Peter Wang
About
Biography
Biography
Founding member of the San Francisco-based Asian Living Theater, with which he wrote and staged several productions before turning to film. Wang made a number of documentaries centering on Chinese culture and history, including the acclaimed "Old Treasures From New China" (1977). He appeared in Wayne Wang's "Chan is Missing" (1982) as a short order cook and co-wrote (with director Allen Fong) and starred in the highly regarded feature, "Ah Ying" (1984).
Wang received widespread recognition for his first feature, "A Great Wall" (1985), a gently amusing, intelligent probe of a Chinese-American family visiting the land of their origins. The film, produced by the director's own Peter Wang Films company, was also notable as the first American feature to be shot in China).
Wang drew on his background in electro-optics to make "The Laser Man" (1988), the story of a Chinese-Jewish laser specialist and his problems in finding a new job after he accidentally kills a friend during an experiment. Wang is also known as an essayist and short story-writer in Asia.
Filmography
Director (Feature Film)
Cast (Feature Film)
Writer (Feature Film)
Producer (Feature Film)
Art Department (Feature Film)
Life Events
1982
Feature film acting debut (as cook with "Samurai Night Fever" t-shirt) in Wayne Wang's "Chan Is Missing"
1982
Feature co-writing debut (also actor), Allen Fong's "Ah Ying"
1985
Feature directing and co-producing debut (also co-writer; actor), "A Great Wall Is a Great Wall"
