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• Separate States

  Thursday, Dec 18, 2008 6:39PM / Standard Entry

  
  Separate States
  
  That to me would be a somewhat queer pairing of words. Almost like twins but no and not quite opposites
  
  Reminds me of Colombo. Its a nice city, but terrible place to try to film in.
  
  Basically, everytime we whipped out a bloody camera, we see soldiers and AK47s, plus long lists of permits, waiting in police stations... you get he gist.. best part is... I am not doing some hardcore docu about their state of affairs, I was doing a business travel show promoting Colombo as a city to work with....
  
  a definite lack of foresight on the ground.
  
  no matter, Qingdao after that was great... non-stop alcohol in a city where people.. well.. just drink.  I had a great time there. My supporting Chinese team arealso as good as it gets, reliable, nice chaps except I wish they would let me taste my drink before calling for a toast again. ha.
  
  the highlight of my last few journeys however probably has got to be Hong Kong. Catching up with my second family. You guys know how you are.
  
  well... it was great. home is where your heart is. And your heart is where the people are.
  
  Yup, HK feels like home to me, more and more with each passing year. Its not even about knowing new people sometimes, its about deepening your friendships even more. Nothing beats a meal together or just hanging out talk trash.
  
  Oops... I forgot my pictures. Next time then.
  
  
  
  
  

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• Of Music and Other Poignant Moments

  Saturday, Nov 15, 2008 12:57PM / Standard Entry

  Its been a long week.

  Have been working on a new documentary at work dealing with the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Its a great topic, except that the amount of story angles and footage available can be a little bewildering. But my biggest gripe has been how a whole nation can be so gripped by a cult of personality... but maybe that's an area I shouldn't comment on... after what does a creative know about politics?

  On to better or shall I say bitter things. My old firned of 13 years passed away. Probably for his own good, after all, for dogs to live to 13... he is quite old an dprobably not enjoying life as well as he should.  I am just thankful that he passed away peacefully at home with the family around... it would really suck if I had to bring him to the vet to be put down... he wouldn;t like that. That's a picture of him when he was much younger.

  

   

  Well now on to some other dustracting things. Work for The Enigmatic Army. Well, Ugly IN The Morning is in the midst of finishing their second album and I am in the midst of story boarding their music video.

  I got some pretty cool guys doing this for me, including a close friend and collaborator Albert Hue, who just happens to be one of the top Indie DOPs from KL, Malaysia. He has done stuff like The Last Communist and Village Radioo people... and now this is the first time he is going to be shooting an indie music video.

  Our idea is simple.. we will shoot on 16 mm and do a one take shot on a roll of 400 ft fuji stock. Ha... there will be a twist and I would love to post it up once its done... let's just say we will be having animal headed dancers, full basket ball teams....... entire offices and bed rooms all set up in an outdoor park... without official permit! ha!

  Meantime, do chekc out th band at www.uglyinthemorning.org

  This is an old pic, froma series I shot for their first album almost 7 years ago!

  

   

  Meanwhile, have been also doing producing work for another one of our boys, LGF. my idea is to take their guitar driven Chinese pop and give it a string Brit rock twist.... youknow lik ethe new Verve or Snow Patrol... but its not going to be easy howver.... after all, th eonly bands I have produced so far are all metal boys! But it seems that band is keen to explore.... and you guys should stay tuned.. after all, we will be giving everyone a christmas present come december as a precursor for their debut album slated for release next year!

  Go check them out:( another pic I took for them...)

  www.lgfband.com

  

  But that aside, I do remember now that I have some more work to do.. Will be off to Colombo, Sri Lanka for another shoot this Tuesday and I am afraid I have not even finished revising the script I got... well thank God its just a simple travel show. =)

   

  
  

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• Hope beyond hope in all things to come

  Wednesday, Nov 5, 2008 1:06PM / Standard Entry

  As a voice for the marginalized, my humble self and The Enigmatic Army salutes the change that we hope will come with the first American Black President Barack Obama.
  
  I have lived in times and been granted the privilege to witness a great many things, both good and bad:
  
  The Fall Of Communism in the former Soviet Union
  
  The Fall Of The Berlin Wall
  
  The First Ever assault in the heart of America
  
  The breaking of UMNO's stranglehold in Malaysia
  
  And now.. the world's first black President, Barack Obama
  
  I am not optimistic in the sense that the world will change over night, I am not even sure if Obama can deliver what he promised given the prevailing circumstances of the world at large.
  
  But one thing he has already done for us is this: He has given us Hope.
  
  If Americans can choose and speak with one voice to create this historic moment, it should give the rest of us a sense of belief in ourselves and what we can do. They have shown us that if we try , we too have the strength to make Change no matter how small or weak we may seem to be.
  
  Barack Obama, we salute you.
   
  
  
  
  

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• Its My Life Musical

  Tuesday, Nov 4, 2008 3:02PM / Standard Entry

  Ok folks,
  
    just a quick shout out. For those of you who are in Singapore and feeling bored, well there's something good to catch between 27 Nov to 5 Dec.
  
  Basically it is this musical known as Its My Life.
  
  What's so special about it? Well plenty.
  
  This is an play where the script has been written based on improvised theatre.
  
  And if you think the cast are trained actors/ singers, you are wrong. They are real kids from across Singapore, un trained but full of life.
  
  This play is produced by Tan Kheng Hua and Lim Yu Beng.
  
  You can find their profiles on this site as well.... cool and talented folks.
  
  
  
  
  
  Click on th epicture to get to their website. I will be watching it together with somefriends of mine. Btw, I helped them out with a music video as well. Its playing in my video channel that comes after my headshot. Gives you an idea of the music and th ekind of talents you will be watching. NOW GO GET YOUR TIX!
  
  

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• The KL Underground_ Music from the 8 Bit Festival

  Monday, Nov 3, 2008 11:32AM / Standard Entry

  Was up in KL over the weekend to have dinner at a Spanish restaurant that serves some killer pork dishes.
  
  Just happened that I was going to meet up with some KL indie contacts to better understand their scene since I have not checked them out for a long time.
  
  So before dinner, we went right into the suburban hub of Ampang district, where in a very shabby shopping complex, a gig was being held in the abandoned basement... just below a supermarket!
  
  I was in luck, the gig was the 8 Bit Music Festival involving a whole bunch of guys from KL and Jakarta who make music using.... old Gameboy handheld players... sound impossible?
  
  Check this out:
  
  
  This guy is called The Local Drugstore and when I got there with my KL friends, he ws already doing his beepy music which I thought was pretty fresh. He comes from Jakarta btw.
  
  Not to be outdone, some local boys were next: My Empty Battery. Do check out that gameboy being played to make the music!
  
  
  
  just in case the organisers were worried that they were boring us... there was a slight break with a live band... I thought they were pretty good... some band called Robot Asmara, they incorporate Malay vocals with disco like beats and beeps.
  Check Them out:
  
  But apparently the highlight of this segment was a group from Jakarta known as Bit The Medusa
  now I can;t say I really dig them but it was interesting.
  I mean, they had two school girls singing along in front like those old eurotrash things from the 1980s... very 8 bit. This is them, don;t be fooled, the girls can't be more than 14 years old.
  
  
  well,my personal highlight was dinner. I couldn't stay all the way with my KL friends, but we did make arrangements for their collective and The Enigmatic Army to collaborate next year, letting our combined music traverse Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong... but that is a story for another time.
  
  I went to El Cerado.. a restaurant serving Spanish Pork dishes... where they cut the suckling pork with a plate and then they smash them... no ned to talk, it was great... look at the videos below... and feel... very hungry!
  
  
  
  
  

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