Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director
The Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director is an award presented annually at the Hong Kong Film Awards. It is given to honour the best director of a Hong Kong film. The 1st Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony was held in 1982, with no formal nomination procedure established; the award was given to Allen Fong for his direction of Father and Son. After the first award ceremony, a nomination system was put in place whereby no more than five nominations are made for each category and each entry is selected through two rounds of voting. Firstly, prospective nominees are marked with a weight of 50% each from HKFA voters and a hundred professional adjudicators, contributing towards a final score with which the top five nominees advance to the second round of voting. The winner is then selected via a scoring process where 55% of the vote comes from 55 professional adjudicators, 25% from representatives of the Hong Kong Film Directors' Guild and 20% from all other HKFA Executive Committee Members.
From the 2nd Hong Kong Film Awards, there are five, sometimes 6, nominations for the category of Best Director from which one director is chosen the winner of the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director. The most recent award was jointly awarded at the 36th Hong Kong Film Awards to the three director of Trivisa; Frank Hui, Jevons Au and Vicky Wong. The directors with most awards in this category is Ann Hui with five wins, followed by Allen Fong and Johnnie To with 3 times each.
Winners and nominees
| Indicates the winner |
| Year | Director | Film | |
| 1981 ' | Allen Fong | Father and Son | |
| 1982 ' | Ann Hui | Boat People | |
| 1982 ' | David Lai | Lonely Fifteen | |
| 1982 ' | Sammo Hung | The Prodigal Son | |
| 1982 ' | Choi Gai-Kwong | ||
| 1982 ' | Patrick Tam Kar-Ming | Nomad | |
| 1983 ' | Allen Fong | Ah Ying | |
| 1983 ' | Li Han-Xiang | Burning of the Imperial Palace | |
| 1983 ' | Wu Ma | The Dead and the Deadly | |
| 1983 ' | Teddy Robin | All the Wrong Spies | |
| 1983 ' | Kirk Wong | Health Warning | |
| 1984 ' | Yim Ho | Homecoming | |
| 1984 ' | Tsui Hark | Shanghai Blues | |
| 1984 ' | Johnny Mak | Long Arm of the Law | |
| 1984 ' | Po-Chih Leong | Hong Kong 1941 | |
| 1984 ' | Danny Lee Sau-Yin | Law with Two Phases | |
| 1985 ' | Mabel Cheung | Illegal Immigrant | |
| 1985 ' | Stanley Kwan | Women | |
| 1985 ' | Ricky Lau | Mr. Vampire | |
| 1985 ' | Sammo Hung | Heart of Dragon | |
| 1985 ' | Jackie Chan | Police Story | |
| 1986 ' | Allen Fong | Just Like Weather | |
| 1986 ' | Stephen Shin | Brotherhood | |
| 1986 ' | John Woo | A Better Tomorrow | |
| 1986 ' | Derek Yee | The Lunatics | |
| 1986 ' | Li Han-Xiang | The Last Emperor | |
| 1986 ' | Stanley Kwan | Love Unto Waste | |
| 1987 ' | Ringo Lam | City on Fire | |
| 1987 ' | Ching Siu-tung | A Chinese Ghost Story | |
| 1987 ' | Mabel Cheung | An Autumn's Tale | |
| 1987 ' | Ringo Lam | Prison on Fire | |
| 1987 ' | Ann Hui | The Romance of Book & Sword | |
| 1987 ' | Patrick Tam | Final Victory | |
| 1988 ' | Stanley Kwan | Rouge | |
| 1988 ' | Lawrence Ah Mon | Gangs | |
| 1988 ' | Alex Law | Painted Faces | |
| 1988 ' | Wong Kar-wai | As Tears Go By | |
| 1988 ' | Jacob Cheung | Last Eunuch in China | |
| 1989 ' | John Woo | The Killer | |
| 1989 ' | Johnnie To | All About Ah-Long | |
| 1989 ' | Jacob Cheung | Beyond the Sunset | |
| 1989 ' | Anthony Chan Yau | A Fishy Story | |
| 1989 ' | Mabel Cheung | Eight Taels of Gold | |
| 1990 ' | Wong Kar-wai | Days of Being Wild | |
| 1990 ' | John Woo | Bullet in the Head | |
| 1990 ' | Ann Hui | Song of the Exile | |
| 1990 ' | Yim Ho | Red Dust | |
| 1990 ' | Clara Law | Farewell China | |
| 1991 ' | Tsui Hark | Once Upon a Time in China | |
| 1991 ' | John Woo | Once a Thief | |
| 1991 ' | Gordon Chan | Fight Back to School | |
| 1991 ' | Lawrence Ah Mon | Lee Rock | |
| 1991 ' | Poon Man-Kit | To Be Number One | |
| 1992 ' | Jacob Cheung | Cageman | |
| 1992 ' | Jeffrey Lau | 92 Legendary La Rose Noire | |
| 1992 ' | Gordon Chan | King of Beggars | |
| 1992 ' | Tsui Hark | Once Upon a Time in China II | |
| 1992 ' | Stanley Kwan | Center Stage | |
| 1993 ' | Derek Yee | C'est la vie, mon chéri | |
| 1993 ' | Kirk Wong | Crime Story | |
| 1993 ' | Cha Yuen-Yee | Legal Innocence | |
| 1993 ' | Peter Chan Lee Chi-Ngai | Tom, Dick and Hairy | |
| 1993 ' | Clara Law | Temptation of a Monk | |
| 1994 ' | Wong Kar-wai | Chungking Express | |
| 1994 ' | Wong Kar-wai | Ashes of Time | |
| 1994 ' | Peter Chan | He's a Woman, She's a Man | |
| 1994 ' | Tsui Hark | The Lovers | |
| 1994 ' | Gordon Chan | The Final Option | |
| 1995 ' | Ann Hui | Summer Snow | |
| 1995 ' | Derek Yee | Full Throttle | |
| 1995 ' | Wong Kar-wai | Fallen Angels | |
| 1995 ' | Yim Ho | The Day the Sun Turned Cold | |
| 1995 ' | Johnnie To | Loving You | |
| 1996 ' | Peter Chan | ||
| 1996 ' | Derek Chiu | The Log | |
| 1996 ' | Derek Yee Lau Chi-Leung | Viva Erotica | |
| 1996 ' | Shu Kei | Hu Du Men | |
| 1996 ' | Benny Chan | Big Bullet | |
| 1997 ' | Fruit Chan | Made in Hong Kong | |
| 1997 ' | Wong Kar-wai | Happy Together | |
| 1997 ' | Ringo Lam | Full Alert | |
| 1997 ' | Mabel Cheung | The Soong Sisters | |
| 1997 ' | Johnnie To | Lifeline | |
| 1998 ' | Gordon Chan Dante Lam | Beast Cops | |
| 1998 ' | Stanley Kwan | Hold You Tight | |
| 1998 ' | Fruit Chan | The Longest Summer | |
| 1998 ' | Mabel Cheung | City of Glass | |
| 1998 ' | Patrick Yau | The Longest Nite | |
| 1999 ' | Johnnie To | The Mission | |
| 1999 ' | Sylvia Chang | Tempting Heart | |
| 1999 ' | Ann Hui | Ordinary Heroes | |
| 1999 ' | Ringo Lam | The Victim | |
| 1999 ' | Johnnie To | Running Out of Time | |
| 2000 ' | Ang Lee | Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon | |
| 2000 ' | Wong Kar-wai | In the Mood for Love | |
| 2000 ' | Fruit Chan | Durian, Durian | |
| 2000 ' | Johnnie To Wai Ka-Fai | Needing You... | |
| 2000 ' | Wilson Yip | Juliet in Love | |
| 2001 ' | Stephen Chow | Shaolin Soccer | |
| 2001 ' | Ann Hui | July Rhapsody | |
| 2001 ' | Stanley Kwan | Lan Yu | |
| 2001 ' | Johnnie To Wai Ka-Fai | Love on a Diet | |
| 2001 ' | Ann Hui | Visible Secret | |
| 2002 ' | Andrew Lau Alan Mak | Infernal Affairs | |
| 2002 ' | Law Chi-Leung | Inner Senses | |
| 2002 ' | Peter Chan | ' | |
| 2002 ' | Fruit Chan | Hollywood Hong Kong | |
| 2002 ' | Zhang Yimou | Hero | |
| 2003 ' | Johnnie To | PTU | |
| 2003 ' | Johnnie To Wai Ka-Fai | Running on Karma | |
| 2003 ' | Derek Yee | Lost in Time | |
| 2003 ' | Andrew Lau Alan Mak | Infernal Affairs II | |
| 2003 ' | Benny Chan Muk-Sing | Heroic Duo | |
| 2004 ' | Derek Yee | One Nite in Mongkok | |
| 2004 ' | Wong Kar-wai | 2046 | |
| 2004 ' | Stephen Chow | Kung Fu Hustle | |
| 2004 ' | Benny Chan Muk-Sing | New Police Story | |
| 2004 ' | Johnnie To | Breaking News | |
| 2005 ' | Johnnie To | Election | |
| 2005 ' | Derek Yee | 2 Young | |
| 2005 ' | Andrew Lau Alan Mak | Initial D | |
| 2005 ' | Peter Chan | Perhaps Love | |
| 2005 ' | Tsui Hark | Seven Swords | |
| 2006 ' | Patrick Tam Kar-Ming | After This Our Exile | |
| 2006 ' | Jacob Cheung | Battle of Wits | |
| 2006 ' | Johnnie To | Election 2 | |
| 2006 ' | Johnnie To | Exiled | |
| 2006 ' | Zhang Yimou | Curse of the Golden Flower | |
| 2007 ' | Peter Chan | The Warlords | |
| 2007 ' | Ann Hui | The Postmodern Life of My Aunt | |
| 2007 ' | Yau Nai-Hoi | Eye in the Sky | |
| 2007 ' | Johnnie To Wai Ka-Fai | Mad Detective | |
| 2007 ' | Derek Yee | Protégé | |
| 2008 ' | Ann Hui | The Way We Are | |
| 2008 ' | Benny Chan | Connected | |
| 2008 ' | John Woo | Red Cliff | |
| 2008 ' | Johnnie To | Sparrow | |
| 2008 ' | Wilson Yip | Ip Man | |
| 2009 ' | Teddy Chan | Bodyguards and Assassins | |
| 2009 ' | Ann Hui | Night and Fog | |
| 2009 ' | John Woo | Red Cliff II | |
| 2009 ' | Derek Yee | Shinjuku Incident | |
| 2009 ' | Alan Mak Felix Chong | Overheard | |
| 2010 ' | Tsui Hark | Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame | |
| 2010 ' | Derek Kwok Clement Cheng | Gallants | |
| 2010 ' | Wilson Yip | Ip Man 2 | |
| 2010 ' | Su Chao-pin | Reign of Assassins | |
| 2010 ' | Dante Lam | The Stool Pigeon | |
| 2011 ' | Ann Hui | A Simple Life | |
| 2011 ' | Johnnie To | Life without Principle | |
| 2011 ' | Tsui Hark | Flying Swords of Dragon Gate | |
| 2011 ' | Alan Mak Felix Chong | Overheard 2 | |
| 2011 ' | Jiang Wen | Let the Bullets Fly | |
| 2012 ' | Longman Leung Sunny Luk Kim Ching | Cold War | |
| 2012 ' | Cheang Pou-soi | Motorway | |
| 2012 ' | Pang Ho-cheung | Love In The Buff | |
| 2012 ' | Lo Chi Leung | The Bullet Vanishes | |
| 2012 ' | Dante Lam | The Viral Factor | |
| 2013 ' | Wong Kar Wai | The Grandmaster | |
| 2013 ' | Johnnie To | Drug War | |
| 2013 ' | Benny Chan | The White Storm | |
| 2013 ' | Derek Kwok | As The Light Goes Out | |
| 2013 ' | Dante Lam | Unbeatable | |
| 2014 ' | Ann Hui | The Golden Era | |
| 2014 ' | Fruit Chan | The Midnight After | |
| 2014 ' | Peter Chan | Dearest | |
| 2014 ' | Dante Lam | That Demon Within | |
| 2014 ' | Alan Mak Felix Chong | Overheard 3 | |
| 2015 ' | Tsui Hark | The Taking Of Tiger Mountain | |
| 2015 ' | Adrian Kwan Shun Fai | Little Big Master | |
| 2015 ' | Derek Yee | I Am Somebody | |
| 2015 ' | Wilson Yip | Ip Man 3 | |
| 2015 ' | Philip Yung Tsz Kwong | Port Of Call | |
| 2016 ' | Frank Hui, Jevons Au and Vicky Wong | Trivisa | |
| 2016 ' | Wong Chun | Mad World | |
| 2016 ' | Derek Tsang | Soul Mate | |
| 2016 ' | Johnnie To | Three | |
| 2016' ' | Stephen Chow | The Mermaid'' |