Korean, Lama
Though he started as an actor, he was also an excellent screenwriter as well, rivaling the likes of Shaw Bros' top writer - I Kuang (who wrote just about 90% of the movies for Shaw Bros). And, though he worked at Shaw studios for awhile (The Crimson Charm), he would go on to become one of the key players at Golden Harvest studios during the '70s.
He left Shaw Bros' with Raymond Chow, Lo Wei, and a few others who believed that they could have a better life, working at the new studio. He was hired by Chow as one of his principle directors, churning out a number swordplay films. He directed their very first film and was instrumental securing choreography jobs for Han Ying-Chieh and Samo Hung. When the "Kung-fu Craze" hit, these (3) men would eventually help the studio rival Shaw Bros' in the fighting-department.
He to his credit, discovered Angela Mao and Carter Wong, directing them in some of their better films - Hapkido, When Tae Kwon Do Strikes, and The Tournament. It was under his guidance that Angela Mao would become an International star. He was a great story-teller (director Sun Chung's work reminds me of him); some of my favorite works from him were The Himalayan and Naked Comes The Huntress.
He delve into presenting various styles of martial-arts (Hapkido, Tae Kwon Do, Thai Boxing) into his films, giving each center stage, thus creating a different style from Shaw's House-style. He wanted each style to be represent in a way, that would not bring false notions about their authenticity, so he had his actors train in these arts for months at a time. They studied Hapkido with renowned master Chi Hon-Jae and one of his top students Whang In-Sik (who would go on to star as a villain in countless films for Golden Harvest).
He wrote most of his own works, even writing the script for Samo's first directorial feature Iron-Fisted Monk. He has been instrumental in Samo's development at Golden Harvest more than any other person. He was a key force in helping Golden Harvest get started in its inception throughout the latter part of the 70's. In 1978, he formed "Grafon Films" - along with partners Mao and Chen Sing; releleasing the film, The Legendary Strike. He went on to produce Samo's classic The Victim, starring John Liang. As a fine director and scriptwriter, his contributions to Martial-arts Cinema cannot be overlooked.