Thomas Lim
Quick Facts
Biography
Thomas Lim (Traditional Chinese: 林毅煒) is a prominent filmmakerin the Macau film industry originally of Chinese Singaporean descent. He is best known for writing and directing the Macau movie Roulette City, which was commercially released in Japan and Singapore in 2012, and Macau in 2014. Lim is also known as an actor in leading roles in Chinese TV drama series such as The Game, musicals like The Wizard of Oz (as the Cowardly Lion), and movies like One Last Dance.
In April 2016, Lim began filming his new directorial feature film Sea of Mirrors in Macau. News of the production were widely reported by all major Macau press: such as the Macao Daily News, The Macau Post Daily, Macau Daily Times, Hoje Macau, Jornal Tribuna de Macau, Macau Closer, Va Kio Daily, M-Artand TDM TV station. The film is expected to premiere in 2017/18.
Career
China
In 2004, Lim moved to Beijing, China, and became a TV and film actor for both American and Chinese productions. He played a principal role "Zhou Fan" in the Chinese TV Series The Game, which aired nationwide in Mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Macau
Lim moved to Macau in 2008where he wrote and directed the feature film Roulette City. The film premiered at the Singapore International Film Festival [1], and was commercially released at cinemas in Japan [2], Singapore [3] and Macau. The film also aired as a 2013 Chinese New Year film at primetime on Macau Cable TVThese releases garnered Lim over 100 press interviews and articlesin Japan, Singapore, Macau, Taiwan, and the U.S.
Lim has spoken in interviews about making independent films in Asia, saying: “I personally think the word 'passion' is overrated when it comes to describing filmmakers. Many passionate people end up just talking about what their goals are, but it’s the tenacious ones that get things done and make progress.”
In 2014, Lim was dubbed "An Ambassador for Local Films" by Macau Closer magazine.
Japan
Following the release of Roulette City in Japan, Lim began residing in Tokyo, where he made the short films Mari and The Last Room.
Mari is a film about the struggles of single mothers in Japan. When describing his inspirations for the film, he explains: “People don’t usually associate Japan with being poor. But upon further research, I learned that two groups of people fell under the country’s poverty line in Japan: the net cafe dwellers, and single mothers. I was shocked to discover that there are more than 1 million single mothers in Japan, and even thought it was a typo.”
The Last Room is Lim’s first attempt at directing a horror film, which he describes as his favorite genre.
Los Angeles
Lim’s directorial film Roulette City was invited to screen at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles on January 23, 2015, and February 4, 2016.
According to the press in Macau, Lim is currently developing film projects involving China, Japan and the U.S. He currently resides in Los Angeles.
Filmography
Year | Film | Role |
---|---|---|
2018 | Sea of Mirrors | Director-Writer-Producer |
2017 | Mari | Director-Writer-Producer |
2017 | The Last Room | Director-Writer-Producer |
2015 | Returnees | Director-Writer-Producer |
2012 | Roulette City | Director-Writer-Producer |
2011 | Incredible Tales | Actor |
2008 | Foreign Devils | Actor |
2008 | The Game | Actor |
2007 | Marco Polo | Actor |
2006 | Last Seen At Angkor | Actor-Producer |
2006 | Watch Me | Actor |
2006 | Son of the Dragon | Actor |
2006 | One Last Dance | Actor |