Andrew Lau Wai-keung (born 1960) is a Hong Kong director, cinematographer and producer, born in Hong Kong and raised in a walled village in Yuen Long who loved photography from childhood. After leaving secondary school in 1980 he joined Shaw Brothers, starting as a camera assistant under Ao Chi-kwan; the first film he worked on was The 18 Bronzemen (1982) directed by Lau Kar-leung, and by 1985 he had become a full cinematographer. In the 1980s he shot films such as Ringo Lam's City on Fire and Wong Kar-wai's As Tears Go By (1988). In 1990, with the backing of Danny Lee, he directed his first feature, Against All. His 1996 Young and Dangerous, adapted from the comic by Cowman (Niu Lo), used sharp editing and handheld camerawork to portray gang youth and set off a craze that spawned a whole series and made stars of Ekin Cheng and Jordan Chan. In 1998 he directed The Storm Riders, adapting a comic and using computer effects, a box-office success. In 2002 he co-wrote and co-directed Infernal Affairs with Alan Mak, starring Andy Lau and Tony Leung as two undercover agents hunting each other; its structure and polished lighting gripped Chinese-language cinema and won Best Film and Best Director at the 22nd Hong Kong Film Awards in 2003, followed by Infernal Affairs II and III, a trilogy that stands as a highlight of Hong Kong cinema's lean years. In 2005 he directed the racing film Initial D with Jay Chou, the territory's highest-grossing Chinese film that year. He directed Confession of Pain in 2006 and won Best Cinematography at the 26th Hong Kong Film Awards for it in 2007. He has since worked on the mainland, directing films such as The Founding of an Army (2017), The Captain (2019) and The Dumpling Queen (2025), while keeping up Hong Kong productions. Besides the Young and Dangerous series he directed comedies such as Feel 100% in the 1990s. In 2008 he made Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, followed by films such as Look for a Star. He also took the Golden Bauhinia best-director award for Infernal Affairs. In recent years he has shot mainland blockbusters such as The Captain (2019) and Chinese Doctors (2021) to strong box office while keeping up Hong Kong productions. Having started as a cinematographer, he is especially sensitive to lighting and cutting rhythm, a signature of his work.
Andrew Lau moved from cinematography to directing, and the Young and Dangerous series shaped a generation of Hong Kong viewers' imagination of the underworld. Infernal Affairs, which he co-directed with Alan Mak, was remade in Hollywood after its rights were bought, extending its influence across Chinese-language and international cinema. His sharp visual style and command of genre made him a box-office mainstay during Hong Kong cinema's lean years.
Achievements
- 1996 · Directed Young and Dangerous, launching a hit film series
- 2003 · Infernal Affairs won Best Film and Best Director at the 22nd Hong Kong Film Awards
- 2007 · Won Best Cinematography at the 26th Hong Kong Film Awards for Confession of Pain