98 posts tagged “work”
Aside from Yang Cheng Lin and her manager, I do have people to thank for last night's unforgettable encounter.
Baby hentai and partner-in-crime xwolrax for giving me the "door" to open; and shinbi (who followed me on Twitter for a "live" feel lolz) and my other friends at the "pink home". It's amazing how two individuals could bring together people from all sorts of background. And the best part is having Yang Cheng Lin validating SMART. Now, who could bring us He Jun Xiang to our home???
And lastly, when it comes to things like this, I have become more blase. If it happens, it happens. If not, life goes on, there are other stories to write and people to meet. But the mere fact it happened, then it was meant to be.
So... thank YOU.
The thing with admiring an artiste is the fear that they might fall short of your expectations and disappoint you when you finally get to meet them.
I've been lucky to have seen some of the artistes I admire up close like Chou Jie Lun (just as I expected), Rain (after which I stopped admiring him if that says something), Lea Salonga (a very deserving role model indeed) and Arashi (a very fun experience with Kaytee). And then yesterday, the interview I have been quietly working on the last week suddenly fell through. Yang Cheng Lin or Rainie Yang to you and me. It was so unexpected that I had no time to be excited about it; until now, I am still fumbling with my emotions. Finally, coming face to face with the other half of my OTP, the only concern I had was if I could ask questions about her "other half".
Her manager was very nice and I was wondering, would she be as nice too?
But more than the phsyical, she is very simple and no airs at all. No "I'm a star, look at me" tag on her forehead. Very low-key with only her manager accompanying her in her almost two months stay in the Kingdom to shoot a film. She carries her own bag and does not demand any special treatment (so unassuming that even a hotel staff was the one who acted more like a star with the gall to throw her weight around, which of course earned a complaint from me straight to the GM but that's another story).
She answered the questions straightforward, no fumbling. And the manager did not require me to submit an advanced set of questions to prepare her (unlike other stars and even politicians--the better for them to get their lies ready I suppose). Their only request, no photos of her taken last night to be published and that we focus more on discussing her career, which I happily obliged. They were both very nice about it in the first place, and it wasn't like I wasn't able to ask a question about He Jun Xiang. And she knows a lot of people are rooting for both of them. As to the truth behind them... only the two of them could answer that, not to a journalist like me, but to their very own hearts.
Some artistes are worth the admiration and spending a fortune on CDs, concerts, films, magazines and the like. One of the reason is because they are good in what they do and they work so hard for their craft. But more than being good, I am also one type of fan who would look beyond that. Is the person nice? Decent? Worth admiring in real life? If the answer to all these questions is a NO, then forget it.
True, we don't pay for who they are in real life but who they are and what they do whether on TV, movies or music. For the fantasy and entertainment they offer. I don't agree with that school of thought, however. Because what's the point of supporting someone who aside from having a great voice and good acting chops does not have much to offer as a person? There are always others out there who are as talented and are nicer, more pleasant individuals.
With Yang Cheng Lin, the answer to whether she's nice, decent and worth admiring in real life is a resounding YES. Of course I just spent an hour with her, that may not be enough to judge her wholly as a person. But though it may have been short, if she is a diva or a prima donna, I would have seen it in her subtle body language sooner or later (especially when I was asking the very personal questions or the hotel staff was being a b*tch). I also don't think a nice manager could cover up for an ill-mannered talent.
So thanks to Yang Cheng Lin (and Da Da-ge) for proving that in such a superficial world as the entertainment circle, there is still a nice and decent person who just work hard to do what she enjoys doing and deserves the support she gets from countless of strangers who may not be as lucky as me to meet her personally. Rest assured that she really is worth supporting and admiring, even worth emulating especially her humility and grace.
Must be the sign of the change of guards from old... to young.
We stayed at The Gallery Hotel, a boutique hotel by the river, on Robertson Quay.
It's just a short walk from the "Pacita Abad" bridge and I was so happy when the cab turned the street and passed by it. The hotel itself is so artsy and trendy, though we didn''t stay in the boutique rooms.
The bathroom was enclosed in glass and the design was avant-garde. None of the stuffy, boring styles that most hotels have. I would have wanted to walk to Clark and Boat Quays but there simply was no time. Even walking to the nearby Pacita bridge had to happen in the morning I was checking out.
The much talked-about glass-bottom pool was not that impressive though, but the front desk staff were all very helpful and nice. There was avant-garde art everywhere, even in the tilted glass they use to serve fruit juices in the bar. And the best thing for a net addict like me, wifi 24/7. I can't understand why there are some hotels, including five-star, that do not offer this service. It's like cable, it's a must in today's life.
Like in previous trips to Singapore, there is always something to discover each time I visit. Though I still think it's like being in The Truman Show whenever you're on the island city.
... but don't credit yourself for self-promotion!!!
One of my former editors explained to me the value of bylines and taglines. They are not a reporter's birthright. One must earn either and they usually mean two things when you're given credit:
1) you deserve praise for your hard work on the story
2) you deserve shame for such a stupid story
Editors don't just give bylines/ taglines to reward reporters. It's also for accountability. And ever wonder why it's usually the reporters who get shit in libel cases even if the published story does not resemble their original work? To put it bluntly, it's to shame and frame.
Now... there are people who give themselves bylines even if the story they wrote is crap and required a few clicks on the Internet and packaging together stories. Where is your shame???? I squirm but then I tell myself, fine, let the world know their stupidity.
Be careful, next time credit may be a discredit.
Today was the ultimate Hell Day.
But there's a silver lining in everything if you just look closely.
1. The Thai PM proved to be very articulate and he would take time to answer questions, one of which was a very sensitive topic but he managed to answer it diplomatically. This wasn't the first time I've seen him in person so his being handsome did not surprise me but our guests from outside Thailand were duly impressed.
2. I finally met in person our young Taiwan CEO/publisher (he is an SOB/ son of the boss). OMG. He is like a Taiwanese pop idol incarnate. He talks with an American twang (which makes me suspect he is an ABC, or to be accurate, an ABT or American-born Taiwanese), which reminds me of Wang Lee Hom or Van Ness Wu. And then, there is the fashion, which finally convinced me he is just pretending to be a media tycoon and in reality is actually one of those "idols" back in his native Taipei like the likes of Xiao Mei and Joe.
3. I saw DS again, the deputy boss from Indonesia. He was witty as usual and when we had cocktails at The Dome, he was very chatty. Even with the champagne, I could not match his wittiness but he was fun to talk to as usual. I just had to swoon to NV all the way in Jakarta.
4. And last but not the least, Nice Boss from China. Though I think my attention span is getting shorter.
P.S. on my BB, sometimes we have this LQ and I just want to wring his neck and makes me entertain thoughts of resigning. But he's impervious, he doesn't probably notice it that I already want to kill him.
Okay... hell week is about to end. One more day. I hope I won't speak too soon.
I just came from a four-hour meeting discussing how the PM will arrive, who will welcome him, what he will do, where he will go, how long will he stay in this place, who should be in the holding room, what should be announced at this part, who should introduce this, even who will pass the wireless microphone. My head is spinning and if this happens every day, even every month, I guess I'd have ulcers. It's not a good, sabai-sabai week for me so I hope people bear with me if I bite their heads off and bark at them. I can't wait for this week to be over.
P.S. Thanks TV and JA for the Chickey Joy and Max's Sarap To The Bones all the way from Manila. They're great stressbusters, nothing like comfort Filipino food.
Sometimes someone has to do the dirty job.
It's ironic that the dirty job has to be done on someone who has fucked up on the job.
Does that mean that by doing it, everyone can start on a clean slate?
Here are links to my article on Lea Salonga:
AsiaNewsNetwork website (the site will be offline during the holidays though)
Sinchew Daily (thanks GailT!)
(thanks to my friend An for the title)
It was a last-minute interview... until yesterday, I didn't even know there was going to be such a nice event today. In this business, I have learned not to hope anymore and just put everything out there. I didn't even have a chance to be giddy or excited... though I had to take the chance to think of questions. After all, Lea Salonga is not just any star. She has graced West End and Broadway and is the pride of the Philippines, one of the few reasons why I am proud to be a Filipino. And up close, she is larger than life, but at the same time, so grounded. It's nice to meet someone who is successful and famous and yet remains human.
Highlights of the interview:
-- hearing people say she's one of the few prides of the Philippines flatters her but at the same time, makes her sad
-- she's not political but she has strong views on the change that the Philippines should undertake
-- her advice to Lea wannabes: if you want to do theatre, overhaul your lifestyle (hello Beauty & the Beast protagonists); no parties, no puyat, no drinking, no vices...especially when doing a show.
-- her favorite character is Mulan because she was a strong, active character
-- when onstage, she'll want to get your attention for two and a half hours, but when offstage, she'd like to have the space to be able to live her life, like do her errands
-- one of the experiences that made her grounded was living in the US, where face value was nothing and she was just one of the faces there
-- and one other thing that keeps her grounded is to have family and friends who tell her: you're not that great.
Lea is a dream interview. She's obviously very eloquent and smart, it's easy to be intimidated thinking uh, will I be asking a stupid question? But she's very down-to-earth it makes you feel goddesses can mingle with mortals after all.
