[Video Essay] Fading City – Playgrounds in Hong Kong

Fading City – Video by Cheng Sze Yuet Ashlyn 3036109175

Video script
As a kid, the best part of the day is to get home from school, rush to the playground and spend the entire afternoon playing under the sun till I reluctantly return home when I get too many mosquito bites. When you walk into a playground, you would expect to see kids having fun or even fighting to use the equipment as playgrounds are built for this sole purpose – to entertain kids. However, with the popularization of electronic gadgets, electronic devices are becoming the new form of entertainment for young kids. The age at which kids first get exposed to electronic gadgets is getting younger and the use of such devices are becoming more prevalent. A study found that 65% of the children started playing with electronic devices before they turned three (Tang, A., 2013). Another study shows that young kids nowadays are spending twice as long looking at screens as they do playing outside (Jenkins, R., 2018). Needless to say, excessive use of electronic gadgets could impede the growth and development of children in addition to an increased susceptibility to eye strain and behavioural problems (Ullah, A., 2017). The once overpopulated playground is now not far from empty, the giggly, blissful faces and screams are now replaced by the sound of cars passing or birds chirping in the distance. Playgrounds are slowly being forgotten by the younger generation of kids, the once hot spot for kids to gather afterschool is no longer the norm. Playgrounds slowly fade into the background of our city as it loses importance in children’s life. In the near future, facing a rise in competition for land on top of a lowered utility rate of playgrounds, will playgrounds survive and remain among us or will it be completely taken down and fade away?

Video credits
Soundtrack:
Video games (instrumental) by Lana Del Rey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70N0xzQ97E0
Lovely (instrumental) by Billie Eilish https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0al4LjErt0U
Clips from Internet addiction disorder affecting toddlers | 60 Minutes Australia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyMqljINR74&t=97s



Synopsis
The prevalence of electronic gadgets has drastically shaped our communities and young children are not immune to this change. The once sought-after form of entertainment for young kids — outdoor playgrounds are now replaced by tablets, smart phones, and computers. A study shows kids 7 years old or younger are spending an average of four hours per day on their electronic gadgets, whereas the time spent playing outdoors is less than one hour and a half every day which means they spend twice as long as they do looking at screens than they do playing outside (Jenkins, R., 2018). Another study found 65% of the children started playing with electronic devices before they turned three in which 95% of them played video and simulation games on the device (Tang, A., 2013). Needless to say, excessive use of electronic gadgets could impede the growth and development of children in addition to an increased susceptibility to eye strain and behavioural problems (Ullah, A., 2017). Without play, kids miss out on a multitude of benefits that they would normally gain through play namely improved social awareness, cognitive abilities, motor skills (Little Tikes Commercial). With that being said, we can foresee a lowered utility rate of outdoor playgrounds as kids are now overly preoccupied with their electronic gadgets. Playgrounds slowly fades into the background of our city as it loses importance in children’s life. To sum up the above, the following hypothesis is made: the level of activity in the playground would be low as kids now switch to spending time indoors with their screens.

Methods
To better understand the situation, I conducted a fieldwork study to test out my hypothesis. I went to three different playgrounds in different districts namely Hong Kong Park which is in central, Quarry Bay Park which is near Taikoo, and lastly Po Hong Park which is in Tseung Kwan O to conduct my research. To capture the highest flow of children in playgrounds, I went to the three aforementioned parks at 4-6pm on 3 different weekdays. I also conducted interviews with the guards in Po Hong Park and Quarry Bay Park to find out if the phenomenon of low visitors is consistent on other weekdays. The guard from Po Hong Park explained that the flow of people has already risen compared with the time when restrictions were first eased back in 2022 as people were then more cautious of the spread of virus.

The observations I made in my three different site visits show the level of activity is low even during peak hours (4-6pm). I recorded a rough number of kids spotted in the playground during the two hours. The following numbers exclude adults: Po Hong Park: 12 people, Quarry Bay Park: 22 people, Hong Kong Park Playground: 8 people. The following numbers show the flow of people compared with the size of the playground, Quarry Bay Park: 3 sets of play equipment (7 kids per equipment), Hong Kong Park Playground: 1000 square meters (125 square meter per kid), Po Hong Park: 4.13hectares or 41300square meters (~3500square meters per kid), (Leisure and Cultural Services Department, n.d.).

Theme
According to the Cambridge dictionary, fade means to lose color, brightness or strength gradually. The Macmillan dictionary defines fade as to gradually become less noticeable and finally disappear or become less famous or important. Playgrounds are slowly being forgotten by the younger generation of kids, the once hot spot for kids to gather afterschool is no longer the norm. Unless kids give up their electronic devices and head outdoors, playgrounds will remain underused. Playgrounds are fading into the background as it goes unnoticed by humans. Perhaps in the near future, with a lowered utility rate of playgrounds and a rise in competition for land, playgrounds may completely be taken down and fade away.

Editing
I decided to incorporate shots of kids playing in the playground at the beginning of the video to contrast the lonely, melancholic and dispirited ambience of the empty, underused equipment of the playgrounds in the latter. The colorful, vibrant tone of lively shots of children is used to mimic the old glory days of playgrounds. It should be noted that In spite of displaying a handful of kids at the start of the video, I could hardly capture large crowds throughout the duration of my site visit. Therefore, the display of kids is not to portray the vividness of playgrounds, instead, to showcase that the playground is still fairly unfrequented by kids. To better showcase the low utility rate of playgrounds in the latter shots and to stick with the theme of the video – fading city, I stripped away most of the color from the shots that did not feature kids. This is to create a stark contrast to the vivacious shots displayed earlier and induce how deserted and unoccupied the playgrounds in Hong Kong are.


Reference

Cambridge dictionary. (n.d.). Fade. Retrieved May 6, 2023, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/fade

Jenkins, R. (2018, October 26). Children spend twice as long looking at screens than playing outside, study finds. Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/children-screens-play-outside-computer-phone-time-healthy-games-a8603411.html

Leisure and cultural services department. (n.d.). Hong Kong Park. Retrieved 9 May, 2023, from https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/parks/hkp/facilities/outdoor/childrens_playground.html

Leisure and cultural services department. (n.d.). Po Hong Park. Retrieved 9 May, 2023, from https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/parks/php/index.html ​​

Leisure and Cultural Services Department. (n.d.). Play equipment for all. Retrieved 11 May, 2023, from https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/clpss/en/webApp/Facility/Details.do?ftid=55&did=2

Little Tikes Commercial. The importance of playgrounds & play for child development. Little Tikes Commercial. https://littletikescommercial.com/blog/importance-of-playgrounds-for-children/?lang=can

Macmillan dictionary. (n.d.). Fade (verb) definitions and synonyms. Retrieved May 6, 2023, from https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/fade

Tang, A. (2013, June 5). Kids ‘using gadgets at earlier age being exposed to risks’: Study. The Straits times.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/kids-using-gadgets-at-earlier-age-being-exposed-to-risks-study

Ullah, A. (2017, March 11). Children getting obsessed with electronic gadgets. Daily Sun. https://www.daily-sun.com/post/211410/Children-getting-obsessed-with-electronic-gadgets

Name: Cheng Sze Yuet Ashlyn 

UID: 3036109175