Sammo Hung Masterclass
May 4, 2024
We are delighted to have supported Asian Film Awards Academy (AFAA) in presenting a Masterclass in collaboration with the Singapore Film Society (SFS) that featured Hong Kong martial arts actor Mr Sammo Hung, after his five classic films from 1970s to 2000s were selected to the "Filmmaker in Focus: Sammo Hung" segment in the Singapore Chinese Film Festival 2024 in honour of his influence on the film industry both locally and internationally.
A prolific film actor, martial arts choreographer, director and producer, Sammo Hung is one of the pivotal figures in Hong Kong’s film industry since late 1960s, having pioneered different martial arts genres in an illustrious career spanning half a century. He directed multiple top-grossing films in 1970s to 1980s and popularised Hong Kong’s comedies and action movies across Asia. In late 1990s, he ventured into Hollywood in an action-crime-comedy Martial Law which gave him international fame. He also formed the Sammo Hung Stunt Team and nurtured many outstanding film talents. Having won several international film awards in Taiwan and Chicago, he was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award in the 16th Asian Film Awards in 2023, and the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards in 2024 respectively.
In a heart-warming sharing with close to 500 audience at LASALLE College of the Arts, Mr Hung reminisced how he learned martial arts as a child and started his acting career, and how he constantly upgraded himself and diversified his roles from an actor, choreographer to a director. He also shared his perspectives on the future of Hong Kong martial arts cinema.
With the financial support of Create Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Film Development Fund, the Asian Film Awards Academy has launched a year-round initiative, Masterclass Series, in different cities across Asia and Europe since 2015. The Masterclass Series aims to introduce emerging and veteran film professionals to the overseas audience through on-stage conversations sharing the behind-the-scene anecdotes in the filmmaking of different films. Past characters featured include Mr Johnnie To, Mr John Woo, Ms Cheng Pei Pei, Mr Tony Ching Siu Tung, Mr Fruit Chan, Mr Stanley Kwan, Ms Mabel Cheung and Mr Tony Leung.
Co-organised by the Singapore Film Society and the Centre for Chinese Studies of Singapore University of Social Sciences, the Singapore Chinese Film Festival is one of the few film festivals in Singapore which showcases critically acclaimed or award-winning Chinese films from different regions and offers opportunities for cinephiles to interact with filmmakers. This year, five films from Mr Sammo Hung, Warriors Two, Encounters of the Spooky Kind, Winners and Sinners, Painted Faces, The Bodyguard, were featured in the "Filmmaker in Focus: Sammo Hung" segment Mr Hung also attended pre-screening and post-screening sharing with the audience at the screenings of Warriors Two and The Bodyguard respectively.
