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I think a lot of people don't realize that martial arts are just an expression like anything else. It's just that most people are not trained to punch or kick, but you can walk or run or dance, which is also part of expression.

Donnie Yen

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Donnie Yen
Age: 61
Born: 1963
Born: July 27
Actor
Choreographer
Film Actor
Film Director
Film Producer
Judoka
Karateka
Martial Artist
Producer
Taekwondo Athlete
Television Actor
Canton
Donnie Yen Ji-dan
Anything
Expression
Punch
Think
Walks
Kick
Thinking
Realizing
Trained
Like
Running
Kicks
People
Art
Arts
Else
Dance
Part
Walk
Also
Realize
Martial

More quotes by Donnie Yen

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When you watch my films, you're feeling my heart.
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When you direct a movie, you're basically looking at a story, the way you want to look at it. You bring that director's vision, and I'm totally open for that.
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Like any other actor, I draw on life experience.
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Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong. There's a lot of restriction for contemporary films simply because of subject matter.
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It's a blessing to be given a variety of roles to what I call an iconic action actor like myself.
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My action follows my characters. If a character is a cop, you cannot be posing all the time, you cannot fly off the roof because it doesn't make any sense - it's not practical.
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For me, shooting, editing, and scoring rely on rhythm.
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In Hollywood, I'm lucky, I only do big movies like 'Blade.' It's much more comfortable: you have a trailer.
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I think action movies bring more excitement than tears, but I always want to take it to another level. I mean I think if one appreciates anything in life to a certain degree, it could possibly bring tears to your eyes.
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As an action director I always try to bring something fresh and new.
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My mum lives in Boston she's famous for teaching wushu and t'ai chi. So from when I was young, my mum and aunt were like: 'You're training you're not playing baseball or football.' Training every day was normal. Later, when I was almost a teenager, Bruce Lee became my idol.
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The main reason I like UFC is not just the martial arts aspect, but it's about one person against the other person. It's about being able to test yourself with the truth.
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I gained a lot of confidence after 'IP Man' as being a true actor. I went on to tackle what it is an actor is supposed to do before a film. Do a lot of research, get into the character. That's what I did with 'Dragon.'
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A lot of people don't realize, when you are acting in a martial arts film, you're not just performing martial arts. You're not just performing martial arts. You're actually acting as much as any other actor.
Donnie Yen
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I'm a very emotional guy.
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An action choreographer is kind of like a dance choreographer. You choreograph the moves and you let the director, cinematographer take into positioning their cameras.
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For me, the challenge of a period film is that, unlike a contemporary film where the character can be very free-form when it comes to the acting, there's a burden to acting in a period film because you have to stay within the character's historical background and the gestures of certain periods.
Donnie Yen
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Martial art is a form of expression, an expression from your inner self to your hands and legs.
Donnie Yen
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I act according to the requirements of the character, and if I try to play the role, then I play it truthfully. In my daily life, I'm a laid-back, peaceful guy. I'm just doing my job to act.
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I always tell younger filmmakers, it's not just about the acting or the art itself. It's about how big of an audience watches your film.
Donnie Yen