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David Chung

David Chung

Cinematographer and director · Born November 14, 1947 (78) · Hong Kong, British Crown Colony

David Chung Chi-Man was born in Hong Kong on November 14th, 1947. When he was seventeen, he learned cinematography and acted as a camera assistant under the Shaw Brothers camera department, becoming a cinematographer for TV in 1968, joining TVB in 1973. He shot his first feature film, For Whom to be Murdered, in 1978, and won his first award for Ann Hui's The Secret in 1979, winning Best Cinematography at the 17th Golden Horse Awards. He became a staple cinematographer for the Hong Kong New Wave directors, working with the likes of Ann Hui, Patrick Tam, Yim Ho, Alex Cheung, Tsui Hark, Dennis Yu etc. on acclaimed films such as Close Encounters of the First Kind, Nomad, My Love is that Eternal Rose, Once Upon a Time in China and so on. In 1989 he became the vice chairman of the Hong Kong Society of Cinematographers. In 1995 he emigrated to America,

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
November 14, 1947 (78)
From
Hong Kong, British Crown Colony
Works as
Cinematographer and director
Titles
25 on MovieCove · 50 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 39 days to Oct 28Down 23% in 30 days

What are David Chung's films like?

Across their 22 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.

Genres

Action15 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 80th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Comedy5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 92nd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 91st 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
Bonds
31%
Morality
22%
Self
22%
Power
11%
Survival
9%
Society
4%
Romantic love5 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship4 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception4 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 22 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 13 · Serious 4 · Dark 5

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

A split, not a type: Grounded 6 · Stylized 7 · Heightened 9

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

A split, not a type: Gentle 2 · Charged 9 · Intense 11

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

Steady 7 · Shifting 8 · Whiplash 7

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 5 · Some laughs 6 · Funny 11

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 12 · Relentless 6

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

Casual 12 · Engaged 10 · Full focus 0

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

Resolved 20 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
12
Thrilling
8
Tense
7
Absurd
6
Melancholic
5
Other
20

How their films linger

Fun13 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteCathartic2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy12
  • Bittersweet7
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous1

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 David Chung's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 25 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on The Criterion Channel (3).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for David Chung'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

50 credits, 25 with a MovieCove page.

  • Easter Bloody Easter(2024)

    Grip

    Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films

  • Full Throttle(1995)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • Romantic Dream (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Cinematographer

  • The Lovers(1994)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • Hail the Judge(1994)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Love on Delivery(1994)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • The Return of the God of Gamblers(1994)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • Finale in Blood(1992)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films

  • Flirting Scholar(1993)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • King of Beggars(1992)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Royal Tramp II(1992)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Royal Tramp(1992)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • The Banquet(1991)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Fruit Punch (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Cinematographer

  • Once Upon a Time in China(1991)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Zodiac Killers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Cinematographer

  • Au Revoir, Mon Amour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Cinematographer

  • God of Gamblers II(1990)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Kung Fu vs. Acrobatic(1990)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Song of the Exile (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)

    Cinematographer

  • No Risk, No Gain: Casino Raiders - The Sequel(1990)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films

  • Eight Taels of Gold (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    Second Unit Director of Photography

  • God of Gamblers(1989)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Web of Deception (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    Director · Cinematographer

  • Chasing Dreams (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    Second Assistant Camera

  • My Heart Is That Eternal Rose(1989)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • Painted Faces(1988)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • I Love Maria(1988)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • An Autumn's Tale(1987)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Dynamite Fighters(1987)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Royal Warriors(1986)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • It's a Drink! It's a Bomb! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    Director · Cinematographer

  • Mr. Boo Meets Pom Pom (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    Cinematographer

  • Shanghai Blues(1984)

    Second Unit Director of Photography

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • Esprit D'amour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)

    Cinematographer

  • Nomad (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    Cinematographer

  • Coolie Killer (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    Cinematographer

  • The Imp (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)

    Cinematographer

  • Sealed with a Kiss (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)

    Cinematographer

  • Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind(1980)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • The Enigmatic Case (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)

    Cinematographer

  • The Secret (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)

    Cinematographer

  • ICAC: A Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    Cinematographer

  • ICAC: Homeward Bound (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    Cinematographer

  • ICAC: Section Nine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    Cinematographer

  • ICAC: Two Stories "Water" (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    Cinematographer

  • The Chase (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    Director

  • CID: Four Moments of Life (Dawn, Noon, Dusk, Night) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

    Cinematographer

  • CID: Two Teddy Girls (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

    Cinematographer

  • Superstar Specials: Wong Chuen-yu (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    Cinematographer

Career shape

A full career of 48 titles from 1975 to 2024.

Biggest box office

The Return of the God of Gamblers (1994)

$6.8M worldwide

Highest rated

Flirting Scholar (1993)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

Once Upon a Time in China (1991)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing6 of 48: 4 only directing, 2 with another roleCinematography42 of 48: 40 only cinematography, 2 with another role · typical Midcredits score81stOther crew2 of 48: 2 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1970s9 · crew1980s20 · crew1990s18 · crew2020s1 · 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 David Chung's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 81st percentile, the median of all 25; across their 22 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 83rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

83rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 22

Approval · how many liked their films

79thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 22

Reach · how many have seen their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 22

Midcredits score across 25 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up16
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th4
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

15 of their 25 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Crowd Pleaser15
  • Broadly Agreed2
  • Mixed4

Most loved · cinematographer

Flirting Scholar (1993)

Midcredits 95th · 84% liked

Reviewers score the cinematography 64/100 in their films, across 16 reviewed titles; fans 70, detractors 53. The element that speaks to their work as a cinematographer.

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 David Chung work with?

People who share at least 2 of David Chung's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jing Wong shares the most, 10.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles