John Sham Kin-Fun (born 1952) is a

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...

and

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

. His English name is sometimes written as John Shum. Whilst known primarily for his comedic acting roles in

Hong Kong cinema The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of pol ...

, he also spent time as a

political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...

Biography

Shum was educated in Hong Kong, the UK and the US. Upon his return to Hong Kong, he co-founded "City Magazine" with John Chan, and worked as its editor. At the same time, he began working in television and radio. He was also a student activist in the 1970s back in his youth and was a member of a

Trotskyist Trotskyism is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Ukrainian-Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky and some other members of the Left Opposition and Fourth International. Trotsky self-identified as an orthodox Marxist, a ...

vanguard party Vanguardism in the context of Leninist revolutionary struggle, relates to a strategy whereby the most class-conscious and politically "advanced" sections of the proletariat or working class, described as the revolutionary vanguard, form organ ...

the Revolutionary Marxist League. In 1983, he set up the film production company D&B Films, along with

Sammo Hung Sammo Hung Kam-bo ( zh, t=洪金寶, j=Hung4 Gam1-bou2; born 7 January 1952) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and director, known for his work in martial arts films, Hong Kong action cinema, and as a fight choreographer for ...

and

Dickson Poon Sir Dickson Poon (; born 19 June 1956) is a Hong Kong businessman in the luxury goods retailing sector. Poon is the executive chairman of his Hong Kong based and listed company Dickson Concepts (DCIL), which owns companies including Harvey Ni ...

. He later founded another film company with John Chan, Maverick Films Ltd. Sham's most prolific period working as an actor was during the 1980s. Of the 45 films he has appeared in, 33 were during this period. Notable appearances include Sammo Hung's Lucky Stars films ''

Winners and Sinners ''Winners and Sinners'' (, also known as ''5 Lucky Stars'') is a 1983 Hong Kong action comedy film written and directed by Sammo Hung, who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao, the latter serving as one of th ...

'' (1983) and ''

Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars ''Twinkle, Twinkle, Lucky Stars'' (, released in the Philippines as ''Dragon Mission'') is a 1985 Hong Kong action comedy film starring and directed by Sammo Hung. The film co-stars Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao. It is the third installment in the ...

'' (1985), and starring roles alongside comedy partner

Richard Ng Richard Ng Yiu-hon (born 17 December 1939), also known as Richard Woo, is a Hong Kong actor known for playing comedic roles, particularly in Hong Kong films of the 1980s and 1990s. Film and television career Ng has appeared in 80 films to da ...

in the Pom Pom series (1984–1986). Sham is credited as a producer on over 20 films, including '' Hong Kong 1941'' (1984), '' The Lunatics'' (1986), '' Legacy of Rage'' (1986) and '' The Banquet'' (1991). He also worked as an assistant director on the 1987 Michelle Yeoh film '' Magnificent Warriors'' and also has credits on a number of other films, with roles such as planning, executive production and presentation. In 1992, Sham co-hosted the

Hong Kong Film Award The Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA; ), founded in 1982, is an annual film awards ceremony in Hong Kong. The ceremonies are typically in April. The awards recognise achievement in various aspects of filmmaking, such as directing, screenwriting, ...

s ceremony. Throughout much of the 1990s, films took a back seat as Shum was heavily involved with the Pro-Democracy movement in Hong Kong. In 2005, he was appointed the Executive Secretary of the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers, by the government-sponsored Film Development Committee (FDC). In December 2007, he was enrolled as an executive committee member of the Hong Kong Performing Artistes Guild. His latest role is as executive producer, alongside

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...

, for the film ''Wushu'' (2008), which was directed by Antony Szeto and starred

Filmography

Films

* '' Yes, Madam'' 一皇家師姐 (1985), actor * ''A Complicated Story'' 一個複雜故事 (2013), actor * ''A Simple Life'' 桃姐 (2011), actor * ''Bodyguards and Assassins'' 十月圍城 (2009), actor * ''Mr. Cinema'' 老港正傳 (2007), actor * ''McDull, the Alumni'' 春田花花同學會(2006), actor * ''New Police Story'' 新警察故事 (2004), actor * ''The Miracle Box'' 天作之盒 (2004), actor John Shum at chinesemov.com
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shum, John 1952 births Hong Kong male actors Living people Hong Kong film producers Chinese Trotskyists Asian film producers