After studying photography and art in the United States in the 1960s, Peter Yung Wai-chuen traveled around Southeast Asia as a news photographer and for his own exhibits. By the 1970s, Yung was already an established figure in the photography world. Having participated in investigations into the drug trade for many years, including forming his own company to shoot documentaries on the subject, Yung self-financed and directed The System, the critically acclaimed 1979 drama about the drug trade. Even though Yung mainly worked on commercial films after that, he also maintained an interest in the documentary genre, directing a total of eight documentaries. Even his commercial films felt strongly influenced by documentaries.

Yung’s co-directorial effort Warlords of the Golden Triangle (1987) was a modern saga about the making of narcotics and a war between two drug cartels in the Golden Triangle. British television documentary Opium: The White Powder Opera (1976-77), which Yung produced, was a dramatic documentary that traced both the drug trade and the law enforcement officers tasked to bring it down. Blending a dramatic narrative with documentary footage, Journey to the Cossacks (1989) gave us a glance at the history and traditions of people in Xinjiang through the eyes of an archaeologist. A filmmaker who is equally successful in both documentary and traditional dramatic narratives, Yung was one of the few truly unique filmmakers of Hong Kong cinema. A student and a lifelong friend of cinematographer James Wong Howe, Yung fulfilled Howe’s dying wish by completing his footage with the documentary Rickshaw Boy (1982). Yung is also giving audience a chance to view Howe’s work by screening 1955’s The Rose Tattoo , the film that earned Howe his first Academy Award for Best Cinematography.

Retired from the film world for years, Yung will also appear at the HKFA to discuss his experiences as a filmmaker and a globetrotting photographer. Don’t miss this rare opportunity!

The Movie Talk series is curated by veteran film researcher Law Kar