Collin Chou from his real name Chou Siu Lung more known with the name that Samo Hung gave him Ngai Sing is one of the best stuntman and martial artist of Hong Kong Cinema. He has fought and worked with the best people like Jackie Chan, Yuen Biao, Billy Chow, Jet Li ... Old member of the Samo's stunteam, he's the only one who has the honnor to be Samo's stundent. After have played in a few tv movies and tv series because of the bad situation of the hong kong action cinema he decide to go to the USA to make his own way there and he begin with a big hit : Matrix 2 and 3. This is not without remember the beginning carreer of a guy named Jet Li with a small part in a movie from the same producer, we wish to him the same success.

1. How did you start in the movie business ?

I come from a large family in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan. I have 8 brothers and 4 sisters - I am number 8. Our father left us after the youngest was born, leaving our mother to raise us. Some of my brothers went to an orphanage so that they could get an education while others stayed with Mom and went to become apprentices.
I went to school for a couple of years before deciding to go to work at the age of 6 or 7 to support myself and lighten my mother's burden. I was an apprentice in many different fields including wood-carving and baking.
Working at different places, I learnt about movies and martial arts from my co-workers. I found 4 different martial arts teachers who taught me various styles. My interest in movies increased with time until I decided to go to Taipei City at the age of 12.

Upon arriving in Taipei I read in the newspapers that a movie company was hiring actors. I went to the audition and paid an exuberant amount of money to join the class. They were actually hiring extras, not actors, but I didn't know it at the time. I was very lucky because on my first job as an extra, they needed some one who could do a reaction to being "killed by a sword". At first they wanted a stuntman to do it, but I told them I could handle it and showed them my moves. They were all impressed with me and took my phone number. That was how I got started in the movie/TV industry - as a stunt man.

In the beginning of my stunt man career I mainly doubled for the female roles because of my height and small frame. As I got older, taller and my skills improved, I was given more challenging stunts. I learned about "Movie Kung Fu" which involves working with camera angles and merging different styles to make it look good for the shot. I suffered many injuries including numerous cuts and broken bones, but I still loved the work. When there weren't any stunt jobs, I would wait tables at restaurants and bars, or do other kind of odd jobs to survive. Sometimes there was so much work that I had to go from one set straight to another, sneaking in naps in between shoots.
When I was 18, I got my first leading man role in a movie about Taekwondo. Sammo Hung was a producer of this movie and that was how I got to join Sammo's Team in Hong Kong after I completed my 2 year military service in Taiwan.



2. You are a great martial artist, can you tell us more about all styles and handling weapons that you learned ?

Thank you for the compliment, but I am not a great martial artist! However, I must admit that I like to learn and practice different styles and weaponries. Since I know so many styles, I can easily handle the requests of different choreographers and perform the sequences that they have in their mind. My 4 early masters practiced different "animal" styles such as tiger, crane, leopard, praying mantis etc.. At that time I didn't really what style was what, but I enjoyed learning them.

After arriving in Taipei at age 12, I started to learn Taekwondo. I liked to hang out in parks where a lot of people practiced different weaponries such as the sword, broadsword, bo staff, etc.. Whenever I had time I would go and learn all the different weaponries from different people. I also learned about "Movie Kung Fu" just from working on different films and from different stuntmen. I would watch other stuntmen and practiced their movies by myself in my spare time. Mostly they were trained in Peaking Opera style so I picked up various tumbling, trampoline and gymnastics skills.


3. Can you tell us about your relationship with Sammo Hung, is he as a master for you ?

I went to Hong Kong in 1989. I was recruited by Sammo Hung 2 years earlier in Taiwan when I was the lead in a movie which he produced. After completion of my military service, I went to Hong Kong and became a part of Sammo Hung's Team.
After finishing my first movie in Hong Kong under Sammo Hung's direction, Sammo announced to the press that I was his first student. Before that announcement, I considered myself just another member of his team. So you can say I was pretty surprised and very grateful that he regarded me so highly.
Until 1997, I was still Sammo's only student. I left Sammo's company in 1997 to try and branch out on my own. However, even though I have left his company, I still consider him my master. I am a very traditional man and there is a saying in Chinese - "One day a Master, forever your father".



4. What about your relationship with the rest of the Sammo Hung's stunt team and his "little brother" Yuen Biao who was always very present on the set of sammo's movies.

In 1989 I went to Hong Kong to join Sammo's stunt team. All the "older" members of Sammo's stunt team had already ventured out on their own as directors and action choreographers. Sammo had recruited a whole new group of stuntmen to join the team and we were all at the same "level" in the hierarchy. We all got along quite well even though they spoke Cantonese and I spoke only Mandarin.
By 1989, Yuen Biao rarely participated in the choreography of Sammo's movies. I only knew him in the capacity of an actor. On set, Yuen Biao was treated with respect. He was nice to me and would call me to hang out with him when we were both free and in Hong Kong. The last time I saw him was before I came to America in 1999.


5. You often doubled and you always made your own stunts, but have you been doubled because of an injury or an other reason ?

The only time I can remember some one doubling for me in an action sequence was because it involved a car chase and crash sequence. Although I know how to drive, I don't think I'm good enough to be a stunt driver !


6. Do you have some disappointments about the fact that you played mostly bad guys ? Do you like that or do you prefer to play a character like the good cop of "License to steal" or non action parts like in "Hail the Judge" ?

I am not disappointed with just playing bad guy roles. Being an actor I have to perform every role that I accept to the best of my capabilities. I have also learnt a lot from working with all those different martial arts actors and directors. Of course I would have liked to play different types of roles, but the trend in the Hong Kong movie industry is to cast actors in roles that they have played well previously.
I hope that I would be able to do different roles here in the US. As you know, there are still not that many roles written specifically for Asians. But there are more opportunities here in the US given to actors to try different roles. My aim is to do as many different and meaningful roles as I can to help me build a long lasting and well rounded career.



7. Between 1997 and 1999 you made a lot of telemovies and series. Action cinema is not doing well, the Japanese have to produce "no problem 2 (mou man tai 2)" to see a good old action comedy, why do you think the audience of Hong Kong is tired of this kind of movie ? What do you think of pirate copies and their impact on Hong Kong Cinema ?

During 1997-1999, the movie industry was not doing well with all the pirate copies and poor box office revenue and reviews.
In order to make action movies a huge budget is needed. Unfortunately, during that time money was scarce. The action movies made were not special enough to attract the audience to pay a high ticket price to enter the movie cinema. With cheap pirate copies, a whole family and more can watch the same movie for less that the cost of 1 movie ticket!
In order to survive, the HK film industry turned to tele-movies which required a lower budget and didn't need to be shown in a movie theater. Perhaps people would wonder why so many actors and film makers would make these mediocre tele-movies - the answer is very simple - we all had to make a living and that was what was available to us at that time. Those tele-movies have kept me alive so that now I can move on to better things.


8. What is the role you are the most proud of ?

Up until now I still haven't found a role that I am completely satisfied with. But I am hoping that the release of the Matrix 2 and 3 will be the changing point of my acting career.


9. I heard that initially Warner wanted you to play Wah Sing Ku the bad guy of "lethal weapon 4" but they finally chose Jet Li, is it true ?

I believe that many actors are approached to play any part in a movie, but the ultimate decision belongs to the producers and the directors of the film.



10. In 2002 you played in "No Problem 2 (mou man tai 2)" directed by an otherold member of the sammo's stunt team chin kar lok and also with Yuen Biao. How was the reunion with them ?

Although Chin Ka Lok had already left Sammo's stunt team in 1989, Sammo would call him to help on his movies. Ka Lok and I used to do most of the demonstration of Sammo's choreography together because our martial arts skills were compatible. We got along extremely well as we were similar in age.
I had always told Ka Lok that if he becomes a director I would be glad to help him. Working with him on MOU MAN TAI 2, I feel that he not only has a lot of talent in acting, but in directing too. I predict that he will be a very successful director in the near future.
As to Yuen Biao, although we are both in the movie, I didn't have any scenes with him. It was a pity that I didn't get to meet up with him during the shooting of the movie.


11. You already assist Yuen Woo Ping on the set of the first Matrix, did he help you to have a part in Matrix 2 and 3 ?

Actually, I did not assist Master Yuen in the first Matrix. We worked together on the Red Wolf and kept in touch over the years. I went to American in Sept,1999 to study English and while I was there, I called Master Yuen to let him Know I was in the US.
I got a call from Master Yuen in July, 2000, asking me to join his wire-team to work on the pre-production of the Matrix 2 & 3. I worked with them from Aug to Sept, 2000. On the last day of work, thinking that I won't see the Wachowski Brothers again (since Master Yuen didn't ask me to come back and join his team for the actual movies) I gave my headshots and demo tape to them. At that time the Wachowski Brothers had mentioned that they were thinking of offering a character to me, but I thought they were kidding!

I didn't get a call from the Matrix Production office until March 2001. Only then did I realize that the brother were serious when they said they were considering a part for me. So I can say that Yuen Woo Ping gave me an opportunity for the Wachowski Brothers to discover me.



12. What's the difference between working for Sammo Hung and Yuen Woo Ping ?

Sammo is a very powerful and intelligent man. He knows a lot about the different aspects of the movie industry. Sammo is a great martial arts actor, a comedian and also a successful dramatic actor. Other than being a well rounded actor, Sammo is also a great director. He knows where the camera should be placed in order to get maximum impact for the scene. He is also great at controlling the set. If the movie set is compared to that of the army, then Sammo is definitely a great General.
During the time I was with Sammo's team, I had a feeling that Sammo wanted to train me to be like him - versatile both in front and behind the camera. I once thought that I could be like him, but I realized that I am not smart enough to do all the things he can. So I have decided to concentrate on my acting.

As to Yuen Woo Ping, he is a very nice man and extremely easy to get along with. Even Sammo Hung told us (his stunt team) to watch Master Yuen's movies because you can understand the theory behind each of his action sequence. His action sequence are not just mere fight scenes, they reflect the higher meaning he is trying to convey to the audience. Master Yuen is also the only Hong Kong action director that I know who doesn't get upset and angry on the set.


13. I hope that your part in Matrix 2 and 3 will help you to make your way in the US, but in the future do you think to work again in Hong Kong ?

Of course I will work in Hong Kong as well as other countries in the future. As long as the scripts and roles are interesting and suitable, I will even consider doing smaller roles and cameos too.


14. What are your next projects after Matrix ? And if you have the choice with witch director would you like to work ?

At this time, I have a few projects that are at various stages of development. Nothing has been finalized yet, but I'll let you know as soon as something goes into production.
I would like to work with different directors including new and seasoned ones because I believe I can learn a lot from them. Recently I helped a friend on his student project. Although no one on the set received any pay, they all worked very hard. Their dedication to film making really impressed me.



15. And at the end, what you have to say to your French fans ?

First let me thank them for their support. I hope that they will continue to watch my movies and give me some time to build up my career in the US. I also hope that they will like my future role selections. They are welcome to contact me at my website www.collinchou.com.

Our warmest thanks go to Collin Chou for answering our questions with much kindness and patience.

- Click HERE to see his filmography.

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