Clara Law facts for kids

Clara Law Cheuk-yiu (born May 29, 1957) is a famous film director. She is known for making movies like Floating Life and Autumn Moon. Clara Law was part of a group of filmmakers called the Hong Kong Second Wave. She later moved to Australia with her partner, Eddie Fong, who is also a filmmaker.

Early Life and Learning

Clara Law was born in Macau on May 29, 1957. When she was 10 years old, her family moved to Hong Kong.

She went to the University of Hong Kong. There, she studied English Literature.

After working in television for a while, Clara Law decided to study film. In 1982, she went to the National Film and Television School in England. This is where she learned how to direct and write movies. Her graduation film, They Say the Moon is Fuller Here, won an award in 1985. It received the Silver Plaque Award at the Chicago International Film Festival.

Her Film Career

Starting Out

In 1978, Clara Law began working at Radio Television Hong Kong. She was an assistant producer and director. She learned many things about making TV shows, from writing scripts to directing them. Between 1978 and 1981, she directed 12 drama programs for television.

Making Feature Films

In 1985, Clara Law came back to Hong Kong. She started working on her first full-length movie, The Other Half and the Other Half. It was released in 1988. From then on, she worked with Eddie Fong on all her film projects.

In 1989, she made her second film, The Reincarnation of Golden Lotus. This movie was shown at the Toronto Film Festival. A year later, she directed Farewell China. For this film, she was nominated for awards like the Golden Horse Award for Best Director.

In 1992, Clara Law directed and produced Autumn Moon. This film won a big award called the Golden Leopard at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland. It also won other awards in Europe.

In 1993, she released Temptation of a Monk. This movie was filmed in China. It was chosen to be shown at the 50th Venice International Film Festival. It also won the Grand Prix at a film festival in France in 1994.

In 1994, Clara Law made a short film segment called "Wonton Soup" for the movie Erotique. Later that year, she and Eddie Fong moved to Australia.

Films in Australia and Beyond

After moving to Australia in 1994, Clara Law and Eddie Fong made their first film there. It was called Floating Life and was finished in 1996. This movie won the Silver Leopard Award at the Locarno Film Festival. It also won awards in Spain and France. Floating Life was even chosen to represent Australia at the 69th Academy Awards in 1997.

In 2000, she completed The Goddess of 1967. This film was shot in Australia and Japan. It was shown at the Venice Film Festival. The actress Rose Byrne won an award for Best Actress in this film. Clara Law also won Best Director awards at other festivals for this movie.

In 2004, she directed her first documentary film, Letters to Ali. Eddie Fong helped her produce, edit, and film it. This documentary was also shown at the Venice Film Festival.

Clara Law made Like a Dream in 2009. This film marked her return to making movies in Asia. It received many nominations at the 46th Golden Horse Awards. It also opened the 2010 Hong Kong International Film Festival.

In 2010, she made a short film called Red Earth. It was shown at the 67th Venice International Film Festival.

In 2023, Clara Law and Eddie Fong were working on a new film called The Little Qipao Shop.

Movie Themes

Clara Law's films often explore ideas about moving to a new country. She looks at how people feel when they leave their home. Her movies talk about loyalty, family, love, and missing home. She uses different ways of telling stories to show how moving affects people and communities.

Filmography

Awards and Nominations

See also

• List of graduates of University of Hong Kong