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'' (1987). He produced the expensive music video for "
L'Âme-stram-gram" 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'' series, starting in 1990. Other directorial highlights included the highly successful ''
Royal Tramp'' films (both 1992) which starred
Stephen Chow 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'' (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'' (2004).
In 2002, Ching was nominated twice for Best Action Choreography at the
Hong Kong Film Awards, and won in 2003 for his efforts on ''Hero''. That same year, he made his
American film 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''. 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 and
Zee Cine Award.
In 2008, Ching directed ''
An Empress and the Warriors'', in which he also served as action choreographer. The film stars
Kelly Chen,
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