Kara Wai

Kara Hui Ying-Hung was born in Shandong, China; her family moved to Hong Kong in 1966 and at 14 she quit school and started working at nightclubs. Penniless after her family lost their savings from her father's business acquaintances, Hui and her mother and siblings resided in the poor shanty town of Rennie's Mill and were forced to peddle goods on the streets of Hong Kong. Hui was discovered by film director Chia-Liang Liu and cast in Challenge of the Masters (1976) in 1976. Soon after, she started in many films directed by Liu Chia-Liang. She signed with Shaw Brothers Studios in February of 1975 and made over 40 action movies. She won the very first Best Actress Award for her critically-acclaimed role as Jing Dai-Nan in the 1981 classic My Young Auntie (1981) at the first Hong Kong Film Awards in 1982. After Shaw Studios closed down in 1985, Kara's career transition was very smooth and she has since portrayed more serious roles with very great success, winning the Hong Kong Film Awards, Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards, Changchun Film Festival, Pacific Meridian, Asian Film Awards, and Golden Horse Awards for her portrayal of a mother in the 2009 film At the End of Daybreak and winning Best Supporting Actress for her role as Yeung Feng in Rigor Mortis in 2014 at the 33rd Hong Kong Film Awards. Kara Hui is a legend. She has acted in over 138 films and is still active in the Hong Kong film industry today.