Looking back to his university entrance exam 12 years ago, YouTuber Hui Yin recalled it as a “once-in-a-lifetime battle” that turned his life upside down.
His mother was disappointed by his performance on Hong Kong’s public exam as he failed to gain admission to the top three universities in Hong Kong.
While the 31-year-old has since achieved success as a founder of the popular YouTube channel Trial and Error, Hui’s regret about his exams have influenced a viral series about the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) examination.
“I had strong feelings about the public exam, so I want to share this sentiment with DSE students who are also concerned ... to let them know I’ve been in their shoes,” Hui said.
Last year, Trial and Error, which has 520,000 subscribers, spent over eight months documenting their member Tang Ngai-hong’s journey through the 2023 DSE exam. Accompanying the teen as his study partner, Hui re-took the exam – and reflected on the decade-long trauma he had buried in his heart.
The 10-episode series received overwhelmingly positive responses with more than one million views on YouTube. To bring their production to a bigger audience, the channel spent the past year converting the episodes into a full-length documentary titled Once Upon a Time in HKDSE, set to be released on July 4.
As the channel’s silver screen debut, director Leung Yik-ho, who is also a member of Trial and Error, said the documentary was meant to be both entertaining and insightful.
The 33-year-old added: “We made this movie ... to reach more people and to reflect on the education system from another angle.”
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Recognise the challenge
The Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority has organised the city’s public exams since 1978 and transformed it into the DSE in 2012.
Every year, about 50,000 students take the DSE exam to compete for the 15,000 places offered by the eight publicly funded universities in the city.
“The exam has an impact on your life, especially in Hong Kong where academic qualification is emphasised ... So this [documentary] is to remind students that it is fine to not go to university, but we hope they can try their best in the exam,” said Leung, who over a decade ago failed to enter university.
He added, “Some students might like to deceive themselves into thinking that the exam is easy, but in return, this only generates greater stress. Recognising the challenge you are facing is of the utmost importance.”
The documentary also highlights the bonds between exam takers and parents.
As he accompanied Tang’s studies, Hui reflected on his mother’s approach: “Although my mum had good intentions, how she acted like a boss to oversee and assess my study progress was wrong. It would only create distance between children and parents.”
“I learned not to impose my expectations ... on Tang and to keep my emotions in check. The best approach is to lead by example.”
Cheering students on
For Hui and Leung, producing this documentary was a “dream come true”, and they hope to one day present it at international film festivals.
“We want to show the world what Hong Kong students are going through and compare it with other places’ public exam systems,” Hui said.
Leung added, “Joining the film festival is not about the glory or awards ... My expectation of this documentary is like taking an exam – we don’t need to think about the result after it’s done. As long as we’ve worked our best and have no regrets in the process, anything else is a bonus.”
On July 16, the day before the DSE results will be released, the channel will organise a YouTube live to accompany the exam takers on their big day.
Similar to what they did last year, the YouTube live stream will run from 6pm to 6am. The channel will invite content creators, singers and artists to share their exam experiences and provide comfort to students.
Leung said, “The goal is to show students that while this is their first time going through the DSE, there are people ... cheering them on.”
Hui added: “Having someone who understands your situation can’t give you extra points on the DSE. But it can provide the strength to face the unknown stress along the way.”
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