The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies
The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies |
- Allan Wu wooing China
- 'Smurfs,' 'Friends with Benefits' going UltraViolet
- Disney, Cameron to create theme-park ''Avatar''
| Posted: 22 Sep 2011 12:49 AM PDT Shanghai is now home for actor Allan Wu and his family as he tries to break into Chinese films. A MONTH after actor-host Allan Wu relocated to Shanghai to further his career, he has started auditioning for roles, including some in Hollywood films. Wu, 39, his Singaporean actress wife Wong Li-Lin, 38, and their two children packed their bags and moved to the Chinese city last month, so that he could pursue acting and hosting in China. He plans eventually to break into Chinese films. The Chinese-American actor moved to Singapore and found popularity in the island republic's entertainment scene in the past decade. Wu who was in Singapore to host the One Fighting Championship recently, he says he and his family have a good life in Singapore but he and Wong had contemplated the move to China for more than four years. "I knew in my heart I was getting complacent, it was getting too easy," he says. "I knew down the road that there was more to life and I needed to seek bigger challenges, too." The catalyst for him to take the plunge was the success of the television series The Amazing Race: China Rush, which he is currently hosting. The show, already in its second season, is airing on China Central Television, Dragon TV and International Channel Shanghai, the foreign-language cable channel of Shanghai Media Group. "I think if I didn't already have that vehicle to give me a platform to introduce myself to the China market, then I would feel more pressured," he says. He hopes to live in Shanghai for at least a year or two, to "see how it goes". The family is getting by on savings and income from Wu's acting and hosting jobs in Shanghai. While there are more opportunities in China's entertainment market, he says it will take time to "gain traction and penetrate the market". He says: "If I didn't think I have anything to prove, I would probably still sit here in Singapore and wait for my next job. But I realise I have to kick it up a couple of gears just to try and find out now because I'm not getting any younger." Wu adds that he has started auditioning for roles in "Hollywood blockbuster" films, as Hollywood directors would head for China to scout for actors, rather than Singapore. However, he could not provide details about the films because he signed confidentiality agreements. The move meant that Wong would be a trailing spouse. She now looks after their two children – Sage, seven, and Jonas, five – in Shanghai. He adds that she has been fully supportive. "I think she knew my dream was to always go to China and try to work there and see what happens, even if it means having to be a housewife for a little while," he says. But he adds that she has begun auditioning for hosting jobs in Shanghai and they are looking for a nanny to take care of their kids. The couple have enrolled their daughter Sage in YK Pao, an international school in Shanghai, while their son Jonas attends a local kindergarten there. Adjusting to life in Shanghai has not been easy for the children, admits Wu. "I don't think they are a huge fan of Shanghai yet because it's not as clean and as convenient as Singapore. I know Sage misses her friends. It's a pretty radical move but I think the fact that Li-Lin and I are both there, the kids will find it easy to assimilate or acclimatise." The family has kept their District 9 apartment in Singapore and Wu says they will be shuttling between China and Singapore often. Wu says his "end plan" is to eventually head to Hollywood. But a return to Singapore is also on the cards. If China does not work out for him, he says: "My top priority is to support my family and if I can do that doing what I love – acting and hosting – then great. If I can't, then I'll work a nine-to-five job ... maybe. I'm a survivor, I'll find something to do." – The Singapore Times/Asia News Network |
| 'Smurfs,' 'Friends with Benefits' going UltraViolet Posted: 20 Sep 2011 08:06 PM PDT LOS ANGELES: ''The Smurfs'' and ''Friends With Benefits'' will be the first films released by Sony on the UltraViolet platform, John Calkins, the EVP of the studio's digital division announced at TheGrill, TheWrap's second annual media conference. UltraViolet is the cloud-based service that Hollywood hopes will help it replace the revenues being lost by a constricting DVD market. It launches in the fourth quarter of this year. Sony has been a strong supporter of DECE, the consortium that helped create the eco-system. At a panel on the change how cloud technology is impacting moviemaking, Thomas Gewecke, president of Warner Bros. digital distribution, said that the studio would release an UltraViolet version of ''Green Lantern'' later this year. The idea is that by designing a system that lets consumers stream and store movies and TV shows they purchase on multiple devices, studios can encourage people to buy not just rent their products. UltraViolet compatible Blu-ray versions of ''Friends'' and ''Smurfs'' will arrive in stores on December 2, 2011. After a customer purchases an UltraViolet copy of the sex comedy or animated hit and creates their free cloud-based UltraViolet account, they will be able to access their movie through any UltraViolet-compatible service or device - from PCs and tablets to TVs and smart phones. |
| Disney, Cameron to create theme-park ''Avatar'' Posted: 20 Sep 2011 08:02 PM PDT LOS ANGELES: Moviegoers pining for a return to the lush moon of Pandora in James Cameron's film ''Avatar'' will finally get their chance - first-hand. Walt Disney Co is teaming with the Oscar-winning director and News Corp unit Fox Filmed Entertainment, to mimic the thriving green landscape depicted in the highest-grossing movie of all time in a section of its Orlando, Florida, theme park. Under their agreement, Disney won exclusive global theme park rights to the ''Avatar'' franchise. It will begin building from 2013 and will eventually take Avatar ''lands'' beyond Orlando's Disney World. ''Our goal is to go beyond current boundaries of technical innovation and experiential storytelling, and give park-goers the chance to see, hear and touch the world of 'Avatar' with an unprecedented sense of reality,'' Cameron said in a statement. At a news conference, Cameron said that when he began talks with Disney designers, he ''quickly realized their vision for this thing was far beyond what I imagined, and I've got a pretty good imagination.'' The estimated cost for the Orlando project is about $400 million, a source familiar with the matter said. Construction should take about five years. Planning is in the early stages, and executives gave few details on how Disney would recreate the fantasy world of ''Avatar'' and the creatures that inhabit it. The section will be located within Disney's Animal Kingdom park. ''Avatar,'' the 2009 film that chronicled the struggle of the alien Na'vi against marauding resource-ravenous humans, grossed almost $3 billion worldwide and triggered the current renaissance in 3D-film making. Cameron is planning sequels to the blockbuster hit, which surpassed his own ''Titanic'' as the highest-grossing movie in history. The first of the ''Avatar'' sequels is set for release around Christmas 2014, Cameron said. Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said the company planned to bring ''Avatar'' to other locations beyond the Florida park. ''We think we can clearly leverage the global interest in this property,'' Iger said. The company is deep into several big theme park projects, including building a new park in Shanghai and adding a 12-acre section, set to open next year based on the animated ''Cars'' films, to its California resort. Disney typically works with its own movies when developing themed sections and rides. It does have some attractions based on films from other studios, including the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises. |
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