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Jozev Kiu

Jozev Kiu
Kiu in July 2011
Born
Lau Wai Ming (劉偉明)[1]

1969 (1969)
Hong Kong
Education
Notable workBlood and Steel (2008)

Lau Wai Ming (Chinese: 劉偉明; born 1969), known by his pen name Jozev Kiu Ching-Fu (Chinese: 喬靖夫), is a Hong Kongese wuxia novelist, lyricist and Eskrima coach. His magnum opus, Blood and Steel, had received widespread acclaim and Kiu is regarded as one of the leading figures of the post-Jin Yong Hong Kong wuxia fiction genre.[2][3]

Early life and education

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Kiu was born Lau Wai Ming in 1969 in Hong Kong.[4] He had his secondary education at Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Secondary School and was classmate with musician Adrian Chow [zh].[5] He began learning karate when he was 15 and spent most of his secondary school life on basketball, gaming and reading manga.[6] He later attended The City University of Hong Kong and graduated with a bachelor's degree in translation.[3][7]

Career

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Writing

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Kiu started to write Wuxia fiction and completed his first novel, The Unparalleled Statesman (Chinese: 國士無雙), during his university years.[3] Kiu published his debut novel The Blade of the Phantom Kingdom (Chinese: 幻國之刃) in 1996, and he began to receive public attention. He later also wrote The Vampire Hunter’s Diaries (Chinese: 吸血鬼獵人日誌) and The Killing Zen (Chinese: 殺禪), which the latter took Kiu ten years to finish.[3] The lengthy writing process earned him the nickname of "Hong Kong’s most procrastinated writer" (Chinese: 香江第一遲筆).[3]

In 2008, he published another novel series, Blood and Steel [zh].[2] The series was perceived as a milestone of the reformed Hong Kong wuxia genre as it differed from the traditional Wuxia fiction which put emphasis on the code of chivalry and Chinese traditions.[8] Kiu was also one of the few wuxia novelists who possessed a martial arts background, and the realistic action sequences in the novel series received universal praise.[2] After the success of Blood and Steel, Kiu was widely regarded as a leading figure of the "New Wuxia" genre in the post-Jin Yong era.[2]

Kiu had also composed lyrics for Cantopop songs since 1998. He won the Yearly Best Lyricist Prize of the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong in 2000 with Candy Lo's Dark Blue.[1][9]

Martial arts

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Kiu is skilled in karate, Wing Chun and Eskrima.[3] He obtained a brown belt in karate,[10] and began practicing Eskrima since 2009, later participating in several international competitions.[11] He had also received professional training in the Philippines in 2012,[11] and served as a guest host of the RTHK martial arts documentary series, Kung Fu Quest (Chinese: 功夫傳奇), for several years.[10] Kiu also co-founded and taught at Kalis Brotherhood, an Eskrima coaching school.[12]

Film

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Kiu was invited by filmmaker Wilson Yip, who had approached him to adapt his novels but ended up in development hell years ago, to join the production of the 2024 martial arts film Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In, as the crew was seeking an unfamiliar face with sufficient martial arts skills for the role, and Kiu accepted the offer.[13][14] He portrayed Double Blade, a restaurateur and butcher who was secretly a skillful swordsman loyal to Cyclone, the chief guardian of the Walled City, played by Louis Koo.[15][14] Kiu incorporated Eskrima as his chosen fighting style in the film and performed his own stunts, including a fight sequence against Sammo Hung and an unused scene featuring him fighting three thugs simultaneously.[13]

Personal life

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Kiu was married in March 2011.[16]

Kiu was a supporter of the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill Movement. He wrote essays to express his political views and had compared the protests with Bruce Lee’s philosophy of errantry.[17]

Bibliography

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Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2024 Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In Double Blade (阿七) Cameo[15]

References

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  1. ^ a b "九龍城寨之圍城丨雙刀「阿七」竟是名小說家！菲律賓魔杖教練對戰洪金寶成亮點". Sing Tao Daily (in Chinese). 5 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e "《武道狂之詩》- 香港新派武俠小說，武打場面非常有真實感，不過故事有點平舖直述". Hong Kong Inmedia (in Chinese). 15 February 2021. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i 黃子翔 (11 June 2016). "紅人熱事——打出一片天 喬靖夫新武俠掌門人". Headline Daily. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  4. ^ "武道狂之外。喬靖夫". Hong Kong Education City (in Chinese). 20 February 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  5. ^ "【開心速遞】張明偉劇內外都屬資優生 長沙灣天主教英文中學畢業入美國名牌大學【有片】". TOPick. 22 April 2021. Archived from the original on 2 August 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  6. ^ "運動非主流／空手道精神 啟蒙喬靖夫作家路". ETtoday. 10 March 2015. Archived from the original on 11 January 2016. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  7. ^ "【JORDAN BRAND大專籃球賽】浸大主場擊敗七人城大躋身四強". Yahoo! News. 8 August 2017. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  8. ^ "筆墨出江湖 書展論英雄". Wen Wei Po. 29 June 2016. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Official website of the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong". Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong.[dead link‍]
  10. ^ a b "也文也武喬靖夫". Hong Kong Economic Journal. 3 May 2016. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  11. ^ a b Wong, Nic (10 October 2019). "唯快不破老而堅 喬靖夫". Jet Magazine. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  12. ^ 李嘉譽 (5 November 2019). "【菲律賓魔杖】世界冠軍師徒Andy 民安︰打破高牆發展香港魔杖". HK01. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  13. ^ a b Kiu, Jozev (5 May 2024). "一個作家，闖入武打電影街道". Ming Pao (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 6 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  14. ^ a b 許育民 (4 May 2024). "九龍城寨｜阿七雙刀護主成MVP　喬靖夫文武雙全擅長菲律賓魔杖". HK01 (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 4 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  15. ^ a b "家明雜感：《九龍城寨之圍城》 漂亮痛快". Ming Pao (in Chinese). 5 May 2024. Archived from the original on 6 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  16. ^ 莊漢波 (1 April 2011). "夜訪喬靖夫：與一位奮鬥不懈的小說家對話". United Daily News. Archived from the original on 16 June 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  17. ^ 戈登探長 (5 July 2019). "Be water！一代宗師李小龍與香港抗爭者". The News Lens. Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2022.