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New Monkey King series releases pictures of its princesses, demonesses, and fairies

April 30, 2010 | Posted in Mainland China,Taiwan,Television, Tagged , , , , , ,
The varying beauties and demons of the Monkey King

Two and a half of these are in love with the the monk Tang Seng, two of them wants to eat him, can you tell who's who?

As Zhang Jizhong’s remake of the Monkey King/Journey to the West rolls into action, its two highlights – special affects and the sheer number of beauties are brought to focus. Considering how he hurried his production of Heavenly Sword and Dragon Saber to work on this production, it is definitely one to wait for. Zhang Jizhong is a master of cinematography among the drama world, and those skills will surely be put to use as he follows the protagonists’ path from Xi’an to India.

Lots of pictures below:

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Daniel Wu Reflects on New Movie “Like A Dream” and Other Movies

April 28, 2010 | Posted in Hong Kong,Interview,Mainland China,Movies, Tagged , , ,
Daniel Wu and Yuan Quan

Daniel Wu and Yuan Quan in Like A Dream

It’s actually not really a new movie. Like A Dream, starring Daniel Wu and Yuan Quan, was released last year in Taiwan and despite receiving nine nominations for the 46th Golden Horse Awards, failed to win a single one. But it’s set to open in mainland and Hong Kong theaters at the end of this month, so in a way it is a new movie. The media has questioned its long, tedious plot and unrealistic story development, but lead actor and first-time producer Daniel Wu insists that the screenplay is good: “At the very least, when you finish watching it, you will remember it and discuss it.”

At yesterday’s press conference at the Shanghai premiere, reporters brought up questions about relationships, appropriate since Yuan Quan recently had a baby girl and Daniel Wu recently got married. Daniel told the reporters that this film was one of the catalysts for his recent marriage: “The movie woke me up a little; it made me look at love in a different way and made me think I ought to give my wife a confession.” So if the movie doesn’t accomplish anything else, at least we’ll know it helped to take one of Chinese entertainment’s most eligible bachelors off the market.

Since this film was director Clara Law‘s first project since her last movie in 2004, investments were slow and it was difficult to carry anything out before filming started. Daniel helped find investments himself, and even set an example by lowering his paycheck and taking on the job of producer. And apparently he threw himself so much into the role that when filming ended after two-and-a-half months, he found it really hard to come out of his character’s mindset.

Having been an actor, a director, and now a producer, Daniel Wu has clearly matured when it comes to the movie industry, and with this maturity have come insights about his career and the entertainment scene in general.

“I don’t have an objective of becoming an idol,” he told Sina in an interview. “I never have. Maybe some people want to make me an idol, but I’m an actor. I feel that this movie has meaning, and to me that’s the most important.”

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Stars Join to Raise Money for Qinghai Earthquake Victims

April 26, 2010 | Posted in Hong Kong,Mainland China,Non-Chinese,Taiwan, Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Sun Nan, Andy Lau, and Jackie Chan sing together

Sun Nan, Andy Lau, and Jackie Chan sing together

There was no fancy clothing, no dazzling stage, just several hundred celebrities from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and mainland China in white T-shirts emblazoned with Artistes 414 Fund Raising Campaign, coming together to show their support for the Yushu earthquake victims. Close to 300 celebrities participated in this joint performance in order to raise money for the disaster relief. The show, which took place in the Hong Kong Coliseum on April 26, lasted five hours. During this event, 100 hotlines were set up to answer calls from donors, with stars like Alan Tam and Kenny Bee serving as switchboard operators. Donations totaled 35.06 million Hong Kong dollars (approximately 4.516 U.S. dollars).

Two hundred Hong Kong artists sang the theme song “Hand With Heart,” after which everyone stood up to hold a moment of silence for the earthquake victims. During the five-hour event, numerous celebrities joined on stage to sing together. Jacky Cheung, Sun Nan, Harlem Yu, and Hacken Lee sang “Descendant of the Dragon.” Andy Lau led a group of 80 young men in singing a song he’d created after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, called “Promise” (Cheng Nuo). Other singers included Lowell Lo, Lo Ta-yu, Paula Tsui, Joey Yung, TWINS, Grasshopper band, The Wynners, Eason Chan, David Tao, Vivian Chow, Leo Ku, Aska Yang, and Kelly Chen.

This is one of the many efforts begun in support of the victims of the Qinghai Earthquake. Qinghai TV and Hunan TV cohosted a concert, followed by CCTV. Qinghai TV, in collaboration with Hunan TV, also released a series of videos raising awareness to the cause, including a remake by the eeMedia artists of a song Super Boy Wang Zhengliang had written for the Sichuan Earthquake. Many individuals and groups also stood up to help the relief efforts. One notable group is the Yumi Love Fund of Li Yuchun’s fans, which donated over 1million yuan yuan for relief efforts.

Singing “Hand With Heart”:

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Top UN Environmentalist award “Champions of the Earth” given to Zhou Xun

April 22, 2010 | Posted in Events,Mainland China, Tagged , , ,

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“The 2010 Champions of the Earth, the United Nations’ highest awards for environmental leadership, are pillars of transition to a 21st-century Green Economy. The six winners, drawn from the worlds of government, science, business and entertainment, each exemplify how action, inspiration, personal commitment and creativity can catalyze a transition to a low carbon, resource efficient 21st-century Green Economy.

This year’s winners are as follows: the President of Guyana and passionate forestry and ecosystem infrastructure proponent, His Excellency Bharrat Jagdeo; the President of the Maldives and international climate change campaigner, His Excellency Mohamed Nasheed; Afghanistan’s Director General of the National Environmental Protection Agency and avid sustainability advocate, Prince Mostapha Zaher; Japanese earth scientist and pioneer of research into how the oceans cycle carbon, Dr. Taro Takahashi; Chinese actress and popular green life-style guru, Ms. Zhou Xun; American venture capitalist, green energy entrepreneur and cofounder of Sun Microsystems, Mr. Vinod Khosla.

Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Executive Director, today announced the winners of this year’s UNEP Champions of the Earth awards.

Mr. Steiner said: ‘The six winners represent some of the key pillars upon which society can build Green Growth and a development path to unite rather than divide six billion people…Zhou Xun is an actress and one of, if not the, most popular and acclaimed celebrities in China. Her well publicized statements, advice and life-style choices are influencing millions of fans to become more environmentally-conscious citizens and consumers.‘”
source: UNEP

Nie Yuan Discusses Upcoming Three Kingdoms, Huang Xiaoming, and Married Life

April 19, 2010 | Posted in Interview,Mainland China,Relationships,Television, Tagged , , , , , , ,
Nie Yuan: My life is full of sunshine

Nie Yuan: "My life is full of 'sunshine'"

2004 could be said to have been Nie Yuan‘s most glorious year. In that year he starred in a succession of costume dramas and was referred to by the media as the “number one male in costume dramas.” Because of this, when Zhang Jizhong was looking for someone to play the part of Yang Guo in Return of the Condor Heroes (Shen Diao Xia Lü), everyone thought Nie Yuan would be the ideal choice. But in the end, Nie Yuan lost out to an actor who, at the time, was much less famous: Huang Xiaoming.

The casting dispute became a watershed event in their work: one saw his fame shoot to the top; the other did not. Many of the media even exaggerated Nie Yuan and Huang Xiaoming’s relationship to that of irreconcilable enemies.

Upon raising the same topic now, Nie Yuan honestly admits that he was very depressed about missing out on Yang Guo, “because I was a Jin Yong fan from childhood, and out of Jin Yong’s works, my favorite was Shen Diao Xia Lü. The love story between Yang Guo and Xiao Longnü fascinated me. Of all of Jin Yong’s characters, the one I liked most was Yang Guo, so of course being able to act out Yang Guo was the desire of my dreams.”

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After shocks (Tangshan Earthquake) Trailer released

April 16, 2010 | Posted in Mainland China,Movies, Tagged ,
Picture 14

Surviving is only the beginning...

On the eve of another earthquake that hit Qinghai Province two days ago, with at least 791 dead (another 294 missing) and about 10,000 injured, the first film depiction of the deadliest earthquake in the 20th century – the 1976 Tangshan Earthquake – released its trailers.

After shocks (唐山大地震) is directed by Feng Xiaogang and stars Zhang Jingchu, Chen Daoming, Chen Jin, Xu Fan, Lu Yi, Li Chen and Pan Hong. The poignant trailer depicts a young girl waking up in the aftermath of the Tangshan Earthquake. She is surrounded by fallen bodies, and wanders in the streets until a soldier finds her and takes in.

The movie tells of two twins crushed in the earthquake that changed their lives. In those 23 seconds, their father died, and their mother chose the weaker boy to save. The girl miraculously lived and was rescued and adopted by a soldier. 32 years later, their lives are still affected by the catastrophe years ago.

A behind the scenes talk is also available here, thanks to fountainpark723.

Jackie Chan waters Will Smith and Jay-Z’s plants

April 15, 2010 | Posted in Hong Kong,Interview,Mainland China,Non-Chinese, Tagged , ,
Jackie and the Smiths

Jackie and the Smiths

On the afternoon of Apr 2nd, Jacki Chan rushed to Beijing from US to record “Think when you Drink” for people in southern areas affected by the drought.At the scene, he shares his ideas for recycling with the media.

Jackie waters Will Smith and Jay-Z’s plants
Jackie Chan describes himself as a person who understands the importance of protecting the environment, and he has done so for the past 20 years. “No matter where I go to, I always educate people around me to protect the environment and the water source. Just a while ago when I ate with Will Smith, I told my crew to find a tree in the backyard and water it with what’s leftover in their bottles and glasses of water. Will agreed to my idea and told me that he will encourage his family to do the same. The same happened when I had tea with Beyonce’s husband Jay-Z, as he thought it was a neat idea as well.”

To save water, Jackie shares toilet
Chan revealed something interesting during the interview, “There are 1.3 billion people in China, if everyone flushes the toilet three times a day, how much water will be wasted? So whenever I need to use the restroom, I tell the crew, ‘Whoever wants to use the toilet, come quick!’ so only one flush is needed at the end, which saves a lot of water. The most people I had during these experiences is sharing a toilet flush with 11 people. It wasn’t really a big deal since we were all male.” Besides following through his own words, Chan educates his son on protecting the environment as well.

Ivy Chen, Hu Ge, Chen Bolin in fashion drama “Modern New Species.”

April 13, 2010 | Posted in Mainland China,Taiwan,Television, Tagged , ,
Ivy Chen, Hu ge, Ma Sichun and Chen Bolin

Ivy Chen, Hu ge, Ma Sichun and Chen Bolin

In his second full modern series in a long time, Hu Ge joins Ivy Chen, Chen Bolin and a lot of up and coming newbies in “mo deng xin ren lei (摩登新人类).” The series will be supported by Elle magazine as well as Femine magazine, and aims for a cosmopolitan, fashion drama.

Hu Ge plays Xi Feifan, a handsome rich boy who wants to become a nonprofit lawyer, but stepped into the world fashion instead because of his father. There, he meets Xia Hongguo (Ivy Chen), a strange country girl who wants to become a top fashion designer. The two is joined by Lingle (Chen Bolin), a suave player who flirts to hid his true feelings.

source: sina; sina

“Chinese Idol”s begin auditions, new Australian/American/Malaysian audition areas seeks “sea stars”

April 10, 2010 | Posted in Mainland China,Malaysia,Music,Non-Chinese,Television, Tagged , , ,

b4ce14df0d4e2d25622798d8

This year, Hunan/Golden Eagle Broadcasting Systems (GBS) will be broadening its talent show series by not only having both a female (Blossoming Flowers) and a male (Super Boys) competition (not to mention a directing competition) on satellite at the same time, but also by having overseas audition regions for the first time.

Super Boys’ overseas auditions spots will be in Australia (Sydney, Melbourne Adelaide, Brisbane) , North America (Toronto, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago and New York) and Malaysia (to be determined). Auditions will be held until the 25th, and you can sign up at either 2010superboy@gmail.com for American auditions or superboy@partyworldktv.com.au for Australian ones.

Commercial for Super Boys 2010:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcJdSv-uJiA

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Zhou Xun and Alec Su visits Kenyan school

April 7, 2010 | Posted in Mainland China,Taiwan, Tagged ,
Zhou Xun also visited an elephant nursery for elephants who often became orphans due to proachers.

Zhou Xun feed a baby elephant. More and more elephants are being orphaned due to poachers and habitat destruction.

Last week, Zhou Xun and Alec Su  visited the Beijing Elementary  in Mathare, the seconde poorest quarter in Kenya’s capital, to bring necessities and supplies for school, and studied with the children. A third of the student population is consisted of orphans, and another third from single-parent families. The school was renamed Beijing Elementary in thanks of a $25000 donation by the Chinese embassy in Kenya. The principal explained  this school has not only granted many children the privilege of being educated, but made sure that they had smaller risk of contracting AIDS, being sold or become child laborers. He hoped that there will be lasting friendship between China and Africa.

Zhou Xun visited first grade, and her arrival brought excitement among children. They gathered around her to share videos and play games together. Alec Su went to a higher grade, and taught children some basic Chinese, and sung songs with them. During the donation, Zhou Xun, Alec Su, and other representatives  also distributed  supplies to the children around them.

At the end of this activity, the group picked up paper boxes and packagings around them. Zhou said, “Paper boxes, bags, and such are some of the biggest sources of white pollution. Although this trip is meant to support the elementary, we should still remain aware of protecting the environment. This is also a way to clean up after ourselves and thus showing our love and support for the staff and children at the school”

The two also planted trees in an UN forest, and visited a nursery for orphaned elephants. After hearing their company  – Huayi Brothers – had adopted 100 wells for the Southwestern Drought Relief, Zhou Xun also expressed wishes to participate in the program.

Zhou Xun and Alec Su  expressed that charity is not a simple one-time act, and that we all should do our share to support those that are less fortunate, and gather attention from more parts of the society to education issues and environmental issues in areas of poverty.

translation by ixiedin and idarklight
source: xinhua; sina
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