I'M Really Just A SHY GIRL
Written by admin on September 21, 2009 in Old School
I’m really just a SHY GIRL
Model-actress Christy Yow claims she’s ill at ease playing sexy
By Kwok Kar Peng
September 21, 2009
MODEL Christy Yow is a hard one to figure out.
POUTING: Christy during a bikini shoot.
–PICTURE:
FHM SINGAPORE
She preened and pouted her full lips for The New Paper’s camera crew and threw us come-hither looks.
She said she was willing to strip naked for a lead role in Eric Khoo’s upcoming movie Chinese Rose.
Yet, in the same interview, the 23-year-old recalled how uncomfortable she was modelling for FHM Singapore.
Christy, known for her ample 34C bosom, shot to fame when she posed in a skimpy bikini for the December issue of the local lad mag.
She also claimed she had difficulty acting sexy in her first acting attempt in straight-to-DVD movie Aunties United, where she plays a shy and conservative girl.
‘I trust nude scenes in Chinese Rose will be tasteful’
Will the real Christy Yow, please stand up?
She insists she’s a shy girl at heart, but transforms into a sex goddess only in front of the camera.
Away from work, she wears spectacles and goes without make-up. She is always in T-shirt, jeans or shorts, and flip-flops, she said.
She added: ‘I want to gain a foothold in the showbiz industry, so I have to behave professionally. I cannot portray a role badly just because I’m shy.’
A scene that she found particularly tough in Aunties United was one that required her to walk slowly towards the camera, looking sexy.
She said: ‘I had to pose, sway a little and look sexy. I didn’t think it would be difficult and everyone thought I would be able to complete it in just one take.
‘But it felt weird when I did it. I wasn’t natural. I thought it could be because it was my first time acting.’
The scene was filmed in a sports hall and it was only after the director asked the crew to leave the hall that Christy managed to wrap up the scene. It took her close to 10 takes to get it right.
Christy also had problems during her FHM photo shoot. The Ipoh-born girl had told her manager that she wanted very much to be on the cover of FHM Malaysia.
So her manager approached the editor of the men’s magazine in Singapore, who agreed to feature her after seeing her photos.
Silk dress
She went for a fitting session and tried on a long silk dinner dress.
But Christy had a rude shock when she learnt she had to wear bikinis for the photo shoot in Bali.
‘I couldn’t turn down the photo shoot because we had already travelled all the way to Bali. I eventually didn’t model the silk dress,’ she recalled.
It was her first time modelling in bikinis. The male photographer, sensing her discomfort, asked everyone except the female make-up artist to leave the shoot.
It was only after a few breaks, when she chatted with her manager, that she relaxed and finished the session.
When the photos were published, a local Chinese daily nicknamed her the Busty 36C Lady from Malaysia.
She has since lost weight and is now a size 34C.
‘I was shocked at the nickname. It sounded like something from a Hong Kong gossip magazine. But over time, I slowly accepted it.’
Full frontal
Christy said she is keen to play 1950s cabaret star Rose Chan in Eric Khoo’s upcoming movie Chinese Rose, even if it means having to do scenes with full-frontal nudity.
She said she was moved by Rose’s tragic life.
‘Rose is a very strong and proud person. It’ll be a very challenging role and a very good opportunity for me if I get it. I have to think professionally and not be so bothered about the nude scenes.’
She admitted she initially had reservations about the role. ‘But after reading the script, I realised that the nude scenes are an essential and small part of the entire story. Rose is more than just a striptease performer. She had a very tumultuous life and the movie will be about her spirit.’
Christy said she trusts the nude scenes would be tasteful.
Eric has been having problems finding the right actress to play Rose.
He first announced he was looking for an actress for the role at a press conference in April last year. One year later, Eric told The New Paper that he had yet to find his Rose despite 200 applicants and 20 auditions.
Then again, the actress has to meet his stringent criteria. In Eric’s own words, she should ideally have ‘the sultry lips of Shu Qi, the voluptuous figure of Fiona Xie, the height of Beatrice Chia, and the poise and complexion of Gong Li’.
She must have the acting skills of Maggie Cheung, tell jokes like Irene Ang, be comfortable with snakes and be able to speak Mandarin and Cantonese.
On top of that, she must be willing to strip for full-frontal nude scenes.
When contacted, Eric confirmed that Christy is one of a few actresses on his short list. The other contenders are also fresh faces.
Eric said he sees a lot of potential in Christy and likes her determination and maturity.
He pointed out that the role is challenging as the actress would have to play Rose from the age of 17 to 36.
Actors for the other roles have yet to be confirmed, but Eric wants to use mostly fresh faces.
The movie is in pre-production and filming will likely begin in the first quarter of next year. The screenplay is by James Toh, who also wrote Eric’s 12 Storeys.
During her audition, Christy had to display a range of emotions, from sad to happy to angry, as demanded by the script. But she did not have to pose nude.
On her personal life, she would only reveal that she is dating a Taiwanese, a ’30-year-old upcoming actor’.
They met early last month when she was in Taipei to attend a 10-day acting class. They played a couple in a skit but it was only after she returned to Singapore that love blossomed.
Christy said: ‘He would give me a call at 6.30am every day when I filmed Aunties United.
‘If you see me with heavy eyebags and bad complexion, it just means that we had chatted till late the night before.’
The NewPaper
Pitt Laughs Off Run For Mayor
Written by admin on August 14, 2009 in Old School, Recommended Posts
NEW ORLEANS – BRAD Pitt is laughing off the idea he should run for mayor of New Orleans. Pitt told NBC television’s Today show on Thursday that he has seen the ‘Brad Pitt for Mayor’ T-shirts that many New Orleans residents have been sporting for at least two months. But when asked if he has considered running,
Judge Approves MJ Collectibles
Written by admin on August 08, 2009 in Old School, Recommended Posts
LOS ANGELES – THE King of Pop is coming to calendars and collectors’ coin cases after a judge approved several deals involving the singer’s estate on Friday.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff signed off on agreements for Jackson-themed items including calendars, school supplies, posters and a commemorative coin. He also granted authority so that reprints of Jackson’s autobiography Moonwalk can be sold in China, Korea and several Eastern European countries.
Judge Beckloff also agreed to allow Jackson’s estate to partner with Apple’s iTunes to sell songs and videos of Jermaine Jackson’s performance of the Charlie Chaplain song ‘Smile’ at the pop singer’s public memorial.
The deals were presented to the judge by the current administrators of Jackson’s estate, attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain. Financial details of the agreements were not disclosed.
They offer a hint at Jackson’s post-death marketability, and a pending deal may bring even more Jackson-themed merchandise to store shelves and electronics.
Judge Beckloff has scheduled a hearing on Monday to decide whether to approve other deals involving Jackson, including a movie project that would feature the singer’s final rehearsals and preparations for a series of comeback concerts in London.
Columbia Pictures has agreed to pay US$60 million for the rights to footage shot for Jackson’s ‘This is It’ concerts, but the deal must be approved by Monday. The extra time was granted to give the singer’s mother, Katherine Jackson, time to consider the proposed contracts and voice any opposition to them.
Judge Beckloff is also considering a deal between the estate and merchandiser Bravado for worldwide distribution rights to several Jackson-themed products, including trading cards, apparel, lighters, stuffed animals that play Jackson’s music and digital apparel and even tattoos for online games such as Second Life.
The deals remain an important piece of the Jackson’s financial puzzle and could offset potential losses by concert promoter AEG Live, which spent more than US$30 million organising the singer’s 50-show comeback in London. — AP
Straits Times
LOVE OF SIAM
Written by admin on July 17, 2009 in Old School
FIRST ASIAN
LOVE OF SIAM
July 17, 2009
Who would have thought that horror maestro Chukiat Sakweerakul, whose previous efforts include the ghost story Evil and the ultra-violent 13: Game Of Death, would turn out to be such a SNAG (Sensitive New Age Guy)?
His latest movie, Love Of Siam, is about two childhood friends who lose touch, only to run into each other again as teenagers, at which point their relationship develops into something more than friendship.
The movie, which is rated M18 here, won four Thailand National Film Association Awards last year, including Best Picture.
Love Of Siam tells a very human story, very sensitively told, and it’s frankly hard to believe that the same guy who directed 13: Game Of Death had anything to do with it.
In an e-mail interview with The New Paper, the 28-year old Thai director revealed that this film is actually much closer to his heart than previous efforts.
‘Love Of Siam is my dream project. I always wanted to do a love story, but in Thailand the market at that time was such that 13: Game Of Death had a greater chance of success.
‘Audiences wanted horror more than they wanted a love story. Fortunately, audience demands began to change, and I got to do Love Of Siam.’
Though the popularity of Asian horror may be waning, and the popularity of love stories on the rise, it must be said that Love Of Siam is not a conventional love story.
Though the subject is handled with great delicacy, this is still a film about a homosexual relationship.
But Chukiat believes his movie is more than that.
He said: ‘I think Love Of Siam deals with various issues in Thailand. It talks about family relationships. It talks about friendship and dreams.
‘All of the things that are all around us. I think audiences love to see all these different elements mixed together, and we mixed them well.’
The film has proven to have universal appeal.
Chukiat feels that this is because he spent such a long time on the script, and drew from various sources of inspiration.
‘I collected love stories from the many people around me,’ he said.
‘The main idea is about how love is important in our lives. I would like to share every different perspective on love with the audience.’
The two young stars of Love Of Siam – Mario Maurer and Witwisit Hiranyawongkul – have received critical acclaim and various awards for their performances.
Witwisit, 20, told The New Paper in an e-mail interview: ‘I worried about my acting. This is my first movie.
‘My character, Mew, looks like a normal boy, but in reality, the character is very complex in terms of his relationship with his family, his society, and his close friend, Tong. I was worried about how my character would be received by audiences.’
In a separate e-mail interview, we asked Mario if the film’s subject matter ever made him uncomfortable.
The 20-year old replied: ‘No, it’s just acting. I read the screenplay and thought it was the best thing I’d seen. I did my best, and the feedback’s been good.’
JASON JOHNSON
The NewPaper
