Film director Lee Hsing (李行), who is often referred to as the “godfather of Taiwanese cinema,” passed away on Thursday.
Lee, who directed influential works across various genres, died of heart failure, the Taipei-based Cross-Strait Films Exchange Committee said on Friday.
“Director Lee Hsing helped pass on Chinese culture and grounded his works in Taiwan. His passion for the land was reflected by his care and deep love for local writers,” Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute chairman Lan Tsu-wei (藍祖蔚) said.
Photo courtesy of the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute
Lan praised Lee’s efforts to promote Taiwanese films to the world by advancing the Golden Horse Awards during his tenure at the committee, which Lee headed since its establishment in 2009,.
The landmark event for filmmakers in the Chinese-speaking world was launched in 1990.
A documentary on Lee’s career produced by the institute is expected to be shown at the Golden Horse Film Festival in Taipei in November, Lan said.
Director Ang Lee (李安), who has been the festival’s chairman since 2018, called his predecessor a model for filmmakers.
Lee Hsing will be forever remembered for his contribution to Taiwanese cinema by promoting new talent and dedicating his life to the development of cultural exchange through Taiwanese films, Ang Lee said in a statement.
Born in Shanghai in 1930, Lee Hsing moved to Taiwan in 1948 during the Chinese Civil War between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party.
He began studying at what is now National Taiwan Normal University.
In 1954, after teaching at a high school for a year, Lee Hsing became a reporter at the Chinese-language Independence Evening Post, where his father was the publisher, covering culture, education and entertainment, while also acting in various films.
In 1958, he made his directorial debut by codirecting Wang and Liu Tour in Taiwan (王哥柳哥遊台灣) with Tien Feng (田豐) and Chang Fang-hsia (張方霞).
The movie, released in two parts in February 1959, marked the beginning of Lee Hsing’s series of films shot in Hoklo, commonly known as Taiwanese, through 1962. He directed 52 films in his career.
He and Lee Chia (李嘉) in 1963 codirected Taiwan’s first color feature film, Oyster Girl (蚵女), which won the Best Picture and Best Director awards at the 11th Asian Film Festival in Taipei in 1964.
Seven films directed by Lee Hsing won Golden Horse Awards for Best Picture, including from 1978 to 1980, while he received three best director awards — in 1965, 1972 and 1978 — as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.
Late in his career, Lee Hsing was a frequent volunteer in the movie industry, and promoted exchanges between the industries in Taiwan and China.
Lee Hsing was also active in film preservation and restoration.
After his passing, the Ministry of Culture released a statement, saying that it has asked President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to issue a citation commemorating Lee Hsing’s lifelong dedication to the film industry.
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