#1: From interview [for SOHK.TV, 2011]

#2: From interview

#3: From documentary

 

   


CHRISTOPHER DOYLE   HKSC

 

Born: 2 May 1952, Sydney, Australia. Also known as Du Ke-feng and Ho Fung To.

Education: University of Maryland, USA [Art History].

Career: Fled his suburban youth for a life of adventure: working as a well digger in India, a Norwegian merchant marine, a cow herder on an Israeli kibbutz and a doctor of Chinese medicine in Thailand. Arrived in Hong Kong at the end of the 1970s to pursue an interest in Chinese language and literature, and there acquired his Chinese name Du Ke-feng. He soon moved to Taiwan, where an involvement in fringe theatre [he was a founding member of the Lan Ling Theatre Workshop in 1978] and dance troupes led him into work as a photographer and videographer.

Ph commercials. Ph music videos, e.g. 'Dirty Beaches White Sand' [2011, Tsien-Tsien (Qianqian) Zhang; a: Dirty Beaches] & 'Linda Linda' [2012, Tsien-Tsien (Qianqian) Zhang; a: The Blue Hearts].

Also active as still ph with exhibitions in Rotterdam, Tokyo, Hong Kong, USA, etc. A book on his still photography, 'A Cloud in Trousers', was published in 1998. Made, with Gus Van Sant, 'The Picture Is Up', an image and text-based collab exhibited in Los Angeles in 1998.

Debut as director in 1998.

Appeared in the doc's 'Orientations: Christopher Doyle - Stirred Not Shaken' [1999, Rick Farquharson; ph: Catherine Marciniak & Roman Baska; 54m], 'Psycho Path' [1999, D-J; ph: D-J & Jeffrey Schwarz], 'In the Mood for Doyle' [2007, Yves Montmayeur; 54m], a.o.

Awards [selection]: Hong Kong Film Award nom [8x]; Venice IFF 'Osella d'Oro' [1994], 'Golden Horse' Award [1994] & Hong Kong Film Award [1995] for 'Dung che sai duk/Ashes of Time'; 'Golden Horse' Award [1997] for 'Chun gwong tsa sit/Happy Together'; Eastman Kodak Award for Excellence in Cinematography [1999]; Cannes IFF Technical Grand Prix [2000; shared] & NYFCC Award [2001; shared] for 'Fa yeung nin wa/In the Mood for Love'; AFI [Aus] Award nom [2002] & Camerimage 'Golden Frog' nom [2002] for 'Rabbit-Proof Fence'; Manaki Brothers Film Camera Festival 'Special Golden Camera 300 Award' [2002] for his contribution to the world film art; Manaki Brothers 'Golden Camera 300' Award [2003] & Camerimage 'Golden Frog' nom [2003] for 'Ying xiong/[Jet Li's] Hero'; Bangkok IFF 'Special Kinnarree Award' [2004]; Istanbul IFF 'Honorary Award' [2004]; Valladolid IFF 'Best Director of Photography Award' [2004; shared], Hong Kong Film Award [2005; shared] & NSFC Award [2006; shared] for '2046'; BSFC Award [2008; shared] for 'Paranoid Park'.


 FILMS

1981

Haitan te yitian/That Day on the Beach [Edward Yang] c; cph: Zhang Hui-gong

1984

Noir et blanc/Black and White [Claire Devers] b&w; cph: Daniel Desbois, Alain Lasfargues & Jean-Paul Rosa Da Costa

1986

Lao niang gou sao/Soul [Shu Kei] c

1987

Xue zai shao/Burning Snow [Patrick Tam] c

1987

Sha shou hu die meng/My Heart Is That Eternal Rose [Patrick Tam] c; cph: David Chung

1988

Shou huang de nu ren/Her Beautiful Life Lies/I'm Sorry [Tony Au] c

1990

A Fei jing juen/Ahfei zhenjuang/Days of Being Wild/Ah Fei's Story [Kar-wai Wong] c; 2uc: Ngai Chi-Kwan & Wai-keung Lau; originally part 1 of 2-part film; part 2 was cancelled

1992

Meng xing shi fan/Mungsing sifan/Mary from Beijing/Awakening [Sylvia Chang] c

1992

An lian tao hua yuan/The Peach Blossom Land [Stan Lai] c

1993

Dongxie xidu/Dung che sai duk/Ashes of Time [Kar-wai Wong] c; see 2008

1994

Fei xia a da/The Red Lotus Society [Stan Lai] c

1994

Hong meigui, bai meigui/Hung muigwai yu pak muigwai/Red Rose White Rose [Stanley Kwan] c

1994

Chong qing sen lin/Chung Hing sam lam/Chung King Express [Kar-wai Wong] c; cph: Wai-keung Lau; 2uc: Chen Guanghong

1994

Wo de mei li yu ai chou/The Peony Pavilion [Kuo-fu Chen] c

1994

Feng yue/Temptress Moon [Chen Kaige] c; filmed August 1994 & April 1995

1994

Yang ± Yin: Gender in Chinese Cinema [Stanley Kwan] dv/b&w-c; doc/80m

1995

Duo luo tian shi/Fallen Angels [Kar-wai Wong] c; 2uc: Chen Guanghong & Mark Lee Ping-bin

1996

Fai wa siu suet/Out of the Blue [Jan Lamb] ?; doc/?m

1996

wkw/tk/1996@7'55"ht.net [Kar-wai Wong] c; short/8m

1996

Si mian xia wa/4 Faces of Eve [Jan Lamb, Kam Kwok-leung, Eric Kot & Eric Kwok] c

1996

Chun gwong tsa sit/Chunguang zhaxie/Happy Together [Kar-wai Wong] b&w-c

1997

Chinese Box [Wayne Wang] c; 2uc; ph: Vilko Filac

1997

Motel Seoninjang/Motel Cactus [Ki-Yong Park] c

1997

Choh chin luen hau dik yi yan sai gaai/First Love: A Litter on the Breeze [Eric Kot] c

1998

Sip si ling dou - cheun gwong tsa sit/Buenos Aires Zero Degree - The Making of 'Happy Together' [Pun-leung Kwan & Yehua Li (= Amos Lee)] v/c; doc/59m; ph archive footage (unused rushes, etc.); ph: P. Kwan & Y. Li

1998

Fallen Angels [Kar-wai Wong] c; short/25m

1998

A Way with Words/San tiao ren/Kujaku [Christopher Doyle] c; + co-scrpl

1998

Psycho [Gus Van Sant] c

1998

Liberty Heights [Barry Levinson] c

1999

Fa yeung nin wa/Hua yang nian hua/In the Mood for Love/Beijing Summer [Kar-wai Wong] b&w-c; cph: Mark Lee Ping-bin

1999

2046 [Kar-wai Wong] p/b&w-c; uncred cph: Jean-Yves Escoffier; 2uc: Yiu-fai Lai & Pung-leung Kwan; prod started in December 1999 and was stopped/resumed several times in 2000 and August 2001

2000

Made [Jon Favreau] c

2000

Rabbit-Proof Fence [Phillip Noyce] s35/c; addph: Brad Shield; aph (+ 2uc): Ian Jones

2000

Following the Rabbit-Proof Fence [Darlene Johnson] c; doc/43m; cph: Curtis Levy, Roman Baska, a.o.

2001

The Quiet American [Phillip Noyce] s35/c; addph: David Burr; 2uc: Brad Shield

2001

Ying xiong/[Jet Li's] Hero [Zhang Yimou] s35/b&w-c

2002

Saam gaang/San geng/Three [seg #3 'Going Home' dir by Peter Ho-sun Chan] c; 3 seg; other ph: Alex Hong (= Kyung-Pyo Hong) & Nattawut Kittikhun

2002

Six Days [Kar-wai Wong] V/c; music video/4m

2002

Lü cha/Green Tea [Yuan Zhang] c

2002

Ruang rak noi nid mahasan/Last Life in the Universe [Pen-ek Ratanaruang] c

2003

Eros/Ai shen [seg 'The Hand' dir by Kar-wai Wong] b&w-c; 3 seg; other ph: Marco Pontecorvo (seg dir by Michelangelo Antonioni; shot in 2001) & Peter Andrews (= Steven Soderbergh)

2004

Saam gaang yi/Three... Extremes/Three, Monster [seg (37m) 'Dumplings' dir by Fruit Chan] c; 3 seg; other ph: Chung-hoon Chung & Kôichi Kawakami

2004

Gaau ji/Gaudzi/Dumplings [Fruit Chan] c; 2uc: Siu-keung Cheng; feature version (91m) of seg of 'Saam gaang yi' (2004)

 

With actor Ralph Fiennes - "The White Countess"

 

2004

The White Countess [James Ivory] c; UK ph: Tony Pierce-Roberts; 2uc: Yiu-fai Lai

2005

Yu guo · Oi/Ru guo · Ai/Perhaps Love [Peter Chan & (collab dir) Samson Chiu] c; Beijing ph; cph: Peter Pau

2005

Invisible Waves [Pen-ek Ratanaruang] c

2005

Lady in the Water [M. Night Shyamalan] c; uwph: Pete Romano

2005

Meeting Helen/What Is Sex? [Emily Woof] s16/c; short/30m; cph: Kathy Li; micro-budget feature + short (?)

2005

Digital Sam in Sam Saek 2006: Talk to Her [seg (30m) 'Twelve Twenty' dir by Pen-ek Ratanaruang] dv/c; 3 seg; cph: Kathy Li

2005

The Home Song Stories [Tony Ayres] scheduled as doph, but film was ph by Nigel Bluck in May 2006

2006

The Rainbowmaker [Nana Dzhordzhadze] announced as cph with Phedon Papamichael; ph in April 2007 by Walther Vanden Ende

2006

The Madness of the Dance [Carol Morley] s16/c; short/18m; cph: Kathy Li

 

[Left] with dir Gus Van Sant - "Paranoid Park"

 

2006

Paranoid Park [Gus Van Sant] s8+35mm-to-35mm/c; cph: Rain Kathy Li; + small part

2007

Downloading Nancy [Johan Renck] c; cph: Kathy Li

2007

Shantaram [Mira Nair (replaced Peter Weir)] scheduled to start filming in September 2008, but still in development; prod was revived by Warner Bros. in 2013

2008

Ashes of Time Redux [Kar-wai Wong] c; revamped, re-edited and re-scored version of film (see 1993)

2008

The Limits of Control [Jim Jarmusch] c; 2uc: Kathy Li

2008

Stretch [Charles de Meaux] scheduled as doph; prod started shooting May 2009 (actor David Carradine died 3 June during filming); ph in June/August by Ch. de Meaux & Gustavo Hadba

2008

Ondine [Neil Jordan] s35-to-35mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Nic Lawson; aph: Adam Dale

 

[Left] with dir Stanley Kwan - "Energy Behind the Heart"

 

2009

Yong xin tiao/Showtime/Dancing With the Heart/Energy Behind the Heart [Stanley Kwan] c; cph: Kathy Li

2009

Hai yang tian tang/Ocean Heaven [Xiao Lu Xue] c; 2uc: Kathy Li; uwph: Tony Lam

2009

Passion Play [Mitch Glazer] c; 2uc: Glenn Kaplan; aph: Hans Bjerno; filmed 2009-10

2010

Onna no kappa/Underwater Love [Shinji Imaoka] c

2010

Mo shu wai zhuan/Life Is a Miracle/Love for Life/A Tale of Magic [Changwei Gu] RED-to-35mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; cph: C. Gu & Tao Yang

2011

Rabitto horâ 3D/Rabbit Horror 3D/Tormented 3D [Takashi Shimizu] HD (Panasonic AG-3DA1)-to-35mm (+ D-Cinema [3-D version])/c

2012

Magic Magic [Sebastián Silva] HD (ARRI ALEXA)/c; cph: Glenn Kaplan

2012

The Boy and the Bus [Simon Pitts] s16/c; short/23m; comm by BBC World; filmed mid-June

2012

American Dreams in China/Zhong Guo He Huo Ren [Peter Chan] HD (ARRI ALEXA Plus)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c

2012

Bends/Guo jie [Flora Lau] c

2012

Eine gute Geschichte/A Good Story [Martin-Christopher Bode] 35mm+HD (Weisscam HS-2)-to-35mm scope/c; short/20m

2013

Lanse gotou/Blue Sky Bones [Jian Cui] c

2013

The Sandstorm [Jason Wishnow] c; short/10m; addph: Matthew Niederhauser

2013

Ruined Heart - Another Lovestory Between a Criminal & a Whore [Khavn de la Cruz] c

2013

Beijing, New York [Rain Li] HD (ARRI ALEXA XT + Canon EOS C300) scope/c; cph: Sion Michel; aph: Brian Heller

2013

Fundamentally Happy [Yuan Bin Lei & Bee Thiam Tan] c

2013

The Girl King/Queen Kristina [Mika Kaurismäki] announced as doph, but film was ph by Guy Dufaux in 2014

2014

I Am Here [David Holmes] c; short/14m

2014

Passione [Hisham Bizri] c; short/15m

2014

I Am Belfast [Mark Cousins] HD/c; doc/84m; cph: M. Cousins

 

 MISCELLANEOUS [e.g. as director]

1980

Traveling Images [co-creator; Taiwanese doc tv-series]

1993

Beijing za zhong/Beijing Bastards [Yuan Zhang] co-prod; ph: Jian Zhang

1996

Tian mimi/Comrades: Almost a Love Story/Hong Kong Love Affair [Peter Chan] played the part of Jeremy, an English teacher; ph: Jingle Ma

1998

A Way with Words/San tiao ren/Kujaku [dir; feature; + co-scrpl/ph] see Films

2002

Mou gaan dou/Mogan do/Wu jian dao/Infernal Affairs [Andrew Lau (= Wai-keung Lau) & Alan Mak (= Siu Fai Mak)] visual cons; ph: Andrew Lau & Yiu-fai Lai

2005

Paris, je t'aime [dir seg 'Porte de Choisy'; + co-scrpl] ph: Kathy Li

2006

The Story of the Eye [dir] ph: Kathy Li; in development; status unknown

2007

Izolator/Warsaw Dark [dir; feature] ph: Rain Kathy Li

2011

Les Bulles de Savon (soap bubbles) [Tsien-Tsien (Qianqian) Zhang] c; short/3m; actor; ph: Kaliisa Conlon & Benjamin Keepers