HE MAY BE 54, but Christopher Doyle hasn't lost his boyish ways. His glances are alert yet mischievous and he likes to tease, often breaking into a hearty laugh. This isn't to say he's a frivolous man: he has a way of addressing questions as if they're philosophical inquiries about life.
Known for his inventive camera work with director Wong Kar-wai, the Australian-born cinematographer was back in town last week to promote Paris je t'aime. A paean to the city of love made up of five-minute shorts by directors such as the Coen brothers and Walter Salles, the portmanteau movie is being screened as part of this year's French Cinepanorama festival.
Doyle, aka To Ho-fung in Cantonese or Du Kefeng in Putonghua, wrote and directed the segment Porte de Choisy with ex-wife Gabrielle Keng and friend Rain Kathy Li Lixin as producers.
Paris, where he lived for two years, is among the cities Doyle loves best. It's also the home of Keng, whom he divorced in 1991, and the subject puts Doyle in a reflective mood. 'I don't think I'm easy to live with. It's a stupid thing to do that she married me,' he says with a tinge of self-pity. 'She's now my closest friend ... Not being together made me realise how much we love each other, though we don't love the same way any more. She has another life, but what we can share is very clear now.'
Doyle's segment is a celebration of a place, much like how he brought out the flavour of Hong Kong life with In the Mood For Love and Chungking Express.
'I think the way we live and the space we choose informs how we live. I ran into [British artist] David Hockney in London and he said we should celebrate life through colour and form.