Wong Kar-Wai (1958– )

Chinese screenwriter, director, and producer. He has taken his inspiration from the French New Wave, creating films about love and alienation in modern culture, and emphasizing mood over plot. The romantic thriller Chong qin sen lin/Chungking Express (1994) was his first international success, the romantic drama My Blueberry Nights (2007) was his first English-language film.

Wong Kar-Wai is also known for his stylized and artistic cinematography, often using slow motion and distorted close-ups. Other films include the drama A fei jing jeun/Days of Being Wild (1991), the martial arts epic Dung che sai duk/Ashes of Time (1994), the drama Duo luo tian shi/Fallen Angels (1995), and the romantic dramas Cheun gwong tsa sit/Happy Together (1997; Best Director award at the Cannes Film Festival), Fa yeung nin wa/In the Mood for Love (2000), and 2046 (2005). Many of his films feature the actors Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung.

He was born in Shanghai, China, but emigrated to Hong Kong when he was five. After studying graphic design at Hong Kong Polytechnic, he completed a TV drama training program sponsored by Hong Kong Television Broadcasts 1980–82, where he worked as a production assistant and wrote scripts, such as those for the soap opera Don't Look Now (1981). He wrote several film scripts during the 1980s before making his directorial debut with the Hong Kong gangster film Wong gok ka moon/As Tears Go By (1988).