Ms Hung Sin Nui

1927-2013

Actress

Born Kwong Kin Lim, opera virtuoso and actress Hung Sin Nui learned the art of Cantonese opera from her aunt Ho Fu Lin. She joined Guangzhou’s Sing Sau Nin Opera Troupe, where she was known as Siu Yin Hung. It was opera master Leng Siu Fung who gave her the stage name Hung Sin Nui. During the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, Hung was spotted by the famous Ma Si Tsang, who made her a principal actress at the age of 15. Hung performed alongside Ma on stage and soon developed what came to be known as the “Hung-style tone”. In 1947, she began appearing in movies, including opera adaptations such as The Judge Goes to Pieces (1948), The Spoiled Princess (1948) and Wild Flowers Are Sweeter (1950). She specialised in portraying spoilt and pouty women, and became a top actress of Cantonese feature dramas in the 1950s. A founding member of Union Film Enterprise, Hung played key parts in Union Film Enterprise productions, including Autumn (1954) and The Eternal Love (1955). She also starred in The Rouge Tigress (1955), the first film by Kong Ngee Motion Picture Production Company, as well as the Mandarin film It So Happens to a Woman (1955). Hung was regarded as one of the best drama movie actresses in the 1950s. In 1955, she returned to Guangzhou with Ma Si Tsang, whereupon she devoted herself to the promotion of Cantonese opera, and its education. During her career, Hung acted in more than 90 films in Hong Kong and Mainland China. Her final work was The Legend of Lee Heung Kwan (1990), a Cantonese opera film made in Hong Kong.