Wong Kar-wai () (born July 17, 1958) is a Hong Kong film director.

Born in Shanghai, China, he moved to Hong Kong with his parents at the age of five and graduated from the Hong Kong Polytechnic College in graphic design in 1980. After graduation, he enrolled in the Production Training Course organized by Hong Kong Television Broadcasts Limited and became a full-time scriptwriter. Between 1982 and 1987, he wrote about ten scripts, covering an array of genres from romantic comedy to action drama. Of these, he considered Final Victory (最後勝利; 1986 Patrick Tam) his best script.

Since 1989, Wong Kar-wai has directed eight feature films and won numerous awards, including the best director's prize at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival for Happy Together. He was also one of the first film-makers in Hong Kong to establish his own independent production company, called Jet Tone Films Ltd. in English.

Despite being a former scriptwriter, one of his trademarks as a director is that he works largely through improvisation and experimentation involving the actors and crew rather than adhering to a fixed script. This has caused him some trouble when the filming of In the Mood for Love had to be shifted from Beijing to Macau after Chinese authorities demanded to see the completed script. The time-consuming method can also be credited for Wong's films taking so long to complete, as well as his unique style. A running joke amongst the crew has been that he would finish his film 2046 in the year 2046.

In 2001 Wong Kar-wai directed the short-film The Hire: The Follow as part of the BMW films initiative.

Wong Kar-wai's latest film is 2046, released in 2004.

Filmography

Feature films

• Eros (2004) - segment The Hand
• 2046 (2004)
• In the Mood for Love (2000)
• Happy Together (1997)
• Fallen Angels (1995)
• Ashes of Time (1994)
• Chungking Express (1994)
• Days of Being Wild (1991)
• As Tears Go By (1988)

Short films

• Six Days (2002)
• The Hire: The Follow (2001)
• Hua Yang de Nian Hua (2000)
• wkw/tk/1996@7′55″ht.net (1996)

Awards

• 2004 European Film Awards, Screen International Award (2046)
• 2001 César Award, Best Foreign Film (In the Mood for Love)
• 2000 European Film Awards, Screen International Award (In the Mood for Love)
• 1997 Cannes Film Festival, Best Director (Happy Together)

See also

• Cinema of Hong Kong
• Christopher Doyle

External links

Official

• What's This Wong Kar Wai?

Fansites

• Chasing The Metaphysical Express
• Eternal Shades of Red and Green

Articles

• Film Feature: Unforgettable
• Meditations on Loss: A Framework for the Films of Wong Kar-wai
• Urban Alienation in Wong Kar-wai's Films
• Wong Kar-wai: His movies, his soundtracks and more
• Wong Kar-wai - Charisma Express

Interviews

• Indiewire The "Mood" of Wong Kar-wai by Anthony Kaufman on In the Mood for Love
• Astyle Feature Exclusive Interview on Happy Together
• Bombsite Interview on In the Mood for Love by Liza Bear, who also talks about the director's unique visual flair
• Mood Music Jonathan Romney talks to Wong Kar-wai about his latest film
• Onion AV Club Interview on In the Mood for Love, 2046, and the acclaimed director's filmmaking experience and style
• Sights and Sounds Tony Ryan's interview with Wong Kar-wai on film-making
• TIMEasia - And The Winner Is... Interview with Wong Kar-wai on the release of In the Mood for Love, by Stephen Short
• Urban Cinefile Feature Audio Interview with Wong Kar-wai, talking about In the Mood for Love, with Richard Kupier

Other

• BMW Films

Further Reading

• Wong Kar Wai by Jean-Marc Lalanne et al.
• Wong Kar Wai's Ashes of Time by Wimal Dissanayake & Dorothy Wong
• Wong Kar Wai's Happy Together by Jeremy Tambling
• Hong Kong: Culture and the Politics of Disappearance by M. A. Abbas