CTI Artists and Behind the scenes Crew -- "Official" List

Finally, CTI posted up the pictures of all the artists as well as behind-the-scenes people who joined their company on their Facebook page…


Since the pics were reposted on Weibo, I went ahead and pulled them to post here….BUT not going to translate any of the descriptions or names right now cuz I don’t have time (sorry)!

Also, just as a point of reference, here’s the list of artists that I posted up a few months ago based on information I had gathered from news reporters, weibo, etc. Looks like I wasn’t too far off….haha!

CTI List of Artists (as posted on LL’s Musings awhile back ago): 

http://www.llsmusings.blogspot.com/2012/09/list-of-cti-artists-and-behind-scenes.html

CTI Artists (from CTI's Facebook page as reposted by HK Channel):

CTI Behind the Scenes Crew (from CTI's Facebook page as reposted by kuangaitvb):

Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 4]: “Never in my dreams did I think about becoming a lead actor so quickly!”

Here's part 4 of Felix Wong's interview with Oriental Daily....

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Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 4]:    “Never in my dreams did I think about becoming a lead actor so quickly!”

Source:  Oriental Daily

Translation:  llwy12

Back during his youth, Felix Wong had his heart set on becoming the Chinese version of Pele [TN: famous Brazilian soccer player], however when that dream failed, he ended up joining TVB’s Acting Class instead. After playing bit parts and many ‘ke le fe’ roles, Felix finally had the opportunity to collaborate with established actors/actresses such as Chow Yun Fat, Dodo Cheng, etc. – it was from these ‘senior’ artists that he was able to learn a lot more about acting, eventually developing a life-long interest in the craft. In addition, the right timing as well as luck were other factors that aided Felix on his path to becoming one of the most popular leading actors at TVB back in the 80s.



*** Felix speaks:

When I was young, I actually never thought about becoming a celebrity. Back when I was in school, I had my heart set on becoming a soccer player – in fact, I had even gotten to the point of participating in tryouts. I remember at the time, out of the 2000 candidates who participated, only the top 3 would be chosen to become soccer players – unfortunately, I came in at number 4.

Later on, one of my neighbors suggested I try applying for TVB’s Acting Class – she even got an application and submitted it for me. I actually was not interested in becoming an actor, but seeing all the effort that the neighbor put in to help me, I figured I’d just go to the interview session to please her. I remember one of the things we had to do during the session was read and recite some dialogue – I pretty much just made a half-hearted attempt to recite the lines and get it over with, thinking that would be the end of it. To my surprise, I received a phone call from TVB that night telling me that I had been accepted into the class without having to do a second interview!


Happy, carefree Acting Class days

I was barely 18 years old when I entered the Acting Class. Those were good times, as I basically got to study acting for free, plus I’d get to hang out with classmates such as Michael Miu (苗僑偉), Tam Yuk Ying (譚玉瑛), etc. – those days were very happy and carefree. After 6 months or so, I started getting bit parts in various series, playing roles such as a soldier, a customer at a restaurant, etc. At the time, I got the chance to work with Fat Gor (Chow Yun Fat 周潤發) a lot – even though he was already a big star at the time, he never put on airs and in fact was always very willing to help teach newcomers. He would often approach us on his own and give us acting tips or other advice – learning so much from him helped me to slowly cultivate my interest in acting.


Benefited from the 80s ‘poaching’ crises

At one point back in the 80s, TVB also encountered a ‘poaching’ crisis which resulted in a shortage of siu sangs. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I’d get the chance to play a lead role 3 months after I graduated from Acting Class – in ‘normal’ circumstances, this would have been impossible! I remember the first series I filmed where I was in the male lead role was The Lonely Hunter 《過客》[1981] . At the time, Dodo Jeh [Dodo Cheng 鄭裕玲] and Uncle Yeung Kwun (楊群) [TN: his co-stars in the series] gave me lots of advice and support, which helped me get into my character easier. When the series aired, it was quite well-received by audiences and from that moment on, my acting career officially began.

Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 3]: Upset over relationship rumors, Felix Wong breaks glass mirror: “I wasn’t thinking clearly at the time!”

Here’s part 3 of Oriental Daily’s interview with Felix Wong.

My only comment about the article at this time is: the piece about TVB using rumors between co-stars as a promotional tactic is actually nothing new....in fact, it happens all the time! This is why I’m always suspicious of relationship rumors that come out between certain artists around the time when a series is being filmed or aired – because a lot of times, the relationship thing is just a way for TV stations to ‘hype’ their series. After all, don’t forget that one of the ‘golden commandments’ in the entertainment industry is: “It’s better to be ‘in the news’, even for something negative, than not to be talked about at all!”

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Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 3]:    Upset over relationship rumors, Felix Wong breaks glass mirror:  “I wasn’t thinking clearly at the time!”

Source:  Oriental Daily

Translation:  llwy12

With the nickname ‘Flame Shooting Wah’ , Felix Wong is known for having somewhat of a temper, however each time he ‘shoots flames’ [aka ‘bursts out in anger’], it’s usually for good reason!


Back when rumors surfaced between him and co-star Ada Choi (蔡少芬) during the filming of Justice Pao《包青天》[1995], Felix was so upset that he broke a glass mirror in a fit of anger – looking back now, he feels he reacted too impulsively. Therefore, in 2001, when rumors circulated between his wife – former actress turned insurance agent Leung Kit Wah (梁潔華) – and one of her colleagues, he decided to forego an impulsive reaction and instead supported his wife with a vote of confidence.


*** Felix speaks:

Back during the Acting Class days, one of our instructors playfully told the class: “A student of ours was courting one of the senior classmates during practice time!” The ‘student’ he was referring to was me of course and the classmate being ‘courted’ was my wife Leung Kit Wah -- I guess this can be considered my first love relationship. When we first started dating, we actually didn’t have time to see each other often – outside of work, we pretty much maintained our relationship by talking on the phone. It wasn’t until after I finished filming Legend of the Condor Heroes《射鵰英雄傳》(1983) that we finally had the time to go on vacation together.


Was not moved by advances of female fans

Back during the height of popularity, of course there were many females around me, but my wife was never worried because even if she wasn’t present by my side, she had a lot of ‘spies’ keeping an eye on me and ‘reporting’ back to her if anything was amiss. Even if that wasn’t the case, I didn’t have time to pay attention to any potential ‘advances’ from female fans anyway, since all I constantly thought about was when I’d get the chance to take a break [from work] and rest.

In my many years in the industry, the only time I had relationship ‘rumors’ was back during the filming of the series Justice Pao with Ada Choi. I knew it was the company’s [TVB] promotional tactic at the time, but because the ‘rumors’ weren’t true and I felt like I was being framed, it was hard for me to accept. Actually the rumors at the time were pretty serious -- because I was so upset, I hit a glass mirror in a fit of anger, not only breaking the glass, but also hurting my hand in the process! I ended up having to get 2 stitches at the hospital. Looking back on the matter now, I feel I reacted too impulsively – I didn’t think clearly at the time! Even our co-star Tik Lung (狄龍), whom we were filming with at the time, couldn’t help reprimanding my rash behavior – he told me: “See, now you hurt yourself! It’s not worth it!”


Rumors deepened their marriage relationship

Later on, the rumors with Ada eventually subsided, but from that time on, I was afraid to have any type of interaction with her during filming because I didn’t want people to use that for promotion again. Fortunately, the rumor situation didn’t affect my relationship with my wife – in fact, it caused our marriage to deepen because it made us realize the importance of trusting in each other. Even later on, when there were rumors between my wife and her colleague, our relationship still did not waver and eventually, the rumors went away on their own.

Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 2]: Felix’s personality similar to ‘Kwok Jing’

Here's part 2 of Felix's interview with Oriental Daily...

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Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 2]:    Felix’s personality similar to ‘Kwok Jing’

Source:  Oriental Daily

Translation:  llwy12

In the 1980s, Felix Wong left a deep impression on audiences with his role as ‘Kwok Jing’ in the 1983 version of Legend of the Condor Heroes 《射鵰英雄傳》– many of his other works, such as The Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils 《天龍八部》 (80s and 90s versions), Looking Back in Anger《義不容情》, Racing Peak 《馬場大亨》, etc. also became ‘classics’. Though Felix achieved fame and fortune as a result of those ‘classics’, all of that came at a ‘price’, in the form of blood, sweat, and tears.


Felix Wong reveals some of the hardships he endured filming series for TVB back in the days, including the time when he did not get to sleep for 7 days straight and eventually fell ill.


*** Felix speaks:

Back when we filmed Legend of the Condor Heroes, director [producer] Wong Tin Lam (王天林) [TN: Wong Jing’s father] was the one who specifically cast me for the role [of ‘Kwok Jing’] -- when he first saw me, he said: “You have an honest face – that’s good…the character suits you!” Thinking back now, I actually do feel that I resembled ‘Kwok Jing’ in terms of personality: we were both blunt, simple-minded, and hard working!

Filming series back then was truly very exhausting! We didn’t have assistants following us around back then so we pretty much had to do everything ourselves. The worst experience I had was having to film for 7 days and 7 nights straight without any sleep – every day, all I could think about was when I’d be able to get off work! With that type of lifestyle, how would we even be able to think clearly?


Overjoyed at getting the chance to rest

Actually, I wasn’t the only one who had that type of crazy schedule – back then, a lot of siu sangs had to film 6 to 7 series a year….plus we had less than 10 days of vacation each year. Looking back now, it was pretty amazing – don’t know how we managed to pull through! I did that for 3 years straight and then finally, one day, I couldn’t take it anymore – while filming, I suddenly fell ill and broke out in a sweat…after getting checked at the hospital, it was confirmed that I had developed hepatitis and so needed to take 18 days off from work to rest. Wah! I was so happy! Finally, I got the chance to rest!


Envious of Michael Miu getting to earn ‘extra’ money outside

Even though back then, work was very exhausting and I had to endure a lot of hardship, I never thought about complaining to the company – I just knew that I had to continue filming…because I understood that each day I got to work meant that I was earning money. You might not believe it, but when I first became a ‘siu sang’ [lead actor], my pay was only 1200 HKD a month – even at the height of popularity, my pay was only 3000 HKD a month….I made less than when I was a ‘ke le fe’! [extras/minor non-speaking roles]. Plus, filming series was very time-consuming, so there really was no way for us to go out and earn extra money [through stage performances and such]. Seeing other artists such as Dodo Jeh [Dodo Cheng鄭裕玲], Fat Gor [Chow Yun Fat周潤發], Ah Miu [Michael Miu苗僑偉] getting the chance to earn extra money outside, I was truly very envious….but in all honesty, I can’t say that the company [TVB] was ‘inhumane’ – I can only blame myself for not knowing how to fight for things. Thinking back now, I do feel that I was pretty foolish!

Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong (黃日華) -- PART 1

For those of you who, like me, can never get enough of 80s/90s TVB nostalgia…well, I’ve got some great news: Oriental Daily did an interview with Felix Wong recently and the interview is being published as a 5-parter this week. Of course I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to post about Felix and the 5 Tigers (LOL), so no doubt that I will be ‘following’ this interview the entire week and posting up the translations as they come out!


Here’s the first of the interviews (which was published this past Sunday), along with some supplemental commentary that Oriental Daily also published about Felix’s series.

Enjoy!

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Oriental Daily Interview with Felix Wong [Part 1]: “I was never mad at Tony [Leung]!”

Source:  Oriental Daily -- PART 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d

Translation:  llwy12

The HK television industry of the 1980s was full of talented artists – that was also the era that brought us TVB’s 5 Tigers: Felix Wong (黃日華), Tony Leung (梁朝偉), Michael Miu (苗僑偉), Kent Tong (湯鎮業), and Andy Lau (劉德華). Despite being promoted together, all 5 siu sangs had different personalities and ended up going down different paths, both in life and career. A few years ago, when the Tigers reunited to film a movie, Tony Leung was not part of the group, leading to rumors that the ‘brothers’ relationship had ruptured and media speculation that perhaps Tony was the cause.

For the next 5 days, during our an interview with Oriental Daily, Felix Wong will talk about the various trials and tribulations behind the 5 Tiger relationship. In addition, he will also speak candidly about the marriage ‘crisis’ he and his wife had experienced, his path to fame as well as how his life was like working for TVB back in the 80s.


** Felix speaks:

Back then, TVB was going through a ‘poaching’ crisis and the company lost quite a few siu sangs – therefore, they decided to push the newer siu sangs up to take their place. The strategy was to take the current popular siu sangs with the most potential and put them together – I was picked as one of those to be promoted, along with Michael [Miu], Kent [Tong], Tony [Leung], etc. Actually, at the time, the 5 of us had never officially worked together – our first collaboration was in a charity event in 1982 where we performed various stunts together. Since there was some difficulty to the stunts that we had to do, we all practiced together for close to 2 months – we saw each other practically day and night at the time, so that’s how we become more familiar with one another. To be honest, we never really spent a whole lot of time together outside of those 2 months – once the charity event was over, we pretty much only saw each other in the makeup room, though our relationship overall remained pretty good. You might not believe it, but all these years, the only TV series that all 5 of us collaborated in was The Yang’s Saga《楊家將》.


Kent Tong was known for being the most good-looking one

Over the years, I know there have been a lot of rumors surrounding the 5 Tigers. One of the rumors was that our relationship with Tony was ‘ruptured’ because he was rarely seen together in public with us. To tell you the truth, back when we [the Tigers] were at the height of our popularity, there truly were a lot of ‘crises’ that we had to endure. At the time [back in 1984], TVB wanted all of their artists to sign a long 5 year contract with them, however quite a few artists had already started movie careers outside of TVB – in order not to be tied down, we had once discussed among ourselves about not signing the contract. One day, we suddenly received word that Tony had already signed the [5 year] contract – of course we were shocked because we didn’t understand what was going on at the time, however I wouldn’t say that we felt ‘betrayed’ because everyone has the right to pursue a career path that works best for them. Besides, it’s not like we had actually come to an agreement not to sign – it was just something we had lightly talked about, so of course we wouldn’t be mad at Tony [for signing].

Michael and I were classmates in the same year Acting Class and since we pretty much ‘grew up’ together, our relationship is especially close. Kent is actually considered our ‘senior’, since he graduated from the Acting Class right before ours, however we were still able to get along pretty well – amongst us Tigers, Kent was known for being the most good-looking one. As for Tony, he truly was the most reclusive one in the group – he didn’t like to talk much and in fact, he could actually go an entire day without saying a word! We once tried to ‘influence’ him and get him to talk more – it worked for awhile, but he very quickly went back to his old ways again.


Tony likes to stay at home, turns down socializing opportunities

Even though he likes to be silent, Tony truly does take his work very seriously. As soon as he starts working, he is 100% focused on what he is doing and doesn’t play around, though he does sometimes have a brief conversation with those he’s working with on a particular scene. Even after work, Tony is the type who leaves quickly and doesn’t participate in any social activities -- he has his own little world. Every time we invite him to go out, even if we get Michael to ask him, Tony’s answer is always the same: “No, you guys go play, I’m going to head home.”


Informed about Barbara Yung’s death, Felix’s initial reaction was: “Stop playing!”

Back when we filmed Legend of the Condor Heroes《射鵰英雄傳》together, Barbara Yung (翁美玲) was actually a newbie at the time. I feel that she was a very smart woman who took her work seriously, worked hard, and had good relationships with each of her colleagues – she got along well with pretty much everyone. Even though I knew that she and Kent were dating, we actually didn’t see each other often because I was very busy with work. Later on, I remember very clearly that I was on vacation in Malaysia one day when a colleague called to tell me that Barbara had passed away – I couldn’t believe it and even told the colleague: “Stop playing!” However, after I found out it was true, I immediately cancelled the rest of my vacation and rushed back to HK to help with pall bearing responsibilities [at the funeral].


Carina Lau would have been crowned TV Queen

During his tenure at TVB, Felix had collaborated with many of the station’s most popular leading actresses -- his collaboration with Carina Lau (劉嘉玲) in 1989’s Looking Back in Anger《義不容情》 is considered a ‘classic’ in the TV industry. Speaking of his ‘old partner’, Felix laughed and stated: “Her character was a pretty big challenge, as she went from being a willful rich girl to a mature woman who was willing to give up the person she loved to someone else. As the filming went on, Carina threw herself more and more into her character. If there was such a thing as the TV Queen award back then, she would have gotten it for sure!

As for his co-star in 1995’s Racing Peak《馬場大亨》, actress Amy Chan (陳秀雯), Felix indicated that their collaboration was a very happy one. In the series, Amy’s character was quite ‘extreme’, as she not only smoked, drank, and had a gambling habit, she also was money-crazy – even Amy herself said that her performance back then was so ‘borderline’ that she wouldn’t let her son watch the series. In any case, Felix and Amy had great chemistry in the series and both had fun filming it.

It is known that Felix likes to help out newcomers by giving them advice on acting. Back when he filmed the series Time Off 《生命有take 2》 [produced in 1998, aired in 2000], lead actress Charmaine Sheh (佘詩曼) was a newbie who had just come out of the Miss HK pageant. Having to take on a lead role with little to no acting experience, Charmaine was under a lot of pressure – at the time, she didn’t even understand how the camera positions worked. Seeing this, Felix gave Charmaine some acting tips and advice. Even though later on, Charmaine herself said that her performance [in that series] was not up to standard, Felix felt that she did okay: “For a newbie, her performance wasn’t bad – she was able to pick up on things fairly quickly!”


Felix chooses his favorite performances

Felix Wong achieved fame during the TV industry’s ‘golden era’ and throughout that time, he participated in many popular classics. Out of all the series that he had filmed in his career, there are 4 that he views as his most satisfactory performances:

.—Soldier of Fortune《香城浪子》: In the series, Felix portrays Wai Lok, a rascal of sorts who grew up in a shady part of town but ends up developing a relationship with a wealthy heiress played by Patricia Chong (莊靜而). His character’s catchphrase in the series (吹乒乓) became one of the most popular phrases amongst audiences at the time. Felix’s meticulous performance in that series helped to secure his ‘first-line siu sang’ position at the time.

.—Legend of the Condor Heroes《射鵰英雄傳》: Felix Wong and Barbara Yung’s portrayal of Kwok Jing and Wong Yung was extremely well-received by audiences and still considered ‘classic’ even today. Felix’s portrayal of the overly honest yet extremely righteous Kwok Jing brought the character to life and made him a household name with audiences.

.—Looking Back in Anger《義不容情》: Felix Wong and Deric Wan’s (溫兆倫) portrayal of two brothers with a conflicted relationship who end up becoming enemies proved to be breakthrough roles for both actors, whose popularity quickly rose back when the series aired. With his performance, Felix’s skill as a ‘talent-path’ actor was finally established.

.—Racing Peak《馬場大亨》: This series paired 2 strong actors Felix Wong and Amy Chan together as a married couple and under the leadership of series producer Wai Ka Fai (韋家輝), their pairing proved to have great chemistry. Felix’s convincing portrayal of the main character’s ‘rags to riches’ story as well as his eccentric personality in the series both left deep impressions on audiences.

The 2012 HK Television Wars: A Detailed Look at the Free-to-Air Licensing Process + Latest Updates – PART 2

Here's part 2 of the article I had posted yesterday about CTI and the free-to-air TV license process.

There's actually quite alot of interesting stuff in this portion of the article as well (which consists primarily of Ricky Wong responding to the recent rumors about his company and also some thoughts from CTI's artists).

Link to Part 1:  http://www.llsmusings.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-2012-hk-television-wars-detailed.html

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ND Daily Exclusive: When will the Free-to-air TV War Truly Begin?
Source: ND Daily News -- Part 2

Translation: llwy12

Article originally published 9/14/12


Part 2: The ‘price’ of waiting…

The 'ground-breaking' ceremony for CTI’s TV Production Center in Tseung Kwan O (which reportedly costs 600 million HKD to build) was indeed a grand event back in February -- however recently, insiders revealed to HK Media that construction work on the production studio was halted a month ago. In addition, there were reports earlier that Ricky Wong had suddenly fired a few top executives [William and Tina] at the production company of which he is an investor [the company is called Creative Arts Productions – it’s a Mainland management company that has the likes of Charmaine Sheh and Joe Ma signed as managed artists]. Both of these ‘unusual’ moves, coupled with the fact that CTI still has not received their license yet, caused the Media and general public to speculate that perhaps CTI won’t get its license after all and so now they must cut expenses as much as possible. During our interview, Ricky Wong responded to each of the recent rumors.


Rumor #1: Construction of TV studio halted in order to cut expenses

Mr Wong’s response: “Construction halted not because of money; I have 3 billion HKD to ‘burn’ for 6 years.”

Ricky Wong confirmed that construction work at his TV studio has indeed been halted, but it has nothing to do with cutting expenses: “The foundation work for the building has already been completed, however before we can proceed, we need to await government inspection. Once inspection is completed, then we will be able to move forward with phase 2 construction, which is planned for end of this year / early next year. All of this is normal protocol – in fact, the other construction sites in the area are undergoing the same process! Why would it be an expense control tactic?”

As for his action of firing Creative Arts Production’s executives, Mr. Wong responded: “Only fired 3 people – we have a staff of over 700 people!” Asked about his company’s revenues not being in line with the huge amount of expenses associated with building his TV empire, Mr. Wong explained: “To operate a TV station in HK, it requires at least 1 to 2 years of preparation. During this ‘preparation’ time, of course there will be a lot of expenses – I never expected there to be any profits the first 2 years. Our company currently has 3 billion HKD available cash – even if we use 500 million a year, the money will last us at least 6 years. Even if we have absolutely no incoming revenue for those 6 years, we will still be fine. People outside the company perhaps don’t understand all this, but basically, there is no need for anyone to worry. The company is not in a ‘financial loss’ stage as rumored – we are merely in the ‘investment’ stage right now.”


Rumor #2: If TV license is denied, the 8 series filmed this year will be sold overseas

Mr Wong’s response: “We still need more programming to keep in inventory to ensure we are ahead of the game once license is granted.”

Even though they have not received their license yet, CTI has already commenced filming on 7 drama series, with 3 of those already completed. Ricky Wong indicates that by the end of this year, they will have a total of 8 series already filmed. What will be the platform for airing these series? It was rumored earlier that in the event CTI doesn’t get their license, they have a backup plan for the series – selling them overseas. However, if this were to happen, CTI would surely receive criticism – not only would it be unfair for the artists and behind-the-scenes crew signed to their company, but more importantly, free TV audiences would not get the ‘benefit’ of watching the series. Therefore, the option of selling the series overseas would definitely NOT be a popular one.

Towards this rumor, Mr. Wong responded: “Even if we don’t receive our license, the series will still air on a free TV channel no matter what – this is the only way to be fair and just to all the artists and crew who worked on the series. Currently I am busy following up on the filming progress for each series – even if we were to receive our license [in the next couple months], we would still have to delay ‘opening’ the station until mid-year 2013 because right now, we don’t have enough ‘inventory’. A 20 to 30 episode series will finish airing in about 4 to 6 weeks – we need to accumulate at least 300 hours of programming (TV series and variety programs) in order to meet the need at startup.”

When it comes to treatment of the artists and other personnel – almost all of whom he was personally involved in recruiting – Ricky Wong has definitely been making all the right moves. According to CTI’s artists, directors, writers, etc., Mr. Wong does more than just personally visit the set of each series being filmed – he also ensures that every meal provided for the cast and crew consists of 3 dishes, 1 soup as well as dessert. In addition, Mr. Wong also invested in high quality filming equipment – the same type used to film movies – for all the directors; for the artists, he arranged air-conditioned trailers for them to rest during breaks in filming and most importantly, by establishing set work schedules, he guarantees that each artist will have at least 8 hours of rest each day. [TN: Pretty much Ricky Wong is following the 8 to12 hour workday schedule that a lot of the American companies utilize. This is definitely very different from the ‘24 hour’ schedule that TVB seems to employ, where, in extreme cases, some artists don’t even get to go home or sleep for several days straight!]


Rumor #3: Due to TVB launching strong ‘counterattacks’, artists are hesitant to ‘jump ship’

Mr Wong’s response: “Having competition pushes us to do an even better job.”

Amongst the 3 companies waiting for a license, CTI has been the most direct threat to TVB. Pretty much all of the 20 or so directors and scriptwriters that CTI currently employs formerly worked for TVB – same with many of the artists who had joined CTI. To ‘counter’ the shortage of artists and behind-the-scenes crew brought on by CTI’s aggressive ‘poaching’ strategy earlier in the year, TVB’s new owner Charles Chan had to utilize his ‘friendship cards’ to convince movie director Wong Jing (王晶) as well as Eric Tsang (曾志偉) to help him. Using the ‘outside produced series’ formula [TN: meaning the series will be produced by 3rd party production companies, not directly by TVB], Wong Jing plans on inviting 7-time Best Actress (in movies) winner Deanie Ip (葉德嫻) to star in his series, while Eric Tsang revealed that he has already secured superstar Andy Lau (劉德華) and is currently trying to convince Chow Yun Fat (周潤發) to return. Even actor Lawrence Ng (吳啟華) – whom it was heavily rumored earlier that he intended on joining CTI – is already confirmed to be returning to TVB instead. In the weeks and months ahead, more ‘big name’ former TVB stars will undoubtedly be returning to help their ‘mother home’ fight the upcoming TV battle.

Given the circumstances, does Ricky Wong still have confidence fighting this TV war? He expressed: “If it wasn’t for us [CTI and the other stations] stepping up and laying down the challenge [to TVB], what are the chances of audiences getting to see the likes of Andy Lau, Chow Yun Fat, etc. return to film series? It’s precisely because there’s competition that we are pushed to do an even better job!”

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Latest updates on the other 4 TV stations:

TVB – In addition to new boss Charles Chan convincing his friends Wong Jing and Eric Tsang to produce series for the station (and inviting Deanie Ip as well as Andy Lau back in the process), the drama department’s production heads Catherine Tsang (曾勵珍) and Tommy Leung (梁家樹) also have a few ‘major productions’ in the works, including: the long anticipated sequel to 2003’s hit Triumph in the Skies, the modern series starring former TV Kings Wayne Lai and Moses Chan, Lawrence Ng’s return to his popular doctor role in the sequel to this year’s hit medical series The Hippocratic Crush, etc. [TN: They forgot the confirmed ‘reunion’ of Esther Kwan and Bobby Au Yeung in a new ancient series as well as the return of Kathy Chow, Eddie Cheung,  and Dayo Wong to film series next year…]. In addition, head of variety programs department Sandy Yu (余咏珊) has a few ‘gimmicks’ planned for upcoming ‘heavyweight’ variety programs, including having all of HK vote for this year’s TV King and Queen winners at the Anniversary Awards.

i-Cable – Even though the station successfully obtained the rights to broadcast the Olympics earlier in the summer, they were not able to convince the government to issue their free TV license prior to the broadcast, resulting in them having to ‘share’ their Olympic footage with TVB and ATV and thereby failing to ‘grab’ free TV audience share.

NowTV – In July, the station held a press conference announcing their free TV plans once their license is received. They indicated that the focus of their series will primarily be to ‘penetrate’ the Mainland market, so their series will mostly be joint collaborations with Mainland production companies.

ATV – As far as this ‘long declining’ station goes, their recent focus seems to be on preventing the HK government from issuing free-to-air TV licenses to rival companies. Other than that, there has not been any ‘new’ action taken recently.

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CTI Artists Speak Out…

Maggie Cheung (張可頤) [scheduled to start filming her first series for CTI this month]:

“Hong Kong needs more TV stations in order for our drama series to be more diverse and varied, which helps us improve overall. I’m not worried at all about CTI obtaining its license.

Mr. Wong is very different from TVB [management] – when it comes to getting things done right, he does not look at how much it will cost. People ask me why I was resolute about leaving my previous employer [TVB] – it’s precisely because I was moved by Mr. Wong’s drive and spirit! CTI has a certain fire and a desire to fulfill their dreams – the cast and crew are all of one heart, united for a common goal – this was a huge factor that attracted me to the company.”


Felix Wong (黃日華) [started filming on a detective series last month]:

“Expanding the broadcasting market [in HK] is inevitable, it’s just a matter of timing. I was just discussing [the licensing issue] with Mr. Wong earlier – he is very confident and optimistic about getting the license, it will just take some time for it to happen. It’s okay, we’ll just film series first – the world will continue to get better and better! I’ve been filming for a few weeks already and the experience has been very fun – it feels the same as filming a movie! The overall production process [at CTI] is taken a lot more seriously – for example, with more people involved in the task, the lighting is a lot nicer – things are more fresh, there is a lot more time to rest, etc. Most important is that there is enough time to study the script and do my homework – TVB can’t compare.

Everyone on the cast and crew really has a heart for making the production the best possible. Mr. Wong also visits us on the set often – in fact, he does so for every series being filmed, which is huge encouragement for all of us. True, not having a license might impact revenues, but from what I understand, that hasn’t stopped the management team from continuing to recruit more people.”


Frankie Lam (林文龍) [currently filming the series Three Sides of Shape Doctors (三面形醫)]:

“I’m not worried about whether the series I film will air or on what platform because to me, the quality always comes first. If a series is high quality, audiences will still watch it regardless of what platform it’s on. Just like someone who is used to eating with the right hand now switches to eating with the left hand – it might take some getting used to at first, but it’s just a matter of time.

‘Unity’ and ‘working together as one’ are feelings that I haven’t experienced in recent years and both can definitely be found here. The filming atmosphere is great.”


So Man Chong (蘇萬聰) [CTI Chief Director, formerly TVB director whose previous work includes last year’s Lives of Omission]:

“I’m not worried about the delay in getting the license. Actually, the government’s rule is that TV stations are required to start broadcasting programs within 9 months from when they receive their licenses – so even if the government were to issue our license at the end of the year, we still might not have enough ‘inventory’ to start broadcasting yet. Even though we will have filmed 8 series by then, those will probably finish airing within half a year. Therefore, from a strategy perspective, it’s actually better for us to receive the license later. We want to continue taking each production seriously and have more time to film rather than rushing in order to meet the numbers.

As for the company ‘cutting expenses’ – that’s only a rumor. When it comes to money for filming, the company spares no expense and we’re given whatever we need. All this time, we’ve also continued to recruit people to join the company. In terms of filming equipment, we use super clear HD cameras and lenses as well as state of the art equipment that movie producers use, so the results that come out on screen are much nicer. To be honest, back when I was at TVB, I had a dream of being a movie director, but was never able to fulfill that dream – now I feel that I’ve achieved it.”

The 2012 HK Television Wars: A Detailed Look at the Free-to-Air Licensing Process + Latest Updates – PART 1

As promised (to those whom I’ve been consistently chatting with about CTI and the whole free TV license thing), here is the latest article that ND Daily published (just last month) about the HK television industry’s upcoming free-to-air TV battle.

This is a VERY interesting read (not to mention extremely well-written) because it outlines in detail the process for obtaining a free-to-air TV license in HK and also attempts to understand why there has been such a huge delay in the 3 companies (CTI, NowTV,i-Cable) obtaining their licenses.

I will have to say though that the article is sort of written from CTI’s perspective (especially the second half of the article), but that’s actually not surprising given the fact that CTI has been the most vocal of the 3 stations up to this point. Not sure if this will have any effect on people reading this article….it doesn’t affect me personally, but since there are a lot of ‘CTI haters’ – for lack of a better term – out there, I figured I would make this point clear just in case.

Due to the length of the article (it is VERY long), I only translated and posted up Part 1 for now – I’ll get part 2 up within the next few days. Luckily, the two parts of the article are somewhat independent, so they don’t have to be read together. Part 1 outlines the free TV licensing process and touches upon why it’s taking close to 3 years (!!) for this process to take place while part 2 consists primarily of interviews with CTI’s management and artists regarding their thoughts on the issue.

Lastly, in case anyone is interested….

Here are a couple links to the press releases that the government issued in May 2012 related to the free-to-air licensing issue. Sure, there’s a lot of legal (and business) jargon in the press releases, but if you filter those out, they provide a pretty thorough outline of the process. I’ve also included the link to a news article from the government’s website (also published in May 2012) that provides a good summary of the 2 press releases.

News Article from May 2012: http://www.news.gov.hk/en/categories/finance/html/2012/05/20120530_141435.shtml  
Press Release 1:
http://www.cedb.gov.hk/ctb/eng/press/2012/pr30052012.htm

Press Release 2:
http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201201/11/P201201110369.htm

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ND Daily Exclusive: When will the Free-to-air TV War Truly Begin?

Source: ND Daily News -- Part 1

Translation: llwy12


Article originally published 9/14/12

In March of this year ND Daily published a series of articles entitled “HK Television New Revolution” 《香港电视新风暴》that took an in-depth look at each of the ‘players’ in the upcoming HK free-to-air TV station war. Seven months later, this ‘war’ still has not officially begun.


With the new free-to-air TV licenses still not issued yet, there are rumors that one of the 3 contenders for the license – Ricky Wong’s City Telecom (CTI) – may be the most severely impacted. Recently, construction on CTI’s brand new multi-million dollar mega TV and Multimedia Production Center in Tseung Kwan O was halted, leading to panic and speculation that the company might be in financial trouble.

In this exclusive report, ND Daily’s reporters will attempt to ‘chase down’ the reason behind the delay in issuing the free-to-air licenses and also thr0ugh our interview, ask Ricky Wong to respond to the various rumors surrounding his company and the licensing issue.


Part 1: The reasons behind ‘holding’ of the free-to-air licenses


Based on our [ND Daily reporter]’s understanding, the process for obtaining a free-to-air television license consists of the following steps [TN: these steps are accurate, as they are also confirmed in various press releases from the government]:

.1) Interested parties submit their application for a license

.2) Await a 2 month Public Consultation period [in which comments and opinions from the HK general public are gathered] as well as a Communications Authority (formerly Broadcasting Authority) Assessment period [in which the CA determines if the applicants meet all the criteria outlined in the Broadcasting Ordinance]

.3) The Communications Authority submits its approval and recommendation to the Chief Executive in Council [aka the HK government] to grant the licenses.

.4) The CE in Council reviews the recommendations and issues the licenses.


Back in 2009, three companies – City Telecom Limited (CTI), Fantastic Television Limited (i-Cable), and HK Television Entertainment Company Limited (NowTV) – submitted their applications for free-to-air licenses to the Communications Authority (formerly known as the Broadcasting Authority). Subsequently, the Communications Authority conducted a public consultation period [from July to September 2010] in accordance with the requirements under the Broadcasting Ordinance. In May of 2011, the Communications Authority ‘approved’ the issuance of the licenses and submitted their ‘recommendation’ to the Chief Executive in Council to approve and issue the licenses. Based on this ‘news’ (back in May 2011) that the licenses had been ‘approved’ and will soon be issued, the 3 companies that applied (CTI, NowTV, i-Cable) started preparing to enter the free-to-air television market by recruiting artists / behind-the-scenes crew as well as financing various related projects [i.e. building studios, investing in filming locations, etc.]. Amongst the 3 companies, CTI – under Ricky Wong’s leadership – was the most aggressive, as they launched a massive ‘poaching’ mission that resulted in more than 100 artists and behind-the-scenes personnel joining their company.

Throughout this process, strong objections to the issuance of the free TV licenses from currently existing free TV broadcasters [TVB and ATV] never stopped – in fact, these ‘objections’ played a major role in the ‘delays’ that occurred in the license issuance process.

Ironically, with all the ‘drama’ and controversy surrounding the issuance of free-to-air TV licenses to the 3 new companies, it’s almost like watching a long serial TV drama, complete with climaxes and all. Every time there’s word from the government that the ‘issuance of the licenses is imminent’ and the TV industry prepares to ‘go to war’, it turns out to be a ‘false alarm’ – each time, the ‘war’ never makes it off the ground.

.--.

In February 2012, CTI held a grand ‘ground-breaking’ ceremony marking the start of construction for its planned 500,000 square feet TV and Multimedia Production Center in Tseung Kwan O. That day, CTI’s chairman Ricky Wong (who is known for his ‘high-profile’ ways) announced that he “already received official notification that the Broadcasting Authority [now known as the Communications Authority] has approved the issuance of their free TV license – it is anticipated that the official announcement to the public will be made in the next month or two!”

It has been 7 months since Ricky Wong made his ‘declaration’. Throughout those months, Mr. Wong has continued to hold various events every other month or so to ‘show off’ the artists and other personnel that he had recruited – his confidence that the government will ‘issue the licenses soon’ has been unwavering. On September 12, 2012, over 140 artists and behind-the-scenes personnel as well as CTI’s top management gathered at the W. Hotel in HK for a poolside party to celebrate CTI’s 20th anniversary. At the party, when Mr. Wong was once again asked: “When will CTI receive its free TV license?”, his response was markedly different from the strong ‘declaration’ of confidence that he had given in the past: “You’ll need to ask the HK government!”

It has already been more than 1000 days since CTI submitted their application for a free-to-air TV license (they submitted their application on New Year’s Eve of 2009). As CTI’s management, artists, crew, as well as audiences concerned with when the licenses will be issued still continue to wait….wait…wait, various ‘rumors’ related to CTI’s finances continue to surface. Earlier, there were rumors that CTI halted construction on its massive TV studio for 1 month and management was scrambling to implement numerous ‘expense control’ methods, leading to ‘hesitation’ from some artists who were planning to ‘jump ship’ to CTI – in addition, these ‘rumors’ led to widespread speculation that the government will not issue the licenses after all.

During CTI’s 20th Anniversary party, ND Daily’s reporter once again interviewed Ricky Wong as well as a bunch of CTI’s artists and behind-the-scenes crew to find out their thoughts on the free TV license issue and also understand how CTI plans to manage its quickly growing expenses during this ‘waiting’ period. In addition, based on research gathered from various sources, we [ND Daily reporters] will attempt to understand the reasoning behind the delay in the issuance of the 3 free TV licenses.


Obstacle #1: ATV files legal challenge against issuance of additional free-to-air licenses, resulting in a 6 month ‘tie-up’ in court

At the party, our reporter asked Mr. Wong: “Why is it taking so long for the licenses to be issued? Throughout the process, what is the biggest obstacle you have encountered?”, to which Mr. Wong replied: “Because ATV filed a legal challenge with the government, we ended up in a ‘court battle’ for 6 months!”

In reality, ATV has been opposed to the issuance of the 3 addition free TV licenses from the beginning. Fearing that they will lose out to the impending new ‘competition’, ATV had issued a written objection letter to the Broadcasting Authority back in September 2010 in which they stated that issuing additional free TV licenses is unfair to ATV and would have a negative impact on them – in their letter, ATV also requested that the BA delay their plans for issuing new licenses until 2015. In May 2011, when HK Media reported that the Broadcasting Authority already made the decision to recommend to the Chief Executive in Council that all criteria has been met for the licenses to be issued, ATV immediately launched a request to ‘appeal’ the decision, using the Broadcasting Ordinance as their basis. When their request to appeal was denied by the courts at the end of 2011, ATV then waited until the very last day of their appeal period to submit a request for ‘judicial review’ with the higher courts. In March 2012, HK’s higher court system issued a statement indicating that the Broadcasting Authority’s ‘recommendation’ for the CE in Council to issue the free TV licenses was merely a ‘suggestion’ that has no legal binding whatsoever; also, since the licenses have not been issued yet, ATV’s interests have not been directly harmed – therefore, the request for ‘judicial review’ of the BA’s recommendation is ‘unwarranted’ at this point in time. They suggested that ATV should instead wait until the CE in Council [aka the HK government] actually announces the decision to issue the licenses before considering further [legal] action. ATV responded that they are still discussing internally whether they will continue to appeal.

Ricky Wong candidly stated that ATV’s numerous ‘legal challenges’ played a huge part in delaying the process of issuing the licenses – luckily though, the government [via the courts] already ‘eliminated’ this obstacle earlier in the year [by rejecting ATV’s requests for appeal and judicial review].

Even though one obstacle was ‘eliminated’ (for now), another one was waiting in the woodwork – this time, the ‘obstacle’ came from the company that, up until this point, had been asserting to the public that they ‘welcome fair competition’: the HK television industry’s ‘Number 1 Brother’, TVB.


Obstacle #2: TVB criticizes the ‘lack of transparency’ in the [license issuing] process and ‘claims’ that the pie is not enough to share.

On May 17, 2012, TVB executives held a closed door investors meeting – not long afterwards, TVB’s General Manager Mark Lee (李宝安) ‘blasted’ the Broadcasting Authority, claiming that the free TV license review and approval process ‘lacked transparency’. TVB also indicated that for the past 15 years, the advertising market for free-to-air television in HK has remained at approximately 3 billion HKD – if the free-to-air TV stations were to increase from 2 to 4 or 5, there is a possibility that the current TV stations would be forced to close down. Mark Lee made it clear that he [on behalf of TVB] hopes the government will clearly consider the issue and that if TVB’s interests are ‘unfairly threatened’, they will not hesitate to take legal action.

Up to this point, TVB had taken an ‘unperturbed’ approach to the situation, but in reality, they could no longer just ‘sit back’ and observe. Just as it appeared that the issuance of the licenses was imminent, TVB decided to ‘join the battle’, even ‘teaming up’ with ATV’s management to criticize licensing process – both current stations adamantly expressed that the HK television market cannot handle 5 TV stations and requested that the government conduct another ‘public consultation’ exercise [to once again gather comments / opinions from the public]. In an unexpected and surprising ‘twist’, one of the 3 companies also waiting for a free TV license – i-Cable (Fantastic Television) – also jumped into the fray: i-Cable’s management also voiced their opinion that the government should indeed conduct another public consultation exercise in order to reduce the possibility of current stations requesting ‘judicial review’ of the process later on.

While all this was going on, Ricky Wong was in the middle of leading his company in another ‘grand display’ of his artists and series that already started filming. Asked about encountering yet another obstacle to the issuance of his free TV license, Mr. Wong could only helplessly reply: “Perhaps it’s a good thing for the licenses not to be issued so quickly – it allows us to accumulate another 200-300 hours of programming first!”

When he was interviewed at the 20th anniversary party, Ricky Wong once again emphasized: “For the issuance of the licenses, the final decision rests with the Chief Executive and his Council. To be honest, all of the legal procedures have already been completed and the Broadcasting Authority already recommended for the government to issue the 3 licenses. Recently, I have not heard the Communication Authority announcing any changes to their decision.”


Obstacle #3: Timing issue with the government changing hands (new Chief Executive and Council in government) leading to more cautious and thorough review of the licensing documents.

As for the 3rd obstacle in the license issuance process, Ricky Wong helplessly stated: “After a 6 month court battle, just as the government indicated that the issuance of the licenses would be imminent, we encountered yet another challenge – the government changing hands!”

Mr. Wong indicates that fighting this free TV license battle has pretty much been an ‘uphill’ one. In April of this year, Ricky Wong announced that he would be selling the telecommunications portion of his business (the ‘core’ of his company) for 5 billion HKD, which included the telecom and broadband segment of the business that he had personally ‘brought up’ for 20 years. Asked about his decision to sell, Mr. Wong indicated that with all the legal challenges overcome and ‘rumors’ from the government that granting of the licenses could become a reality very soon, he wanted to ‘prepare’ by making sure that he had enough cash onhand, since building a TV empire is a very expensive business. Unfortunately, just like in the previous instances, the ‘rumors’ were just that – rumors! Once again, CTI and its staff found themselves in another familiar position: indefinite waiting.

After that, the time came for the government to ‘change hands’. CTI’s television department head of directors (also formerly TVB’s labor union chairman) Lau Shun On (刘顺安) told ND Daily’s reporters: “Due to the Chief Executive and Council changing hands, then the legislative council elections, the new government didn’t have time to deal with the free TV licensing situation. Most of our communication up to this point was with the previous government officials, but timing-wise, things got delayed. In addition, due to the objections from TVB and ATV, the new government taking over now has to address their concerns – in order to do so, they have to study the documents all over again….we believe this is the primary reason for the issuance of the licenses to once again be delayed.”

Recently, the HK Media reported that it is rumored the government could issue the licenses as early as October – when ND Daily’s reporter asked Ricky Wong about this, he told them to go ask the government instead: “Hopefully the licenses can be issued within the next 2 to 3 months. I have confidence that the government won’t deny the licenses!”

Joining director Johnnie To’s management company, Wallace Chung makes his return to the HK entertainment industry

I was reading the latest issue of Mingpao Weekly over the weekend and came across the below article about singer/actor Wallace Chung. I was aware of Wallace when he first started out in HK (specifically as an actor at TVB) back in the 90s, however I never really paid attention to him back then because I never really watched any of the series he was in and by the time I learned of him, he had already left HK to pursue a career in Taiwan. Ironically, it was actually when he was in Taiwan that I become more familiar with him (though still not by much), since there was a period during the 90s and early 2000s when I was 'regularly' following Taiwan entertainment (obviously not anymore, since I pretty much don't know any of the Taiwan artists from the 'after 2000s' era) -- I remember he had that hit song (the dance song OREA) in Taiwan and was known as 'Xiao Tai Yang' (Little Sun) over there. Later on, after Wallace went to Mainland China to pursue his television acting career, I pretty much never heard anything else about him, since I don't follow Mainland entertainment at all. In a sense, I guess you could say that I pretty much "forgot" about Wallace and only knew that he was still active in the entertainment industry, though his focus was primarily in Mainland (and maybe still Taiwan to some extent).

It wasn't until a few months ago when the 1994 TVB drama Journey of Love was re-broadcast on TV and I watched it for the first time (yes, for the first time) that I started to "remember" Wallace once again, primarily because I was so impressed by his performance in that particular series. (Those who are interested can read my review of the series here: JOL Review). Coincidentally, around that same time, Wallace's name also came up during an online discussion I was having with a friend and after that, I started paying more attention to him for some reason. Though I'm not a fan of his by any means (which makes sense since I haven't been following his career these past 10 years), I do like his acting so far in the few series that I've seen of his -- plus he comes across to me as a very 'likable' person based on the interviews I've seen / read of his. To me, his personality (and looks) didn't seem to change at all over the past decade -- he still comes across as the same shy, quiet, cute, friendly young guy that he was back in the 90s (that's the impression I had of him back then)  :o)

Anyway, this was a nice article about Wallace (Oriental Daily also did one a week or so ago -- I read it but didn't translate it), so I just felt like sharing it! Hope Wallace fans (and non-fans) enjoy it!

P.S.: To BOGAEfan (if you're still following my blog): I did this post primarily for you...LOL! You can thank me later! :o)

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Joining director Johnnie To’s management company, Wallace Chung makes his return to the HK entertainment industry  

Source: Mingpao Weekly, Issue 2290    

Translation:  llwy12    

One of Mainland China’s most ‘representative’ award shows – the 26th Annual Chinese Television Golden Eagle Awards + the 9th Annual Golden Eagle Television Arts Festival – took place earlier this month [September]. The ceremony included a newly established award for artists from the Hong Kong/ Taiwan / Macau region to participate in this year -- after the nominees were announced, HK actor Wallace Chung (鍾漢良) was widely viewed as the ‘hot favorite’ to win – in the end, Wallace did not disappoint, as he successfully took home the ‘Audience Favorite Hong Kong / Taiwan / Macau Actor’ award for his acclaimed performance in Mainland series Imminent Danger 《一觸擊發》. After a 19 year absence from the HK entertainment industry, Wallace recently signed with HK director Johnnie To’s (杜琪峯) management company and with his participation in the award-winning director’s latest film Drug War 《毒戰》, he makes his ‘official’ return to HK audience’s screens.    

Hearing the name ‘Wallace Chung’, most HK audiences have probably already forgotten who he is – in fact, the younger generation HK audiences most likely don’t know who he is period! Wallace got his start in HK as a dancer and made his acting debut in the 1993 TVB drama series The Chord to Victory 《少年五虎》[TN: the series is a semi-biographical account based on the lives of legendary HK band members The Wynners] in which he portrayed the younger version of singer/actor Kenny Bee (鍾鎮濤). In 1995, Wallace’s singing talent was recognized by singer/songwriter/music producer Samuel Tai (邰正宵), who invited him to Taiwan to pursue a singing career -- his debut album OREA [in 1995] was a huge success in Taiwan and shot him to almost instant popularity. Looking back now, his ‘path to fame’ was very similar to that of HK ‘Heavenly King’ Aaron Kwok (郭富城), except that upon making a name for himself, Wallace decided to remain in Taiwan instead of returning to HK. Later on, he was invited to Mainland China to film TV series and was able to achieve tremendous success as an actor over there – not only does he currently have over 7 million fans ‘following’ his Sina Weibo account, he has also won quite a few awards [acting and music related] throughout his career. After recently winning the ‘Golden Eagle’ Favorite Male Actor Award, Wallace’s status in the Mainland is even more tightly established.      


Doesn’t mind starting from the bottom again    

Towards his ‘Golden Eagle’ win, Wallace states: “Actually, I was already very happy with being nominated for 3 awards, so winning that award was truly the icing on the cake -- I guess you could say it proved that my hard work all these years paid off. The Golden Eagle awards is an important event in Mainland and is pretty representative – plus this year was the first year that they opened it up for HK, Taiwan, Macau artists to participate, so it’s quite unprecedented. Being the first HK actor to win the award is a huge boost of encouragement for me.”    

Recently, after signing with management company Hai-Run Productions (銀河海潤) – of which director Johnnie To (To Sir) is an investor – Wallace will be returning to the HK entertainment industry that he had left 19 years ago. During the first half of the year, he participated in the filming of To Sir’s latest crime drama Drug War , which stars HK actor Louis Koo (古天樂), Mainland actor Sun Hong Lei (孫紅雷), actress Huang Yi (黃奕), etc. Wallace hopes that through the film, he will get the chance to be ‘reacquainted’ with HK audiences: “Deciding to return to the HK market was really a matter of timing. It wasn’t an easy decision to make though, as I was in discussions about it for more than half a year – after all, I’m not a newcomer anymore. I already have a lot of ‘history’ behind me – even though Taiwan and Mainland audiences know me, HK audiences probably already forgot about me and many probably don’t even know me. In the discussions, we came to the consensus that there needed to be more of a balance in terms of my career, which meant bridging the gap within the Greater China region.    

Wallace continues: “My feelings towards returning to the HK entertainment world are actually quite peaceful – after all, I’m not the 19 year old kid anymore who would get emotional at the thought of having the opportunity to become a singer in Taiwan. I don’t mind starting all over again from the bottom, as I’m going into it without any particular expectations. If I’m offered an opportunity that people feel I’m suited for and I’m able to do it, as long as there is room for development, I’m willing to give it a try. I didn’t sign with To Sir’s company because I wanted to film movies – there’s definitely no rush to carve out a movie career; in fact, I want to take it slow and be able to enjoy the process. The movie world is very different [from television], as getting a lead actor role doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best position – sometimes, getting a supporting actor role with a lot of opportunity for development could invoke an even bigger response from audiences.”  

Over a year ago, Wallace ‘officially’ returned to the music world, recording and releasing a brand new album in Mainland China and holding 3 major concerts in Shanghai as well as Guangzhou: “Actually, throughout the time I was filming in Mainland, I did sing the theme songs for many series, but it wasn’t until 2 years ago that I officially went back to becoming a singer again. There are already plans to release another album – this time, I’ll probably add a few Cantonese songs to it.”      


Zero rumors and scandals    

People often tell Wallace that director Johnnie To is a very ‘hot-tempered’ person – however in the 6 months that they’ve worked together, Wallace has a different impression of To Sir.    

“A lot of people told me that To Sir has a fiery temper– luckily, I met him during a time when his temper was already softened. In reality, To Sir is not as hot-tempered as he used to be – even if he does get upset occasionally, it’s usually within reason. He’s actually a very generous person – when we were filming in Mainland, To Sir would have his own tent and he would constantly invite us to visit and chat. He’s also a great person to learn from – for instance, hearing him in discussions with the cameramen, you can tell that he is very knowledgeable about how to utilize the camera lens and camera angles to get the best possible effect. If you have the heart for learning, you’ll definitely learn a thing or two from him. Even during meal time and breaks from filming, To Sir would chat with us and give us acting advice – I definitely learned a lot from him!”    

For HK artists who work for long periods of time in the Mainland, it’s very easy for them to become involved in relationships and rumors with Mainland artists – however Wallace seems to be the ‘exception, as all these years, he has been able to maintain a ‘zero rumor/ scandal’ track record.    

“Actually, I do have relationships and such, it’s just that I don’t talk about them in public -- it’s part of my personality. I don’t keep in touch much with people within the industry and my circle of friends is small and simple – I also rarely talk about my personal life in public settings and try to keep out of the limelight, so of course there won’t be much ‘news’ about me. I’ve never been one to care much about material things, plus I’ve been a vegetarian for a long time, so it has helped me learn how to control desire. For HK artists who stay in Mainland for long periods of time due to their careers, it’s not surprising that they would choose a Mainlander as relationship partner. For me, well, I actually come back to HK quite often – every year, I only stay in Mainland to film 2 series.”    

Wallace’s personality is still the same as it was 19 years ago – simple and unpretentious. In fact, all the money he earns he still gives to his mother for safekeeping: “I don’t own any properties in Mainland, but in HK, I already bought a house for my family. I give all the money that I make to my mom and she invests it for me – but I don’t know if she will return any of it to me in the future…haha!”    

On the topic of marriage, Wallace revealed that his 2 older sisters are still not married and acknowledges that the ‘spinster’ issue is quite severe in society: “Guys are usually not in a rush to get married – I also have not thought about it.” When told that it’s precisely because of this type of ‘no rush’ thinking that contributes to the severity of the ‘spinster’ issue, Wallace half-jokingly replied: “Even if I do get married, it’s only going to help 1 person – the ratio is too small so it’s not going to change the trend in society anyway!”