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Born in the Chinese province of Canton, Yen came to Hong Kong at age two. He lived there until he was eleven, then moved to Boston, MA. He spent his early teenage years there, where his mother, Bow Sim-Mark, a world famous Wushu and Tai Chi master, ran the internationally known Chinese Wushu Research Institute, and martial arts became a major influence in his life. His footsteps would soon lead him down the less traveled path, his destiny perhaps. His father, Klysler Yen, the Boston editor of Sing Tao, an international Chinese daily paper, plays the violin and a similar-sounding stringed instrument, the Chinese erh-wu while his mother sings soprano. The younger Yen's sensitivity to rhythm would eventually make its way into the films he directed, adding texture and depth.
Donnie Yen's mother began training her son in the martial arts almost as soon as he could walk. With her he mastered traditional and modern Chinese Wushu and Tai Chi, understanding internal and external principles. As a young teenager hanging out in Boston's Chinatown, Yen, like most youth, caught every kung fu movie he could, but with a difference.
Watching Fu Sheng, Ti Lung, Bruce Lee, and Jackie Chan onscreen, Yen could come out of the theaters accurately repeating their moves in the movies he'd just seen. Yen even took to skipping school to take in several movies a day. Hungry for more knowledge and always the rebel, Yen began searching out and mastering various martial arts styles.
Whatever his friends were studying, he compared notes and explored other schools too. Feeling the strength and power of his martial arts, he was well along the path in his quest for the truth of martial arts. As a teenager, the rebellious Yen began running wild on the mean streets of Boston's notorious Combat Zone. Concerned, his parents arranged a detour for him-sending him to Beijing, where he would spend two years training with the famed Beijing Wushu Team, studying with the same master as Jet Li.
Yen became the first non-PRC Chinese to be accepted at the school, thus opening the door for others to follow in future. While the training was intense and rigorous, Yen wanted more, so his time at the school became only a sojourn. En route back to the U.S, he made a side trip to Hong Kong and was introduced to film director Yuen Wo-ping, the action choreographer for 1999's The Matrix.
Yuen, who had launched the career of Jackie Chan in Snake in Eagle's Shadow and Drunken Master, was looking for a new kung fu movie hero. In Yen, he found his man, and so began a new journey. Inspired by his idol, Bruce Lee, Yen not only explored a wide variety of different fighting styles, he also created his own unique martial arts system.
His progression in the martial arts is parallelled onscreen by the assimilation and combinations of various martial arts styles displayed. Starting as early as Drunken Tai Chi, his immense physical capabilities were evident. In the Tiger Cage series, Yen showed his versatility with Western kickboxing. Iron Monkey showcased traditional kung fu style, and Yen's memorable performance as Wong Key-ying made the movie one of the most influential martial arts films of the decade. Here, he glorified the kung fu style of Hung Gar. Ironically, Yen explains he doesn't know Hung Gar but credits his ability onscreen to his martial arts philosophy. Throughout his film career, he has never stopped training and his martial arts have never stopped developing.
The mental and the physical become one, and the more elevated his art has become, the more Bruce Lee's philosophy has meant to him. Master of all and none, Yen says, 'I've been involved with martial arts for so many years now, I don't really analyze them too much anymore. Basically I agree with what Bruce Lee said, that, as human beings, we all have two arms and legs, so there can't really be many different styles of fighting.' Every style of martial arts has something to offer. Yuen recognized Yen's extraordinary physical abilities; their series of films together led to a new direction in Hong Kong action cinema. Waiting to begin the filming on his first starring vehicle, Drunken Tai Chi, Yen's talents were utilized by Yuen on Miracle Fighters 2.
Performing incomparable movements, he doubled for all of the Yuen brothers and actor Eddie Ko, all at work on the picture. Yen made his lead debut at the tender age of 19 in one of the last traditional martial arts movies, Drunken Tai Chi, which climaxes with an amazing final fight. He would later star in other Yuen vehicles, and with each, his progression as a martial artist and actor is there for all to see. Mismatched Couples (1985), a lightweight comedy capitalizing on the breakdancing craze, showcased Yen's agility and flexibility and tapped into his comic flair. The Tiger Cage series, a string of contemporary cops-and-robbers action dramas, hits hard and fast, each film upping the ante action wise. Audiences still debate which is the favorite.
In Tiger Cage (1989), he brought talented martial artists and friends Michael Woods and Stephan Berwick on board; their fights incorporated tae kwan do kicks, western boxing, and traditional Chinese martial arts. In The Line of Duty 4 (1989) brought his friend John Salvitti onto the scene as well, and Yen innovatively choreographed realistic fights which exhibited the advanced skills of all the combatants. By Tiger Cage 2 (1990), he had created his own, very modern style of combat choreography, based on his on-going and widespread research into different fighting arts, and many consider the feral fights in this movie to be among the best in action movie history.
Martial Artist, Film Director And Producer
Donnie Yen (born 27 July 1963) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and world wushu tournament medalist. Apart from being a well-known film and television actor in Hong Kong, Yen has also gained international recognition for appearing in many films together with other prominent and internationally-known actors such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh. Yen is widely credited by many as the person responsible for popularizing the traditional martial arts style known as Wing Chun.
He played the role of Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man in the 2008 film Ip Man, which was a box office success. This has led to an increase in the number of people taking up Wing Chun, leading to hundreds of new Wing Chun schools to be opened up in mainland China and other parts of Asia. Ip Chun, the eldest son of Ip Man, even mentioned that he is grateful to Yen for making his family art popular and allowing his father's legacy to be remembered.
Yen is considered to be Hong Kong's top action star; director Peter Chan mentioned that he "is the 'it' action person right now" and "has built himself into a bona fide leading man, who happens to be an action star." Yen is widely credited for bringing mixed martial arts (MMA) into the mainstream of Chinese culture, by choreographing MMA in many of his recent films. Yen has displayed notable skills in MMA, being well-versed in boxing, kickboxing, taekwondo, Muay Thai, wrestling, karate and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Seen as one of the most popular film stars in Asia in recent years, Yen is currently one of the most highly paid actors in the whole of Asia.
Yen's mother, Bow-sim Mark, is a Fu Style Wudangquan (internal martial arts) grandmaster, while his father, Klyster Yen, is a newspaper editor. Yen was born in Taishan, Guangdong, China. When he was two years old, his family moved to Hong Kong, and then to Boston, Massachusetts, United States when he was 11. His younger sister, Chris Yen, is also a martial artist and actress, and appeared in the 2007 film Adventures of Johnny Tao: Rock Around the Dragon.
At a young age, under influence from his mother, Yen developed an interest in martial arts and began experimenting with various styles, including t'ai chi and other traditional Chinese martial arts. Yen focused on practicing wushu after dropping out of school. His parents were concerned that he was spending too much time in the Boston Combat Zone, so they sent him to Beijing on a two-year training program with the Beijing Wushu Team. When Yen decided to return to the United States, he made a side-trip to Hong Kong and met action choreographer Yuen Woo-ping there.
Yen also came from a family of musicians. His mother is a soprano, in addition to being a martial arts teacher in Boston, while his father is a violinist. Since young, he was taught by his parents to play musical instruments, including the piano. He also knows hip-hop dancing and breakdancing.
