Siu-Tung Ching
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Ching Siu-tung (Chinese: 程小東, born October 31, 1953), also known as Tony Ching, is a Hong Kong action choreographer, actor, film director and producer, who has directed over 20 films, including the critically acclaimed supernatural fantasy ''
A Chinese Ghost Story ''A Chinese Ghost Story'' ( zh, t=倩女幽魂, l=The Ethereal Spirit of a Beauty, cy=Sihnnéuih Yāuwàhn) is a 1987 Hong Kong horror film starring Leslie Cheung, Joey Wong and Wu Ma, directed by Ching Siu-tung and produced by Tsui Hark. The ...
'' (1987). He produced the expensive music video for "
L'Âme-stram-gram "L'Âme-stram-gram" is a song by French singer-songwriter Mylène Farmer. It was the lead single from her fifth studio album ''Innamoramento'' and was released on 9 March 1999. The lyrics were written by Farmer and the music was composed by Laur ...
" by the French singer
Mylène Farmer Mylène Jeanne Gautier (; born 12 September 1961), known professionally as Mylène Farmer (), is a French singer and songwriter. Having sold more than 30 million records worldwide, she is among the most successful recording artists of all time ...
in the style of ''A Chinese Ghost Story'' at a cost of €1 million. He studied in the Eastern Drama Academy and trained in Northern Style Kung Fu for 7 years.


Career

Ching began as an actor and martial arts instructor working in
Hong Kong action cinema Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. Action films from Hong Kong have roots in Chinese culture, Chinese and Culture of Hong Kong, Hong Kong cultures, including Chinese opera, storytelling a ...
in the 1960s and 1970s (his father, Ching Gong, was a
Shaw Brothers Studio Shaw Brothers (HK) Limited () was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, operating from 1925 to 2011. In 1925, three Shaw brothers— Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called "Unique") in Shang ...
director, and Ching Siu-tung had been trained in
Peking opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became ...
as a child), but he made his directorial debut in 1982 with the ground-breaking
wuxia ( , literally "martial arts and chivalry") is a genre of Chinese literature, Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fantasy literature, its popularity ha ...
classic ''
Duel to the Death ''Duel to the Death'' is a 1983 Hong Kong martial arts ''wuxia'' film directed by Ching Siu-tung in his directorial debut, and written by Siu-tung, David Lai and Manfred Wong. It stars Norman Chui, Damian Lau, Flora Cheong-Leen, and Eddy Ko. ...
''. Ching worked with producer
Tsui Hark Tsui Hark (, , born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong (), is a Hong Kong filmmaker. A major director in the Golden Age of Cinema of Hong Kong, Hong Kong cinema, Tsui gained critical and commercial success with films such as ''Zu Warriors from ...
on 1987's ''A Chinese Ghost Story'', which became an international sensation, although it was usually Tsui Hark who took most of the plaudits. He continued to work with Tsui Hark, directing sequels to that film in 1990 and 1991, and co-directing all three parts of the ''
Swordsman Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to a ...
'' series, starting in 1990. Other directorial highlights included the highly successful ''
Royal Tramp ''Royal Tramp'' is a 1992 Hong Kong wuxia comedy film based on Louis Cha's novel '' The Deer and the Cauldron''. The film was one of the five top grossing Hong Kong films in 1992; Stephen Chow, who played the protagonist Wai Siu-bo, also starr ...
'' films (both 1992) which starred
Stephen Chow Stephen Chow Sing-chi (; born 22 June 1962) is a Hong Kong filmmaker and former actor, known for his mo lei tau comedy. His career began in television, where he gained recognition through variety shows and TV dramas. Chow's breakthrough came in 1 ...
and
Brigitte Lin Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia (; born 3 November 1954) is a Taiwanese actress. Regarded as a screen icon, Lin played a key role in boosting Taiwan’s film production with her romantic heroine roles in the 1970s before transitioning to Hong Kong, where ...
. Ching continued his role as action director / choreographer throughout this period, and has continued to work in that role on high-profile international successes like ''
Shaolin Soccer ''Shaolin Soccer'' ( Chinese: ) is a 2001 Hong Kong sports comedy film directed by Stephen Chow, who also stars in the lead role. The film revolves around a former Shaolin monk who reunites his five brothers,"Brothers" here does not mean bio ...
'' (2001), ''
Hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such thin ...
'' (2002), and ''
House of Flying Daggers ''House of Flying Daggers'' () is a 2004 ''wuxia'' martial arts film from China, directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau, and Zhang Ziyi. It opened in limited release within the United States on 3 December 2004, in New ...
'' (2004). In 2002, Ching was nominated twice for Best Action Choreography at the
Hong Kong Film Awards The Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA; ), founded in 1982, is an annual film awards ceremony in Hong Kong. The ceremonies typically take place in April, and have mostly been held at the Grand Theatre of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre since 1991. The a ...
, and won in 2003 for his efforts on ''Hero''. That same year, he made his
American film The cinema of the United States, primarily associated with major film studios collectively referred to as Hollywood, has significantly influenced the global film industry since the early 20th century. Classical Hollywood cinema, a filmmakin ...
debut, directing
Steven Seagal Steven Frederic Seagal ( ; born April 10, 1952) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter, martial artist, and musician. A 7th-Dan (rank), dan Black belt (martial arts), black belt in aikido, he began his adult life as a martial arts instru ...
in the
direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...
feature ''
Belly of the Beast ''Belly of the Beast'' is a 2003 American action film directed by Hong Kong film director Ching Siu-tung in his American directorial debut, and starring Steven Seagal, who also produced. The film co-stars Byron Mann, Monica Lo and Tom Wu. Seaga ...
''. In 2006, he choreographed the action scenes in the Indian superhero film ''
Krrish ''Krrish'' () is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language superhero action thriller film directed and produced by Rakesh Roshan. The film stars Hrithik Roshan in a dual role, alongside Priyanka Chopra, Naseeruddin Shah, Rekha, Sharat Saxena and Man ...
'', for which he won a
Filmfare Best Action Award The Filmfare Best Action Award is given by the ''Filmfare'' magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films. Although the awards started in 1954, the category was not started until 1993. Superlatives Awards Here is a list of ...
and
Zee Cine Award The Zee Cine Award (ZCA) is an annual Indian awards ceremony for the Hindi film industry. They were instituted in November 1997 to award "Excellence in cinema – the democratic way". They were first held in Mumbai until 2004, when the ZCA w ...
. In 2008, Ching directed ''
An Empress and the Warriors ''An Empress and the Warriors'' is a 2008 action film directed by Ching Siu-tung. A Hong Kong-Chinese co-production, the film stars Donnie Yen, Kelly Chen, Leon Lai, and Kou Zhenhai. Plot The film is set in ancient China, during the Warring St ...
'', in which he also served as action choreographer. The film stars
Kelly Chen Kelly Chen Wai-lam (born Vivian Chen Wai-man on 13 September 1972) is a Hong Kong singer and actress. She has been referred to as a " Diva of Asia" (). Chen has great success in the East Asian entertainment industry with nearly 20 million rec ...
,
Donnie Yen Donnie Yen Chi-tan ( zh, c=甄子丹, p=Zhēn Zǐdān, j=, first=j; born 27 July 1963) is a Hongkongers, Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and action director. He is the recipient of various accolades, including three Golden Horse Fi ...
and
Leon Lai Leon Lai Ming Silver Bauhinia Star, SBS Bronze Bauhinia Star, BBS Medal of Honour (Hong Kong), MH ( zh, 黎明; born 11 December 1966), is a Hong Kong actor, singer, film director, and businessman. He is one of the "Cantopop#1990s: Four Heav ...
.


Filmography


Director


Action choreographer

Ching Siu-tung at chinesemov.com
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References


External links



*
HK cinemagic entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ching, Siu-Tung Hong Kong film directors 1953 births Living people Hong Kong film producers Hong Kong action choreographers Chinese horror film directors People from Anhui