Photo: 張皓安 / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Hou Hsiao-Hsien is, for my money, one of the essential voices in world cinema. Three Golden Horse Best Director wins, the Venice Golden Lion for A City of Sadness, and the Cannes directing prize for The Assassin only hint at it. What I truly admire is not the hardware but his faith in stillness: those patient long takes that refuse to explain themselves yet sink into you. He trusts the audience to feel the silence. As a central figure of Taiwan's New Wave, he turned memory and landscape into something quietly monumental. His retirement leaves a real gap, but the work endures.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Hou Hsiao-Hsien
- Name (Japanese)
- 侯孝賢
- Reading
- 不明
- Born
- April 8, 1947 (age 79)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Aries / Boar
- Origin
- Meixian District, People's Republic of China
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / film director / singer / screenwriter / film actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- National Feng-Shan Senior High School
- University
- National Taiwan University of Arts
Awards & achievements
- 1989 Golden Horse Award for Best Director
- 1995 Golden Horse Award for Best Director
- 2015 Golden Horse Award for Best Director
- Asian Film Award for Best Director
- 1999 Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize
- 2008 Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres
- 2021 Asia's Most Influential Taiwan
- 2015 Order of Brilliant Star
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BE%AF%E5%AD%9D%E8%B3%A2
Frequently asked questions
When was Hou Hsiao-Hsien born?
Born April 8, 1947 (age 79).
Where is Hou Hsiao-Hsien from?
Hou Hsiao-Hsien is from Meixian District, People's Republic of China.
What does Hou Hsiao-Hsien do?
Hou Hsiao-Hsien works as actor, film director, singer, screenwriter, film actor.
Actor — see all → · Film director — see all → · More people from People's Republic of China →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-21
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.