Acclaimed actor Nicholas Tse is increasingly moving to behind the camera to continue Hong Kong’s long tradition of action cinema.

In Herman Yau’s explosive thriller Customs Frontline, he not only plays the role of an officer who goes up against an arms smuggling operation but also makes his debut as an action director, building on 25 years of experience that has included working closely with Jackie Chan and the late Benny Chan.

It is not the first time Tse has diversified, having debuted as a singer in 1996 before moving into acting. His feature credits include New Police Story, Beast Stalker and more recently Raging Fire. For his performance in 2010’s The Stool Pigeon, Tse won the Hong Kong Film Award for best actor, making him the first person to have won in the three major acting categories – best actor, best supporting actor and best new performer – at the awards.

Also known as an entrepreneur and TV chef, directing might next be on the cards with the highly-anticipated sequel New Police Story 3.

Recognising his career to date, Tse was honoured with the Screen International Star Asia Award on Wednesday (July 17) at the New York Asian Film Festival, which also hosted the North American premiere of Customs Frontline.

He spoke to Screen about his latest feature, upcoming sequel Raging Fire, the state of the Hong Kong film industry and whether he will take on the challenge of directing.

Customs Frontline marks your debut as an action director. Why is it important for you to be involved in this way behind the scenes?
It is actually a lot safer for me to be able to have my own people producing such dangerous shots. In my past action movies I would do a lot of the choreography but they are only going to get more dangerous and edgy so if I don’t have people I trust, it’s going to be more hazardous for myself and other actors.

Looking back on your body of work, what do you consider to be some of your most rewarding roles to date?
The films I made with the late Benny Chan [including New Police Story, Raging Fire and Gen-X Cops]. I would push the limits with a lot of the stunts with Jackie Chan. With my passion for Hong Kong action films, we still have a long way to go in reintroducing it to a new generation. That’s a very big goal for me right now.

What did you learn from Jackie Chan?
Everything! I still watch a lot of his work and try to figure out the moves, the editing, the camera angles and the shutter speed. But he tells me everything and has been really supportive. We’ve been talking about the New Police Story 3 for the longest time. But of course, Benny left, so we’re still trying to spin it out.

Will you direct New Police Story 3?
Supposedly, but we’re still in a very early stages of development. I do not want to direct, but I received some very strong advice from Jackie. He said: “You’ve got to start sometime.” I said: “Only if you produce,” which he said “Okay!”. So we’ll see, but we don’t know yet.

What can you tell us about Raging Havoc?
It’s everything you saw in Raging Fire, but times three. We have pushed ourselves. I’m doing the editing right now. Just the firepower and the size of the explosions – with no CG explosions – is nuts. I went full out on the action. It’s not a sequel but a brand-new story using the same IP with Mr. Andy Lau. I went through hell for that movie, but it will be worth it.

What is your take on the health of the Hong Kong film industry right now?
Nothing stays popular forever, be it types of movies, fashion or music. We’re just still trying to bring out what we know best, which has been for the longest time the action side of cinema. What is really hard is that for the past 15-20 years, everybody has become so accustomed to CGI that nobody wants to train anymore, because it is a lot of hard work, and there’s a lot of risk you get injured. So we don’t have that kind of human resource right now to pull off what we are thinking. I may be even the last, which is a really sad thing. What we’re trying to do is to inspire the younger generation, to say, “Hey, that’s actually pretty cool,” and to participate themselves.

How does it feel to receive the Screen International Star Asia Award, recognising your career to date?
Honestly, I’m very honoured. I’ve been on and off the movie scene over the past years so it’s nice to know that people see that I’m still really trying to put out my best work and trying to better the whole industry.