Yu Feihong (; born 15 January 1971), also known as Faye Yu, is a Chinese actress and an occasional film director and producer, best known in the west for Wayne Wang's award-winning American films A Thousand Years of Good Prayers (2007) and The Joy Luck Club (1992). In the Chinese-speaking world she is best known for starring in a number of popular Chinese television series.
Biography Yu was born into a senior intellectual family in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, on 15 January 1971. Her father graduated from Tsinghua University and her mother graduated from Zhejiang University of Technology. She has an older sister and a younger brother.
Yu was a child actress, having a lead role in the film The Murderer and the Craven when she was only 16. In 1991, while studying at the Beijing Film Academy, China's most prestigious film school, she became the first enrolled student in school history to be cast in a Hollywood production when Wayne Wang selected her for his film The Joy Luck Club. It took 3 months for her to receive an American visa, but Wang stuck with her. She returned to Beijing after filming, taught at the school for a while upon graduation, later studying in Los Angeles, before returning to China in 1998 to star in the television drama Hand-in-Hand which became a huge domestic hit. She followed up on its success with Yuen Woo-ping's 1999 wuxia TV drama Legend of Dagger Li, a Mainland-Taiwan co-production based on the popular Xiaoli Feidao novels.
Between 2005 and 2008 she only chose 1 acting project, A Thousand Years of Good Prayers, which briefly brought her back to the U.S. and reunited her with Wang. She spent most of her years then working on Eternal Beloved, her directorial debut that she also wrote (based on a novel), starred in, and produced. The film crashed in the Chinese box office, but won Yu the Best Directorial Debut Award at the Beijing College Student Film Festival.
Filmography Film YearEnglish titleOriginal titleRoleNotes1980Bamboo竹1982The Brilliant Colored Ball闪光的彩球1987The Murderer and the Craven凶手与懦夫Chen XiaofenLove in Beijing爱在北京Yun1990Factory Girls特区打工妹Chunhua1993Beijing Bastards北京杂种Mao MaoThe Joy Luck ClubYing-Ying (young)1994Heaven and Earth天地Wu Jun1995SuperfightsSally Wong1999The House 梦幻田园Lei An'an Something About Secret说出你的秘密cameo2001X-Roads新十字街头Mei QingBeijing Rocks北京乐与路Qianjie2007A Thousand Years of Good PrayersYilan Shi2009Eternal Beloved愛有來生Mo Xiaoyualso writer, director, producerWon—Best Directorial Debut, Beijing College Student Film Festival2010Color Me Love爱出色2014The Galaxy on Earth天河The Crossing太平輪Madame Gu2016The New Year's Eve of Old Lee过年好Li Yangduo's partner2017Wu Kong悟空傳Hua JiMurder on the Orient Express Voiced2019Wish You Were Here在乎你 Yuan Yuan2021Love After Love第一炉香 Mrs. Liang 2024 Decoded 解密 Ye Xiaoning
TV Series YearEnglish titleOriginal titleRoleNotes1998Hand-in-Hand牵手Wang ChunNominated—Outstanding Actress, Flying Apsaras AwardsLang Zi Da Qing Chai浪子大欽差1999Legend of Dagger Li小李飛刀Yang Yan2000Together Life or Death生死同行Shu WenjingThere Are Dreams in Life人生有夢Chen LuyiLuan Shi Tao Hua亂世桃花Liu XuCe Ma Xiao Xi Feng策馬嘯西風Gao Yuhan2001Third Master's Sword三少爺的劍Murong Qiudi2002The Night of Naval Port軍港之夜Xia HaiyunChinese Soccer中國足球Lan Xin2003The Worry-free Princess無憂公主Pan YoudiThe Grand Mansion 2大宅門IIWu Yingyu2004The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty大明天子Xu MiaoyunZheng Yi Ling Tian Xia正義令天下Zhong Ziying2005Xiang Qi Mi Ren香氣迷人Yu SuFeng Chui Yun Dong Xing Bu Dong風吹雲動星不動YinxingI Love You, Goodbye我愛你,再見He Danalso producer, presenter, theme song singer2011Men男人帮Shanli2014May–December Love大丈夫Gu XiaoyanThe Great Southern Migration大南遷Madame Li2015The Merchants of Qing Dynasty大清鹽商Xiao Wenshu2016The Identity of Father父親的身份Zheng YiMay–December Love 2小丈夫Yao LanEastern Battlefield東方戰場Soong Mei-lingHappy Season幸福的季节Qin Qin2020Marry to the West洋嫁Xie Qiao2021The Dragnet刑警之海外行动Shi YananAnti-Corruption Storm风雨送春归Xu Ying
References
Sources Yu Feihong juggles jobs in new film Wayne Wang & Faye Yu Interviews 38岁俞飞鸿：我是宅女，没有秘密结婚
External links Yufeihong.com (Yu Feihong's fan club) Yufeihong.blogspot.com