2024

Conversation with Serrini and Enno Cheng: Disrupt the System Through Language in Music. Jade Music Festival. Vancouver, Canada. November 8.

Song of the Wanderers: A Conversation With Anthony Wong. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. October 25.

Soundtrack of Our Lives Film Series: A Terra-Cotta Warrior. Taikwun, Hong Kong. July 20.

Soundtrack of Our Lives Film Series: A Better Tomorrow. Taikwun, Hong Kong. July 21.

Conversation with Filmmaker: Closing Event of Asian Independent Cinema Showcase. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. April 12.

Series Introduction to Film Retrospective “Are You Lonesome Tonight? The Films of Edward Yang.” Cinematheque. Vancouver, Canada. March 28.

Conversation with Filmmakers: In Search of Home Short Films Selection. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. March 22.

Conversation with Filmmaker: Abang Adik. VIFF. Vancouver, Canada. February 17.

Conversation with Filmmakers: Home and Away Short Films Selection. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. February 2.

Conversation with Filmmaker: Drifting Petals. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. January 20.

2023

Conversation with Filmmaker: The Grass is Greener on the Other Side. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. Oct 27.

Community talk. “Hong Kong Studies and Studying Hong Kong”. Hong Kong Readers, Hong Kong. May 19.

Conversation with Filmmakers: Ho Cheuk Tin and Ka Sing Fung. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. May 17.

Conversation with Filmmakers. Screening of To Be Continued and Post-Screening Talk with Dora Choi and Haider Kikabhoy. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. May 13.

Conversation with Filmmaker. Screening of Rouge and Post-Screening Talk with Stanley Kwan. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. March 23.

Conversation with Filmmakers: Keep Rolling. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. January 26.

2022

Panel discussion. “Elevating Chinese-language Music in Canada.” Jade Music Festival, Vancouver, Canada. December 7.

Community talk. “The Taste of Hong Kong Cinema.” Chinatown Storytelling Center, Vancouver, Canada. October 1.

Panel discussion. “Cinema Thinks the World: Goodbye Dragon Inn.” Cinematheque. Vancouver, Canada. June 2.

Conversation with Filmmaker. Anson Mak’s Fear(less) and Dear. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. March 11,

Conversation with Filmmaker. Alvin Tsang’s Reunification. University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada. January 28.

2021

Conversation with Filmmakers. Leung Ming-kai and Kate Reilly’s Memories to Choke On, Drinks to Wash Them Down. Global Hong Kong Studies @ University of California. USA. October 7.

Media Interviews (selected)

2025

So, Karen. “Asian Independent Cinema Showcase 2025: In Search of the Self.” Cantonese Omni TV. March 16, 2025.

So, Karen. “Indie Films in Oscar.” Cantonese Omni TV. March 6, 2025.

Chen, Debbie. “Asian Independent Film Showcase 2025 attracts over a hundred audience members by screening indie film from Macau.” Singtao Canada. February 7, 2025.

2024

Cheung, Janice. “Promoting Chinese-Language Music in Jade Music Fest.” Interviewed by Janice Cheung. Fairchild TV. November 10.

Chen, Debbie. “1918 in Canada.” Singtao Canada. September 22.

Fung, Magdalene. “Three lessons gleaned off the rugged road up Hong Kong’s iconic Lion Rock.” Straits Times. June 22.

So, Karen. “Asian Independent Cinema Showcase (III): Closing Film.” Cantonese Omni TV. April 9, 2024.

Chen, Debbie. “Edward Yang Retrospective launched in Vancouver’s Cinematheque.” Singtao Canada. April 1, 2024. https://www.singtao.ca/6642155/2024-04-01/news-溫哥華電影資料館舉辦楊德昌電影回顧展/

Chen, Debbie. “Seven Edward Yang Films screened in Vancouver.” Central News Agency. March 30, 2024. https://www.cna.com.tw/news/aopl/202403300115.aspx

Chen, Debbie. “Hong Kong, Taiwan and Malaysian shorts screened at UBC Asian Independent Film Showcase.” Singtao Canada. March 24, 2024. https://www.singtao.ca/6622746/2024-03-24/news-「亞洲獨立電影展」播港台和馬來西亞短片++凸顯離散移民心境

Chen, Debbie. “South Taiwan Film Festival in Vancouver.” Central News Agency. March 23, 2024. https://www.cna.com.tw/news/amov/202403230180.aspx

Braich, Baneet. “More women joining traditionally male-dominated lion dance.” CBC. February 9. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/women-lion-dancing-vancouver-1.7105477

So, Karen. “Asian Independent Cinema Showcase (II): Films on Diaspora.” Cantonese Omni TV. January 30.

So, Karen. “Asian Independent Cinema Showcase (I): Drifting Petals.” Cantonese Omni TV. January 15.

2023

Mycroft, Connor. “Hong Kong migrants revel in Cantopop concerts, films from home as tears flow, emotions high in ‘collective healing’ at venues in Canada, UK.” South China Morning Post. September 10. https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3233970/hong-kong-migrants-revel-cantopop-concerts-films-home-tears-flow-emotions-high-collective-healing

Chun, Andrea. A1 News Beat. Radio AM1540. September 1.

So, Karen. “Documentary about Hong Kong’s State Theatre in Vancouver.” Cantonese Omni TV. May 12. https://www.omnitv.ca/video/有關北角「皇都戲院」紀錄片-溫哥華上映/

Wong, Justin, and Cyprus Lo. “Cover Story: In Memory of Leslie Cheung.” Singtao Canada. April 1.

Lee, Joyce. “Leslie Cheung exhibit at UBC Asian Library.” Fairchild TV. March 25.

So, Karen. “Hong Kong’s Lunar New Year Films in Vancouver.” Cantonese Omni TV. January 31. 

Chun, Andrea. A1 News Beat. Radio AM1540. January 27. 

Quinn, Stephen. “Legacy of prominent Cantopop composer Joseph Koo.” The Early Edition. CBC Radio. January 6. https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-91-the-early-edition/clip/15958355-more-legacy-prominent-cantopop-composer-joseph-koo. 

2022 

Chun, Andrea. A1 News Beat. Radio AM1540. September 8. 

Wu, Jiaxuan (Josie), and Cheung, Esther. “Asian artist tackles stereotypes in a new circus, theatre and drag show.” The Thunderbird. August 31, 2022. https://thethunderbird.ca/2022/02/24/asian-artist-tackles-stereotypes-in-a-new-circus-theatre-and-drag-show/. 

Moliere, Ashley. “‘A poignant memory’: Artist pays tribute to Hong Kong’s old airport with new Vancouver installation.” CBC. June 25. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/art-installation-kai-tak-airport-vancouver-1.6500582 

Jones, Gary. “The ‘can do’ attitude that defines Hong Kong.” BBC. May 16. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20220515-the-can-do-attitude-that-defines-hong-kong. 

2021 

So, Karen. “Global Screening of Memories to Choke On, Drinks to Wash Them Down.” Cantonese Omni TV. October 5. 

Academic conferences/workshops organized

“State of Hong Kong Studies : An International Workshop.” University of British Columbia, Canada. June 9-11, 2023. https://hksi.ubc.ca/workshop2023/