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Quentin Lee

Quentin Lee

Director, producer and writer, also editor and cinematographer · Hong Kong

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Quentin Lee (b. 1971, Hong Kong) is a film writer and director. He is most notable for Ethan Mao (2004), Drift (2000), Flow (1996), and the film short To Ride a Cow (1993). Lee also co-directed Shopping For Fangs (1997) with Justin Lin, known for his controversial film Better Luck Tomorrow (2002). Lee's films are noticeable for containing male lead characters who are Asian and gay, two minority groups generally not seen as lead characters in mainstream Hollywood films. Born in Hong Kong, Lee immigrated to Montreal, Canada, when he was 16. He attended UC Berkeley, Yale University and UCLA for his B.A. in English, M.A. in English and M.F.A. in Film Directing respectively. Lee founded Margin Films in 1996 as a production company; Margin Films moved into film distribution starting with the film Bugis Street. Lee's first foray into documentary film, 0506HK (2007), premiered July 2007 at the Vancouver International Film Centre Hong Kong Stories film series, commemorating the 10-year anniversary of Hong Kong's handover to China. The film explored his personal and political perspectives on whether to return to Hong Kong, as well as the evolving cultural and social climate, through interviews with family members and friends living and working in both Hong Kong and Los Angeles. In October 2009 Lee's graphic novel Campus Ghost Story, created in collaboration with artist John Hahn was published by Fresh Fear, an imprint of Margin Films. Lee's film The People I've Slept With premiered at the 2009 Hawaii International Film Festival in North America, internationally at the 2009 São Paulo International Film Festival, the 2010 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival in Asia, and the 2010 Hamburg Lesbian and Gay Film Festival in Europe. Description above from the Wikipedia article Quentin Lee, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.                    

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Biography from TMDB.

From
Hong Kong
Works as
Director, producer and writer, also editor and cinematographer
Titles
11 on MovieCove · 32 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Up 31% in 30 days

What are Quentin Lee's films like?

Across their 10 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Genres

Comedy4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 34th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Documentary3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 1st percentile
: browse their Documentary movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 48th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
44%
Bonds
35%
Society
16%
Survival
6%
Identity6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFame2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 10 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 7 · Serious 2 · Dark 1

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 10 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 6 · Charged 4 · Intense 0

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 6 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 5

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 7 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 7 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 8 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
5
Hopeful
6
Bittersweet
4
Warm
2
Melancholic
2
Other
5

How their films linger

Hopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy3
  • Bittersweet5
  • Cyclical2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Quentin Lee's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 8 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (8).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Quentin Lee's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

32 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page.

  • 24 Hours: The Japanese Surrender (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    as General Anami

  • Rez Comedy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Director

  • Laugh Proud(2024)

    Director · Editor · Producer

    Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Last Summer of Nathan Lee(2023)

    Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Acting in the Closet (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Actor

  • Searching for Anna May Wong (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Cinematographer · Producer

  • Brash Boys Club(2020)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 6th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Comisery (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Director

  • Kim McVicar: Please Notice Me(2020)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Gay Hollywood Dad(2018)

    Director · Editor · Producer

    Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • The Unbidden (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Director · Casting · Producer

  • Operation Marriage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Director

  • Secrets & Toys (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Director

  • White Frog(2012)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Big Gay Love(2013)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 14th percentile of all films

  • Today Has Been Weird (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Director · Editor · Producer · Screenplay

  • The People I've Slept With(2012)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Little Love (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Director

  • 0506HK (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director

  • Finishing the Game(2007)

    as Bruce Lee Extra

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Ethan Mao(2004)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films

  • Drift(2000)

    Director · Cinematographer · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • Shopping for Fangs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    Director · Editor · Producer · Writer

  • Flow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Fall 1990 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    Director

  • Hysterio Passio (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    Director

  • Anxiety of Inexpression and the Otherness Machine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Director · as Himself

  • To Ride a Cow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Director · as the fag

  • Curse of Undead (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

  • Destiny Jackson (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Story

  • The Unlucky (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Story · Writer

  • The Way You Dance (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Producer · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 31 titles, 27 of them dated from 1992 to 2025.

Biggest box office

The People I've Slept With (2012)

$19K worldwide

Highest rated

White Frog (2012)

Midcredits 71st

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting4 of 31: 3 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting27 of 31: 14 only directing, 13 with another role · typical Midcredits score24thWriting9 of 31: 0 only writing, 9 with another roleProducing11 of 31: 0 only producing, 11 with another roleCinematography1 of 31: 0 only cinematography, 1 with another roleEditing2 of 31: 0 only editing, 2 with another roleOther crew1 of 31: 0 only other crew, 1 with another role

31 titles, 14 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 10 of them.

By decade

1990s6 · 1 acting · 6 crew2000s4 · 1 acting · 3 crew2010s8 · crew2020s9 · 2 acting · 7 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Quentin Lee's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 24th percentile, the median of all 11; across their 10 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 20th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

20thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Approval · how many liked their films

28thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Reach · how many have seen their films

28thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 10

Midcredits score across 11 titles, by percentile

  • 50th to 74th2
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th6

Shape of the crowd

7 of their 11 titles are Mixed.

  • Divisive1
  • Cult Classic2
  • Crowd Pleaser1
  • Mixed7

Most divisive · director, writer, producer, cinematographer, editor

Last Summer of Nathan Lee (2023)

95th percentile spread · 33% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director

White Frog (2012)

Midcredits 71st · 67% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 47/100 and the pacing 38/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Quentin Lee work with?

People who share at least 2 of Quentin Lee's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Steven Pranoto shares the most, 5.

Composers and cinematographers

Producers

Mixed roles