A massive shout out to the guys at Alive Not Dead. Congratulations on your third anniversary.

And equally, a big hoorah to the artists in Hong Kong who are creating incredible exhibitions and making them easily accessible to the public.

Last night was AnD's third anniversary and the gang celebrated in style with a big, open party at Racks but the night began with two fabulous art exhibitions.

The first, the ufoArtgallery’s "Dead Art Comes Alive" exhibition  features artists of different mediums spinning an ethereal take on life and death and the work is incredible. It has received well-earned media attention, including CNN and the popular Chinese press. The opening night was supported by a huge bunch of Alive Not Dead artists and generated amazing support for new talent in Hong Kong. It was good to see everyone there. Personally, I'm looking forward to Tanya Bennett's exhibition there on May 7 featuring her world of water coloured nude "Dorises".

Following on from that was AnD principal founder and creative genius Andrew Lin's exhibition opening at the Schoeni Art Gallery on Hollywood Rd. I knew Lin was a talented artist, but I didn't realise he was talented in fine art as well. His art pieces blew me away for their sheer, well, artistry. The underworld theme is rather dark but is juxtaposed by the comic characterisations of the key figures. And the different mediums that he works with (silk screen, canvas, wood) keeps the exhibition alive, active and multi-dimensional. His broad brush strokes belie the incredible detail and personally, I like this painting style over most others. Once again, his exhibition was heavily patronised by artists and crew from Alive Not Dead.

Combined with the highly acclaimed Simon Birch Hope and Glory exhibition on in Taikoo Shing at the moment, there's ample proof that art and art patronage is changing for the better in this multi-cultural city.

So, after Lin's exhibition it was then on to Racks to rock the night away and to talk about future collaborations. Congratulations to Pat Lee and the crew at Alive Not Dead on their third anniversary and to the artists and members who support the site, attend the functions and work hard to make great art accessible in Hong Kong. You are all creating the DNA for the future of art and artists in Hong Kong (did you notice DNA is AnD backwards?) ;+).

Onwards and Upwards.

C.

The nationwide (island north) HK Triple Penetration tour of our favourite band, Uranus, goes on!

Uranus have been in the tour Bedford van all week getting all the way from Wyndham St to Lan Kwai Fong (some amazing tour stories that should never be shared).

Tomorrow night’s show is at the Cavern where we are the first band on (first is best right?) at 8.15pm and only playing a 20 minute set to help Chrissie launch the excellent new Underground CD so if you’re coming please don’t be late. There are some excellent bands on after us.

After that it’s back in the bus for more debauchery. Next stop Rockschool on April 24th and then rumours about Glastonbury have to be quashed as Dom’s mum won’t let him out to play.

See you tomorrow.

I'm pretty hopeless when it comes to acting. Anyone forced to work with me at Jeanne Hartman's classes would attest to this (apologies to all concerned).

However, I firmly believe that learning how to act and being competent at it is vital to any director's skills set. Being able to understand an actor's requirements in terms of good direction will help you get more from your cast.

It's for this reason (apart from the fun factor) that I occasionally accept roles in films, which explains my latest foray into the world of acting with the French feature,  Largo Winch 2, derived from the comic book of the same name.

I was asked to play the role of an Interpol agent. "Do I get a gun," I asked? "Yes, and a badge." That was about all it took for me to accept.

We arrived early morning in the cast van to be greeted by this scene at Sai Kung.



There were chefs cooking omelets, french pastries, bacon and eggs - everything one could possibly want for a morning breakfast start. Anyone who has worked in the cast of a Chinese film will understand how anything other than noodles is being spoiled! Got to love the French and their food fetish.

A slight walk further up the pier and you know you are going to have a little bit of fun when you are surrounded by such wonderful toys to play with. Below is the Grand Cru - a pimp daddy motha of a luxury yacht if ever there was one.



We also had a large police boat, with several smaller police pursuit boats to mix it up with. Little did I know at this stage that I'd be required to jump from one boat to another in a high-speed chase-and-boarding scene.



Loading the equipment took several hours.



Once all the equipment was loaded on board, we headed out off the Coast of Sai Kung.



Largo Winch is a comic book action adventure that was turned into a tv series in Europe before becoming a successful feature film and video game.



Below is the boat we had to jump off. It was tough to do with both boats moving at speed and a choppy ocean swell.




A close-up of the small police pursuit craft we had to jump off. It wasn't easy in leather shoes I can tell you.



The cast of minor roles: Glenn playing the captain (left), me (Interpol agent), Selisia (from Bangkok, United Nations agent), Jimmy (HK, Interpol), and Tony Abbot (BKK, UN agent).



The crew prepares to shoot the first scene on the middle deck. This is where we have already stormed the boat from the police pursuit craft and run up the deck to confront the captain and the owner of the vessel, Largo Winch, about documents he has on board which could prove his guilt.



Setting up the scene where sealed documents are seized and taken off the boat.



The camera crew filming sequences from the water. The following day we shot all the helicopter scenes from the air.



Captain Glenn (middle), with main role actors, Francois (left), playing the head of the UN investigation agency, and Winch's lawyer (right), arguing about the UN's legal right to storm the vessel.



Trying my hardest to look like a bad ass, but failing miserably.



It is my first time working with a French director, Jerome Salle, and the experience was very pleasant. Jerome smiled the entire time, enjoying the experience, while his China production team, from October Films, sorted out all the logistics.

The crew now heads to Europe to finish scenes in Belgium, Germany and France.

I recently had the pleasure of directing the film shoot for the EcoChic fashion show at the UN headquarters in Geneva - the Palais des Nations. Organised by Hong Kong eco charity Green2Greener, the fashion show was the highlight of a three-day conference hosted by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development on sustainability in the fashion industry.

This year is the Year of Biodiversity, so the focus on this sector of the industry was incredibly important in terms of how the fashion industry can reduce the harmful effects of its manufacturing processes on the environment, how it can use more natural fibres, and how garment manufacturers can introduce safer and fairer labour practices to local workers.

Attached is some of the television footage which I directed for global broadcasters, which was the culmination of the three-day conference. It features ready-to-wear and couture clothing made from natural fibres (the long dress in the final shot is made entirely from pineapples!) designed by some of the world's leading designers, such as Diane Von Furstenburg, John Rocha, and Manish Arora.

It's also the the first time the UN has hosted a fashion show in Geneva.


Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7S0a_fy4oQ

Currently directing an American series for ABC on self made multi-millionaires sharing the secrets to their success. The series is hosted by New Yorker, Erik Kaiser, himself an entrepreneur and takes in the adventure, food and travel as we skip from country to country speaking with these incredible business people.

We recently shot in Hong Kong and I asked my good friend Liza from Hip Hong Kong to act in several of our scenes. Liza was amazing and wrote a blog about her experience, complete with video and pics, on her Hip Hong Kong site. You can check it out here:

http://www.hiphongkong.com/content/so_you_want_be_squillionaire

I'll post some pics and a write up of our Thailand shoot here when I get back from Geneva at the end of this week.

C.