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For overseas friends who would not have seen it live, here is the link to my TV3 appearance this morning on Sunrise. Props to Helen Baxter, to Ali Ikram and Carly Flynn on the programme itself, to Lars and Frankie at the Wellington studio, to Claudine for my make-up, and to Alison for the contact. Only one quip about the mayoralty; the rest was about Facebook and the dangers of having your photographs uploaded to it.
The stories are different enough that one could not accuse the Hong Kong film-makers of outright copying, but there is clear inspiration between the English Ooh, You Are Awful (or Get Charlie Tully), starring Dick Emery, and the first of the successful franchise 最佳拍檔 (Aces Go Places). The films are 10 years apart.
The plot lines are similar: in the original, Emery has to find a Swiss bank account number, separately tattooed on four different girls’ behinds. In the later film, Sam Hui (the father of Canto-pop) and Karl Maka’s characters have to find a map reference, tattooed on two different girls’ behinds. The following is of two very similar scenes, one set at Waterloo Station in London, the other at a taxi company’s radio department, and subsequent scenes involving photographic booths, where one might be able to claim there was a fair amount of direct copying. Emery is more blue, while the later film is more slapstick with better pacing.
And yes, that is the lovely Cheryl Kennedy in the first clip.
In the 1970s and 1980s, it was highly unlikely for Hong Kong cinemagoers to have seen the Emery film.
Head to 2.45 for the above scene in the first video; 0.43 in the second clip.
These are plastic chopsticks from the Yangtze Restaurant on Willis Street, which were obviously done many years ago: they feature a six-digit telephone number and a non-Linotype version of Helvetica Italic, which I enjoyed.
I ate there Thursday night to celebrate my friend Nick’s 40th birthday, and want to give them one plug: this was the first time that I can remember, when eating at a Chinese restaurant that didn’t make ‘no MSG’ one of its claims, where the chef respected a customer’s request for the additive to be omitted from the meal. (There is a chain, whose name I forget, but it is something like Noodle Wok or Noodle Box, that has MSG-free as one of its claims; it is the exception and not the rule.)
So often, MSG is still put in regardless of the customer’s request, which is dangerous: I have a friend who is so allergic to it that she carries around an adrenalin shot in her handbag. If she has MSG, she risks dying. When a customer says no, respect it.
Just to put this bad stereotype at rest: MSG is not a must in Chinese cooking and I have not known a single Chinese person who uses it in a home-made meal. It is, however, used by second-rate chefs who can’t get the traditional flavours or the wok heating the way it should. And those folks don’t deserve the title of chef.
So a major thanks to the Yangtze for understanding that ‘no MSG’ means just that—hopefully we can begin getting other Chinese joints doing the same. (And the meal was delish, thank you very much.)
Surprisingly, I have never pasted this video on my blog before. About time that was redressed.
India's second largest party, "Bharatiya Janata Party" translated in English means People's Party has been front page news, by expelling one of their senior members Jaswant Singh. He is one of the few Indian politicians to have been the Minister for Defence, Finance and External Affairs.
The Party decision on Wednesday 19th, August 2009 was triggered by his book release two days earlier; "Jinnah: India, Partition and Independence," in which he sympathizes with Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan and describes of negatively portrayed in India. He also mentions Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Patel as key players in the Partition.
The controversy is causing a rift between its members and ideological views, crippling the party with internal disagreements. But book sales went soaring high after the news announcement, the buyers are interested to know why the party sacked its veteran politician and how the Partition came to be is still a heated topic of discussion and interest.
In the Times of India this headline caught my attention: “Don’t fix history, look at the future”, written by Chetan Bhagat (The underage optimist). In which he states that the media is fuelling a pointless debate about Mr. Jinnah and the book thereby failing to question instead the relevancy and whether we are electing leaders for the future or a history teacher. The article points out that the young generation is not passionate about politicians who live in the past, holding old believes and even promoting Muslim hatred rather than facing present more urgent matters such as, colleges, road planning, electricity. The RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) is a Hindu revivalist organization in India and the BJP’s backbone in defending the Hindu cause, it does not appeal to any educated, young, urban Indians and they are taking a skeptical view. The writer advocates for the RSS to do right move in promoting a Hinduism of tolerance and acceptance, which is more relevant in India of today.
One thing is for sure The Partition has ruptured the lives of more than 100 million Indians by displacing households and separating families, disappearance of craftsmanship, confined cultural knowledge. And the boundary issues, left unresolved by the British, have caused two wars and continuing strife between India and Pakistan. And even within its own borders the states behave as like the warring states in ancient China fighting for supremacy.
If India elderly leaders are stuck in the past, will young India be able to rise above, leaving history behind and start making a new course? - A true beginning of an universal believe about peace and harmony, begins by appreciating cultural differences of a multicultural society and embracing diversity, allowing people full expression of their thoughts and abilities-
Vision - It reaches beyond the
thing that is, into the conception of what can be. Imagination gives you
the picture. Vision gives you the impulse to make the picture your own.
Author: Robert Collier
What is the first movie you saw in the the theatre?
Believe it or not, it was A Bridge Too Far. I hate war.
As far as I can recall, we were new émigrés in New Zealand and with no one to look after me, my parents had to take me along to the cinema when invited by a relative. It was a late session as well and the movie bored the crap out of me. To this day I still despise war films (not to mention war itself).
My second movie was either Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo (very good stuff to a kid) or another gritty adult drama which was shown in my school’s hall, The Taxi Driver (not Scorsese, but a Hong Kong movie, 的士大佬, released a year before the US film). The latter was very violent and was only interesting then for its glimpse of life back “home”, in an age before video cassettes and long before Chinese cinema became mainstream in the west.
Films took ages to make it out here, so the 1975 film, The Taxi Driver, would have been shown around 1978.
The whole thing can be viewed on Youku, the Chinese version of YouTube that seems to be the home to a lot of pirated videos. The original, however, was in Cantonese. I glanced at a few minutes to refresh my memory that this was the right film, and sure enough, it was. I fast forwarded to the middle and there was a bunch of men beating the crap out of each other. As stupid today as it was in the 1970s, but this time I know it’s a movie with sound effects.
During my recent trip to China for the Music Matters conference in Hong Kong, I met up with Christine Wang in Beijing. Ms. Wang started in the music business as a MusicDish intern in 2007 and went on to rise up the music ranks to Supervisor of International Marketing Department at Sony Music Entertainment China. Her insights and experiences gained working Sony's international roster in China should be of interest to anyone considering breaking into its music market. (see also Music Matters - A Window Into The Asian Music Market)
[EDF] So let's start with the basics. What are your department's [International Marketing Department] primary responsibilities?
[CW] Our department is responsible for everything related to international repertoire, including publishing, production, press releases, marketing, promotions, events, and strategic marketing. It is all focused on promoting international artists on Sony Music's roster in Chinese territory.
[EDF] And what are your specific functions as department supervisor?
[CW] My functions include everything above, with a focus on production, preparing all press releases, artist/album information and artist promotions across all media platforms. In addition, while we have a digital department, I am also responsible for online marketing as well as over ten artist global websites plus Sony Music official site updates. In short, we are a small version of a label, except for the A&R function.
[EDF] Right, your roster is given to you. But what a roster I must say! What are some of the artists/projects that you have worked on this year so far?
[CW] The releases I've worked on this year include Dido - Safe Trip Home, Pink - Funhouse, Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul, Beyonce - I Am.. Sasha Fierce (2CD), Celine Dion - My Love: Ultimate Essential Collection (2CD), Westlife - Karaoke DVD, John Legend - Evolver, Britney Spears - Circus, Christina Aguilera - Keeps Gettin' Better - A Decade Of Hits, Il Divo - The Promise, Sarah McLachlan - Closer: The Best Of Sarah McLachlan, The Fray - The Fray, David Archuleta - David Archuleta, David Cook - David Cook, Kelly Clarkson - All I Ever Wanted, and Michael Jackson 4 album re-releases (The Essential Michael Jackson, Thriller, Off The Wall, Invincible)
[EDF] The biggest star in that list is Michael Jackson, who passed away very recently. How did the Chinese media react to his death? And what was it like for you as the media's main intermediary for the story?
[CW] Yes, Michael Jackson's death had a huge impact on us. Do you know how I found out about his death? The news was announced around 3 AM Beijing time. I still clearly remember that morning. I was waken up by a phone call from a media outlet requesting his album information.
The Chinese media was so shocked by Michael Jackson's death. Early morning radio shows did features on him, print and internet all wrote positive reviews on his life and career. By noon, there were already programs dedicated to him on TV. So it was really widely covered and lasted for a couple of weeks. There are still TV programs rotating Michael Jackson's stories every day. Our department provided as much as information we could to the public, including sending out press release and audio/video content to support the media's coverage.
[EDF] The artists you work on are some of the biggest names in the music industry. So what works in reaching your chinese audience: radio, TV, print, web?
[CW] For international artists, the web naturally offers the most information, followed by radio and print. In the case of radio, despite the dominance of domestic repertoire, stations love to play the newest western music and they'll rotate a single quite often in the first two weeks, generally. Some radio stations even follow the US or UK charts.
But with respect to the artists that attracted the most media attention: Beyonce, Britney Spears, Celine Dion, Christina Aguilera and Kelly Clarkson. They all enjoyed good levels of print coverage, which also serves an important role in reaching our audience.
In regards to TV, there's very limited coverage for international content.
[EDF] What are some of the major Chinese media outlets that cover international artists; again in radio, TV, print, web?
[CW] Major radio stations that cover international artists include Hit FM, radio channels under Shanghai Media Group, and Guangdong Radio Station. For TV, CCTV digital channel, MTV China, and International Channel Shanghai. In the case of print, there's Hit Music, InMusic and China Daily. And while there are many outlets on the web, the two major ones are Sina and QQ.
[EDF] People are surprised when I say, "Chinese people don't like Western music." Of course, it's not that they don't like Western music, but we in the West tend to assume they do. So I use the phrase to drive a point: international repertoire represents a sliver of the overall chinese market.
[CW] Yes, the international repertoire represents a very small portion of the overall Chinese market. The domestic repertoire is very dominant. However, Chinese consumers do like big names and established pop/ R&B artists, such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Backstreet Boys, Westlife, Celine Dion, Barbra Streisand, Dido, Beyonce, Avril Lavigne, and Michael Jackson, of course. In more recent years, rock bands and hip-hop artists have been gaining popularity. In terms of sales, though, major Chinese pop stars seem to attract a broader audience.
[EDF] How difficult is it to create awareness around a new project?
[CW] It is relatively easy to create awareness on a new project for a globally established artists. However, the difficulty is in broadening the audience beyond their existing fanbase, or, even more challenging, breaking in new artists. Ten years ago, the domestic repertoire market was not very well developed. There weren't nearly as many pop stars as today. Most of the artists you'd hear of would be from Taiwan, Hong Kong or the West.
But over the past ten years, the Chinese domestic market has grown dramatically. More people are paying attention to the domestic repertoire now. This is particularly true for those with language barriers -- in other words, most Chinese -- who are being offered an ever-growing number of opportunities to enjoy Chinese music instead of being "forced," out of a lack of choices, to listen to western music.
Many assume that because the market is more open than before and young people have more foreign experience through higher education, there would be a larger amount of people enjoying western music. And while It's true that more people appreciate western music today, at the same time there are many new ways to access information and music. These people are innovative and creatively discovering unknown music. The chinese youth is more active than ever before and are finding their own cultural identity through music.
The Chinese media market is generalized and complicated; unlike the U.S. market which is fragmented along genres and lifestyles, such as, Disney Radio for pop music and The Source for hip hop. The lack of niche media markets in China makes it difficult to know which consumers you are reaching through a media outlet. This makes it particularly challenging to break new artists. For the people who like western music but cannot find a great music platform to know what is new, they tend to stick to the established names, which makes this small group of people very loyal to the artists, such as Celine Dion and Dido.
To add to the point about media, people working in the industry tend to have a preference for Chinese music. Therefore, DJs tend to play Chinese music more often and journalists are more likely to cover Chinese artists they know, rather than spending the time learning about what's new in western music market. In order to create greater awareness among media and the consumers, education still has a long way to go.
[EDF] The key point I retained is that China is a very challenging market, in large part because it is still on a path of development, from a copyright regime to supporting creativity. There is no question that the Chinese music industry and consumers will become increasingly sophisticated over the next decade. The question is how to position oneself to be able to play a role in that development.
A shocking series of racist emails attacking job applicant Julie Eru on the North Shore, which have been traced back to a Chinese-run company called Brightstar, has been exposed on 3 News.
It was generally agreed by Brightstar that their computers had been hacked and a police report has been filed.
The boss of Brightstar has limited English so we can easily rule him out as being the writer of these messages, which point to a native English speaker.
The question was raised in the report, ‘But why would
a hacker attack a small business in East Tamaki?’
I would have thought the answer very easy. The hacker is a racist.
I said not too long ago on the blogosphere that those who make accusations of racism so readily, as the writer of these offensive emails does, are usually racists themselves.
Their motivation is to make an immigrant, in this case, Chinese, company look bad, and to create a rift between Chinese and Māori.
It was a failed attempt, trying to revive the sort of irrelevant muck that yesterday’s politician, Winston Peters, specialized in.
It’s less disgusting than the attempts by racist groups some years ago of simultaneously desecrating Jewish gravestones and sending pork to Muslim families, but the ideas are similar.
That time, we could rule out the perpetrators being Jewish or Islamic; this time, we can rule out the hacker being either Chinese or Māori.
That time, too, it brought Jews and Muslims closer together in New Zealand; this time, I can only hope that both Chinese and Māori, who have both experienced racism, either as immigrants or in our own homeland, can come closer together, too.
Found on Andrew Lau’s Facebook page, a video with Martin Yan (甄文達), probably the most famous guy in my whanau. Martin and I were both interviewed a few years ago for a book on our clan.
BYD showed a new minivan at the Shanghai Auto Show—a total clone of the Toyota Previa. And most recently, it says it will make an SUV with a two-litre (really) engine. Here’s what it looks like in its ad:
If Toyota isn’t suing, then Porsche might.
