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Richard James Havis

Want to make an action film the Hong Kong way? In our unofficial “masterclass”, legendary action and martial arts filmmakers tell you how it is done.
John Woo Yu-sum on how to develop a universal story for your film:
“In my films, I explore themes and emotions that are common to everyone. Even though we all walk different paths – depending on culture and background – I believe there are some ideas that are universal.
“For instance, we all want to believe there is justice, love, morality and beauty in the world. I want to show that violence can be defeated by justice.
How Gen-X Cops led a new crop of Hong Kong action films in the 1990s
“My heroes use their self-discipline to combat injustice. My characters obey a code of loyalty – I want to show that life is precious.”
Ringo Lam Ling-tung on how to get a film up and running:
“First I have to get an idea – something I won’t get bored with over the space of a year. Then I deal with the “mechanical” aspects such as inventing a set-piece. Then I send the scriptwriter home to put it all down on paper,” he told film critic Derek Elley.
“We’ll look at it together again, then I’ll go and hide away somewhere and fix everything, including the dialogue.
For Victim, I went off to Bangkok for five days.”

Peter Chan Ho-sun on how a drama director should prepare for shooting an action film like “The Warlords”:
“Action films require choreographers, stunt doubles, and so on, and that just complicates the whole filmmaking process more. When the number of people on the set is high, the relationships are not as close, and that’s not great for dealing with emotional scenes.
“That’s why I have shied away from them – it’s always been hard for me to imagine making a film with so many people.”

The late action maestro Benny Chan Muk-sing on having a large team:
“I prefer shooting action scenes [to dramatic scenes] as you have got a lot of people to share your burden.
“It allows you more time to think – I am a very slow thinker!” he told the Post.
If there is too much drama in an action film, it may upset the action fans
Benny Chan
“Ip Man” director Wilson Yip Wai-shun on establishing your own directorial style – or not:
“Style is just a signboard that you hang up. I don’t worry about establishing a style for my movies.
“If you put my movies together, there will definitely be something that proves they all come out of me.

“But I don’t think it’s good to focus on the things that are shaping my style. Slow motion is, of course, John Woo’s style, but I feel that in his later works, he uses slow motion for the sake of it. Is that good?”
The legendary King Hu discussing how to plan a martial arts shoot:
“Before we began shooting [Come Drink with Me], we had a rehearsal organised for the wushu experts we had hired. The goals were sevenfold – first to see if the actors could actually execute the moves, and second to give the props man a good idea of where to use real props and where to use fakes.

“But the most important goal was to prepare safety measures for when the actors performed especially dangerous moves. Finally, we determined in advance which moves would require stunt doubles.”
Martial arts fan Wong Kar-wai on using the action to tell a story:
“The traditional martial arts film has the goal of stimulating the viewers’ senses. With Ashes of Time, I wanted the senses to also be means of expressing the characters’ feelings.

“When Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia is playing with the sword, it’s a dance. When I filmed Tony Leung Chiu-wai, the blind warrior, in slow motion, I showed his fatigue as he faces his life, which is symbolised by the weight of his sword.”
Benny Chan on keeping the focus on the action:
“It’s difficult to strike a balance [between action and drama]. If there is too much drama in an action film, it may upset the action fans.”

Famed choreographer Yuen Woo-ping on how to train the actors:
“In Hong Kong, if the movie stars are experienced, they all know a little bit of kung fu, so they just rehearse on the set during the shoot. They can shoot right away.
“Here in the US, the Western actors don’t know kung fu so they have to rehearse, maybe three months ahead,” Yuen told martial-arts film director, producer and screenwriter Martha Burr.
“[In the US], I have six assistants from Hong Kong to help. The six assistants do the basic training and then I do the main movements for the film.

“I will observe the actor to get an idea of how far he or she can go, and then design the action specifically for him or her. We get an idea of each person’s ability, and then we decide.”
“A Man Called Hero” director Andrew Lau Wai-keung on the proper use of special effects:
“We still place priority on the script first and then incorporate the special effects into the story. We have never wavered from that, but we have to consider that sometimes the audience likes to see certain things.

“A lot of factors play a part – the lighting and the art direction, for example. We don’t tell ourselves we have to have ‘X’ number of effects; it’s actually a combination of all the factors working together.”
Versatile director Gordon Chan Kar-seung on how to work with – or not work with – martial arts choreographers:
“I have to use a martial arts choreographer for the fight scenes, but I always work closely with him.
“In Hong Kong, when the martial arts choreographers take over, the real directors leave. There is a lot of pressure to do that, but I always stay. I don’t do the choreography, but I try and set the tone of the scene.

“I had a hard time shooting [Jet Li Lianjie’s] Fist of Legend, as I asked the martial arts choreographers not to shoot too much combat footage – I didn’t need too much fighting, as I was focused on the human drama.
“But they just kept on shooting fight after fight, saying that we needed more to satisfy the audience. I said that I was there to tell a good story, and that would satisfy the viewers, but the choreographers were not convinced.”
Ang Lee on the rigours of making a martial arts movie:
“We shot Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon around the clock with two teams. I didn’t take one break in eight months, not even for half a day. I was miserable – I just didn’t have the energy to be happy.

“Near the end, I could hardly breathe. I thought I was going to have a stroke. It was bad.
“Six months later I am resting now, trying to get fit again. But since I’m middle-aged, I’ll probably never get back to normal.”
In this regular feature series on the best of Hong Kong cinema, we examine the legacy of classic films, re-evaluate the careers of its greatest stars, and revisit some of the lesser-known aspects of the beloved industry.
Want more articles like this? Follow SCMP Film on Facebook


30 years on, 3 elements that helped make Chungking Express a Hong Kong cinema classic

This Hong Kong martial arts movie expert’s journey from DVD commentaries to Hollywood

Taoist funeral rituals used to tell stories about life in Hong Kong plays and a movie

An Abandoned Team movie review: Lawrence Cheng bonds with stray dog in feel-good drama

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How Hong Kong action films are made: directors including John Woo, Benny Chan and Wong Kar-wai on their craft

Yuen Woo-ping on the set of Master Z: The Ip Man Legacy (2018).

King Hu on a film set in a still from the documentary “The King of Wuxia Part 2: The Heartbroken Man on the Horizon”. The most important step in rehearsals for a film was to prepare safety measures for when actors perform dangerous moves, Hu said. Photo: Sky Films

Ringo Lam Ling-tung in an interview with the Post in 1999. Photo: SCMP

Peter Chan Ho-sun in an interview with the Post in 1995. Photo: SCMP

Wilson Yip Wai-shun in an interview with the Post in 2004. Photo: SCMP

King Hu (left) demonstrates a move to actor Roy Chiao in a still from “The King of Wuxia”. Photo: Qixia Films

Wong Kar-wai, pictured in 1995. Photo: SCMP

Benny Chan on the set of “Gen-Y Cops” in 2000. Photo: SCMP

Yuen Woo-ping on the set of “Master Z: The Ip Man Legacy” in 2017. 

Andrew Lau Wai-keung in an interview with the Post in 1999. Photo: SCMP

Gordon Chan Kar-seung in an interview with the Post in 2008. Photo: SCMP

Ang Lee on the set of “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” in 1999. Photo: SCMP

From Women to Red Rose White Rose, the actresses in Stanley Kwan’s early films had starring roles where they were more than just ‘vases’

Joan Chen and Winston Chao in a still from “Red Rose White Rose”.

Sylvia Chang Ai-chia in a still from “Full Moon in New York”, one of Stanley Kwan Kam-pang’s early movies that centred on women.

Cora Miao in a still from “Women”.

Stanley Kwan at an interview with the Post in 2005. Photo: SCMP

Tony Leung Chiu-wai (left) and Irene Wan Pik-ha in a still from “Love Unto Waste”.

Chow Yun-fat (left) and Tony Leung in a still from “Love Unto Waste”.

(From left) Sylvia Chang Ai-chia, Maggie Cheung Man-yuk and Siqin Gaowa in a still from “Full Moon in New York”.

Joan Chen (left) and Winston Chao Wen-hsuan in a still from “Red Rose White Rose”.

Hong Kong movie stars Francis Ng and Anthony Wong and their careers in the 1990s: comedy, crime and character acting

Anthony Wong (left) and Francis Ng at the  19th Hong Kong Film Awards at the Hong Kong Coliseum in April 2000. The pair had been a breath of fresh air for Hong Kong film-goers in the 1990s with their unconventional style. Photo: SCMP

Francis Ng (top) and Anthony Wong in a still from “Dancing Lion” (2007), co-directed by Ng and Marco Mak Chi-sin. Photo: SCMPost

Anthony Wong in a still from “Beast Cops” (1998), directed by Gordon Chan and Dante Lam. Photo: Media Asia Films

Francis Ng at the Udine Far East Film Festival in 1999.

Ng (front) in a still from “Infernal Affairs II” (2003). Photo: SCMPost

Ng at an interview with the Post in 2017. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Wong in a still from “The Untold Story” (1993).

Best actor winner Anthony Wong Chau-sang (left) and best actress winner Anita Yuen Wing-yee at the 13th Hong Kong Film Awards in April 1994. Photo: SCMP

Wong at an interview with the Post in June 2023. Photo: Jonathan Wong

How Hong Kong action movie director Johnnie To’s films Lifeline and The Mission show the different sides to his  filmmaking

Roy Cheung in a still from “The Mission” (1999).

Lau Ching-wan in a still from the movie “Lifeline” (1997), directed by Hong Kong action film auteur Johnnie To. Photo: Shaw Brothers Studio

Johnnie To at an interview with the Post in 1999. Photo: SCMP

Lau Ching-wan in a still from “Lifeline” (1997). Photo: Shaw Brothers Studio

Simon Yam (centre) in a still from “The Mission” (1999).

How Hong Kong New Wave cinema classics Nomad and The Story of Woo Viet, early movies by Patrick Tam and Ann Hui, show the movement’s diversity

Leslie Cheung in a still from “Nomad”, directed by Patrick Tam.

Leslie Cheung and Cecilia Yip in a still from “Nomad” (1982), directed by Patrick Tam. The differences between this and Ann Hui’s “The Story of Woo Viet” highlight the broad stylistic and thematic range of the Hong Kong’s New Wave cinema.

Pat Ha (left) as Kathy and Kent Tong as Pong in a still from “Nomad”.

Film director Patrick Tam at an interview with the Post in 2006. Photo: SCMP

Leslie Cheung (left) as Louis and Kent Tong as Pong in a still from “Nomad”.

Chow Yun-fat as Woo Viet and Cherie Chung in a still from “The Story of Woo Viet”. 

Chow Yun-fat (left) and Tong Kam-tong in a still from “The Story of Woo Viet”.

No Michelle Yeoh, no problem: how Cynthia Khan made In the Line of Duty 3 and 4 her own with her sensational performances, including one alongside a young Donnie Yen

Cynthia Khan and Donnie Yen in a still from “In the Line of Duty 4”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

Cynthia Khan in a still from “In the Line of Duty 3”. Khan stepped in when Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock were unavailable to film sequels to their hits “Yes, Madam!” and “Royal Warriors”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

Hiroshi Fujioka (left) and Cynthia Khan in a still from “In the Line of Duty 3”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

Cynthia Khan in a still from “In the Line of Duty 3”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

Donnie Yen in a still from “In the Line of Duty 4”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

Cynthia Khan in a still from “In the Line of Duty 4”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

(From left) Yuen Yat-choh, Donnie Yen and Cynthia Khan in a still from “In the Line of Duty 4”. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

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So you want to make a film that looks like it was made by a Hong Kong director? They have revealed some of their secrets to interviewers down the years
Filmmakers from John Woo to Wong Kar-wai explain how they develop stories, plan fight choreography, use special effects and more


Hong Kong film directors such as John Woo, Benny Chan and Wong Kar-wai have revealed down the years how they make an action move, from developing storylines to working with martial arts choreographers.


How Hong Kong action films are made: directors including John Woo, Benny Chan and Wong Kar-wai on their craft

So you want to make a film that looks like it was made by a Hong Kong director? They have revealed some of their secrets to interviewers down the years Filmmakers from John Woo to Wong Kar-wai explain how they develop stories, plan fight choreography, use special effects and more

So you want to make a film that looks like it was made by a Hong Kong director? They have revealed some of their secrets to interviewers down the years

Filmmakers from John Woo to Wong Kar-wai explain how they develop stories, plan fight choreography, use special effects and more