Hong Kong, Dec 12 (IANS): Hong Kong director Stanley Kwan is planning a film on late Chinese author Sanmao, with production intended to take place in 2018.

Kwan revealed the plan while serving as jury duty at the inaugural International Film Festival & Awards Macao, which will conclude on Tuesday.

The director is one of the five-member international jury to assess the 12 films competing for nine awards in the former Portuguese colony.

"When I was in Taiwan for the Golden Horse Film Awards in 1989, some investors asked me if I wanted to meet Sanmao because they wanted to make a film about her," Kwan told variety.com.

"But I felt that it wasn't the right time, and I wasn't ready to do the project back then. It was not possible to do this 10 or even 20 years ago. But now, the timing is right. The market is one reason.

"The China market is one of the world's biggest film markets and nowadays Sanmao's writing is becoming very popular among young people in China. Her work has a great influence over a few generations of Chinese people," added Kwan, whose credits include "Center Stage" and "Rouge".