Original Title: 一代宗师
Directed by: Wong Kar-wai Written by: Wong Kar-wai, Zhu Jingzhi, Xu Haofeng Cinematography: Philippe Le Sourd Music by: Shigeru Umebayashi, Nathaniel Méchaly Country: Hong Kong, China Genres: Drama, Action, Biography Duration: 130 min (Asia), 122 (Europe), 108 (America) Release Dates: 8 Jan. 2013 (China), 7 Feb. 2013 (Berlin), 30 Aug. 2013 (USA) Filming Dates: 21 November 2009 – June 2012 Filming Locations: China (Guangzhou, Foshan, Kaiping, Shenyang) Synopsis: |
![]() Zhang Ziyi Gong Er |
Production stills




Captures




Trailers
Making-of
• Tony Leung Chiu Wai trained four hours a day for a year in preparation for his role as Ip Man.
• The filming took almost 2 years on and off to complete and like other Wong Kar Wai’s movie, the post-production wasn’t completed the day before. It was sent to Chinese censors a few hours before the premiere ceremony.
• The film was selected as the opening movie for February’s Berlin International Film Festival while Wong Kar Wai was the president of the jury the same year.
• ” For her role, Zhang trained under the teacher of kung fu star Jet Li, and said the movements were key to expressing the spirit of the characters. “She (Gong Er) is a combination of almost all the unique features and merits of women of that era,” Zhang said. “In terms of movements, we trained for such a long time because the director hoped when we went inside the world of the characters, we already carried their spirit in our bodies.” “- Reuters
• The film is: “the fruit of eight years of labor […] The concept of the movie hit Wong even before he released his most celebrated work, In The Mood for Love, back in 2000”. – Reuters
• The initial cut lasted for more than four hours, and the director expressed his wish to release the long version on DVD to let the audience see…
• On the first day after its release, the earned 29.8 million yuan ($4.8 million) on its opening day, which is a really great opening for a Wong Kar Wai’s movie.
• “Tony Leung revealed after the premiere that his heart ached the most over many “missing” scenes. Zhang Ziyi said that she thought a scene in which she expressed her inner loneliness was very sad but very powerful would be kept in the film. Her hope finally died when the end credits came up on screen as it was truly removed; however, she understood that with only 2 hours and 10 minutes, Wong Kar-wai indeed had a hard time with the decision. As an actor, she like the audience had no idea what Wong Kar-wai’s completed film would be until the very end.” – Mingpao, wongkarwai.net
• Ziyi said during the press conference in Beijing that this film will mark her last kung fu movie, described the production process as “getting on a pirate ship”.
5th Huading Film Awards |
10th Huading Film Awards |
50th Golden Horse Film Festival |
7th Asia Pacific Screen Awards |
7th Asia Pacific Screen Awards |
15th Huabiao Film Awards |
10th Phil on Film Awards |
20th HK Film Critics Soc. Awards |
26th HK Cinematog. Society |
25th HK Directors’ Guild Awards |
8th Asian Film Awards |
33rd Hong Kong Film Awards |
4th Beijing Film Festival |
32nd Hundred Flowers Awards |
14th China Film Media Awards |
4th Douban Film Awards |
3rd Cinephilia Awards |
3rd Baidu Awards |
3rd Baidu Awards |
19th Love HK Film Awards |
Nominations: 20th Beijing Student Film Festival, 7th FIRST Youth Film Festival, 29th Golden Rooster Awards, 2013 To Ten Chinese Film Festival, Village Voice Awards (6th)
Ceremony | Category | Recipient | Result |
2011 Huading Film Awards | Outstanding Achievements | Zhang Ziyi | Won |
2013 Shanghai Film Critics Awards | Film of Merit | – | Won |
2013 First Youth Film Festival | Best Film | – | Nominated |
Best Director | Wong Kar Wai | Won | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Nominated | |
2013 Beijing Student Film Festival | Best Film | – | Nominated |
Best Director | Wong Kar Wai | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Nominated | |
2013 Golden Rooster Awards | Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Nominated | |
Best Supporting Actor | Wang Qingxiang | Won | |
Best Art Direction | William Chang | Won | |
2013 Huading Film Awards | Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
2013 Golden Horse Film Festival | Best Film | – | Nominated |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Won | |
Best Visual Effects | Pierre Buffin | Won | |
Best Art Directon | William Chang | Won | |
Best Costume Design | William Chang | Won | |
Best Action Choreography | Woo-ping Yuen | Nominated | |
Best Editing | William Chang | Nominated | |
Best Sound Design | Robert Mackenzie | Nominated | |
Audience Choice Award | – | Won | |
2013 Asia Pacific Screen Awards | Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won |
2013 Asia Pacific Film Festival | Best Picture | – | Nominated |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung Chiu-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Won | |
Best Editing | William Chang | Nominated | |
Best Sound Design | Robert Mackenzie | Nominated | |
Best Art Direction | William Chang | Nominated | |
Best Music | Shigeru Umebayashi | Nominated | |
2013 Huabiao Film Awards | Best Co-produced Film | – | Won |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Technical Achievement | – | Nominated | |
2013 Boston Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Won (2nd) |
2013 Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Awards | Best Foreign Film | – | Nominated |
2013 National Board of Review | Best Foreign Film (5) | – | Won |
2013 Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards | Best Foreign Film | – | Nominated |
2013 St. Louis Film Critics | Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Nominated |
2013 Alliance of Women Film Journalists | Best Foreign Film | – | Nominated |
2014 USA Society of Cinematographers | Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Nominated |
2014 Central Ohio Film Critics Awards | Best Foreign Film | – | Nominated |
2014 Online Film Critics Society Awards | Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Nominated |
2014 Hong Kong Film Critics Society | Best Film | – | Won |
Best Actor | Tony Leung Chiu-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
2014 Cinephilia Awards | Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won |
2014 Motion Picture of Sound Editors | Best Sound in Foreign Film | Robert Mackenzie | Nominated |
2014 Academy Awards | Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Nominated |
Best Costume Design | William Chang | Nominated | |
2014 Hong Kong Directors’ Guild Awards | Best Film | Wong Kar-wai | Won |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Won | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung Chiu-wai | Won | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
2014 Asian Film Awards | Best Film | – | Won |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Won | |
Best Screenplay | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Won | |
Best Production Designer | William Chang | Won | |
Best Music | Shigeru Umebayashi | Won | |
Best Editing | William Chang | Nominated | |
Best Visual Effects | Pierre Buffin | Nominated | |
Best Costume Design | William Chang | Won | |
2014 Hong Kong Film Awards | Best Film | – | Won |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Won | |
Best Screenplay | Wong Kar-wai | Won | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | Zhang Jin | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Won | |
Best Editing | William Chang | Won | |
Best Art Directon | William Chang | Won | |
Best Costume Design | William Chang | Won | |
Best Action Choreography | Woo-ping Yuen | Won | |
Best Visual Effects | Pierre Buffin | Nominated | |
Best Music | Shigeru Umebayashi | Won | |
Best Sound Design | Robert Mackenzie | Won | |
2014 Asian Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won |
Best Music | Shigeru Umebayashi | Won | |
Best Visual Effects | Pierre Buffin | Won | |
2014 Beijing Film Festival | Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Won |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Philippe Le Sourd | Won | |
2014 Hundred Flowers Awards | Best Film | – | Won |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated | |
Best Screenplay | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | Zhang Jin | Nominated | |
2014 China Film Media Awards | Best Film | – | Nominated |
Best Director | Wong Kar-wai | Nominated | |
Best Actor | Tony Leung Chiu-Wai | Nominated | |
Best Actress | Zhang Ziyi | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | Zhang Jin | Nominated | |
Best Supporting Actor | Wang Qingxiang | Won |