Joe Ma

Joseph Ma Wai-ho is a Hong Kong film director, scriptwriter and producer. Among the films he has directed, Feel 100%, The Lion Roars (2002) and Love Undercover (2002) were popular films at the Hong Kong box office. Love Undercover won the Audience Award at the 2002 Far East Film Festival. In 1997, Ma founded the film company Brilliant Idea Group Limited (BIG). Its first film, Full Alert (1997), received five nominations at the 17th Hong Kong Film Awards.

Ma career in film started before completing secondary school, where he wrote a play that would later be adapted into the film Happy Ghost (1984). Ma first worked as a writer and made his debut as a film director with Rich Man (1992). As a writer, he primarily made romantic comedy films. By 2007, he had written all films he has directed and also wrote films for other directors such as Daniel Lee's Black Mask (1996) and Ringo Lam's Victim (1999).

Biography Joe Ma was born on February 21, 1964. He was a writer during his tenure of Secondary 6 level in secondary school in Hong Kong. He wrote a play that would later be adapted into Happy Ghost (1984). Ma graduated in 1987 from the University of Hong Kong with a major in Contemporary Chinese History.

Ma first worked as a writer and made his debut as a film director with Rich Man (1992) as well as writing Over the Rainbow, Under the Skirt (1994). The 1994 film was drawn from Ma's own memories of growing up. Feel 100% (1996) starring Ekin Cheng and Gigi Lai was a box office success in Hong Kong.

In 1997, Ma founded the film company Brilliant Idea Group Limited (BIG). Its first film was Ringo Lam's Full Alert (1997) which received five nominations at the 17th Hong Kong Film Awards. As a producer, Ma worked with several new directors such as Wilson Yip with Bullets Over Summer (1999), Alan Mak's A War Named Desire (2001) and Cheang Pou-soi's Love Battlefield (2004).

Ma directed two other films popular in the Hong Kong box office in the early 2000s with The Lion Roars (2002) and Love Undercover (2002).

Style Ma specializes in romantic comedy films and stories about youth romance. By 2007, Ma had written all of the 23 films he directed. Outside his own films, Ma would write for other directors, such as Daniel Lee's Black Mask (1996), Benny Chan's Big Bullet (1996), and Ringo Lam's Victim (1999).

Reception Love Undercover won the Audience Award at the 2002 Far East Film Festival in Undine, Italy.

Filmography as director Year Title 1992 Rich Man 1994 Over the Rainbow, Under the Skirt 1995 The Golden Girls 1996 Till Death Do Us Laugh Feel 100% Feel 100%... Once More 1997 He Comes from Planet K First Love Unlimited Lawyer Lawyer 1999 Afraid of Nothing: The Jobless King 2001 Feel 100% II Fighting for Love Funeral March Dummy Mommy, Without a Baby 2002 The Lion Roars Love Undercover Summer Breeze of Love 2003 Next Station... Tin Hau Feel 100% 2003 Love Undercover 2: Love Mission Sound of Colors 2004 Three of a Kind Hidden Heroes 2005 Embrace Your Shadow 2006 Love Undercover 3 2008 Sasori 2010 My Sassy Girl 2 2011 Stand by Me 2012 The Lion Roars 2 2016 Days of Our Own 2017 On Fallen Wings