I've always wanted to meet the Taiwanese director, writer and producer Joseph Kuo 郭南宏, but never had the chance to. Yesterday, my dream became reality, cos' there's a tribute to him right now in Paris during the Paris Cinema Film Festival.


Mr Kuo did yesterday afternoon, a 2-hour masterclass seminar about his experience of the last 50 years in the Taiwan and Hong Kong film industry. He could have talked for hours, but had to go to the cocktail organized by the festival and The Goverment Information Office of Tapei. That's where I grabbed him like a real geek and made him signed a lot stuffs like DVD covers and lobbycards.



I'll write more about him another time cos' I have to go to the screening of two of his movies in a couple of hours :  the very rare The Swordsman of All Swordsmen 一代劍王 (1968), his first martial arts movie (a Taiwanese wu xia pian starring Polly Shan Kuan 上官靈鳳, procuded by the same company of Dragon Gate Inn 龍門客棧), and Born Invincible 太極氣功  (1978), a kung-fu flick with Carter Wong 黃家達 and Lo Lieh 羅烈 . Tomorrow, I'll interview Mr Kuo during 45 minutes (to talk about 50 years in the film industry, it's way too short !) and will watch too other movies of him on big screen, Sorrowful to a Ghost 鬼見愁 (1970) and the mega-cult Shaolin kung-fu movie, 18 Bronzemen 少林寺十八銅人(1976).




Frédéric Ambroisine (July 8th, 2008)

I edited this 9 minutes compilation of Forbidden Kingdom first Asian press conference a few months ago, in just a few hours, for the DVD bonus of the French martial arts magazine "Karate Bushido". I had around 50 minutes of Footage (35 minutes of presentation with the guests & martial arts demonstrations with the kids + 15 minutes of Jet Li and Jackie Chan interviews). Since I'm not a Chinese speaker and I had no time to find a tranlator, I only kept the English parts of the presentations and interviews. I shot this in Hong Kong on March 18th, 2008 during the Hong Kong Filmart. Enjoy...



Frédéric Ambroisine (July 6th, 2008)

France de Griessen is a Dutch/Belgian artist (singer, composer, actress, model...) based in Paris, who's a recent Alive Not Dead member. In 2005, she released a concept-album related to Billy the Kid named "Billy", with her previous band Teen Machine. Now, she just finished the recording of her first solo album "Ghost Ballerina" (working title). Check out her page here : http://www.alivenotdead.com/francedegriessen

I finally convinced some members of the band IKU (who'll feature in my documentary Rock 'n' Roll Girls) to launch their pages on Alive Not Dead. So, here come the pages of the two guitarists of the band : Solange Protin and Anne Mercier.



Check out also this live video of IKU (song : Wolf's Smile) shot by Fanny, on June 7th, 2008 in Paris at the Pix Bar.

Wolf's smile pix bar

sent by sicklust

d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e.  is one of the main music bands that I’m following very closely for my documentary Rock ‘n’ Roll Girls, but it’s not a rock band at all. The common point between d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e. and rock music is that, the two  members of the band, Akasha “Sick” Lust and So. Noel, are also playing in the girls rock band IKU (So. is the drummer of IKU ; Akasha is the lead singer, bassist and one of the main composer). In d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e., Akasha and So. are both music composers, lyriscists and they sing as well. 

 

Formed in February 2007,  d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e.  music style could be described as a mix between electronic music, trip hop and spoken words with uncompromising strong lyrics related to the personal experiences of both artists. Among the different inspirations of d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e., you’ll find universal subjects like alcohol, sex, suicide, illness, violence, chaos, madness etc...

 

They started to record their first album in September 2007 (it’s called simply d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e.) and they made it available for the first time on May 3^rd, 2008 at the opening of the 2^nd edition of the underground French festival, Vag1 Kao (Wordplay which means “Chaos Vagina”).

 

On that day, d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e. played live in public for the first time and it was for sure, the highlight of this festival, where there were also two other music performances (Noise improvisations by Lust Control and Evil Moisture) + the exhibition of  painting, photographs, serigraphs, mouldings, etc... created by Akasha Lust, So. Noel, Andy Bogus, Bughead and M.Abloom. 

 

Here is the track-listing of d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e. album, mixed and recorded by Alex Anger (singer of French grunge band Anadyomène): 

• Amnésie éthylique (Ethyl Amesia)
• Petites plaies entre amants (Little Wounds Between Lovers)
• La tête dans le four (Head in the Oven)
• Sarcophage médical (Medical Sarcophagus)
• Salope En Prose (Bitch in Prose) – NB : The initials SEP also means Sclérose En Plaque (Multiple Sclerosis).
• Nature déviante (Deviant Nature)
• XTCOD (Wordplay which means “Overdose of Extasy”)
• Doloroso ergo sum (I suffer, therefore I am)
• Viande éparpillée (Scattered Meat)
• Coquille vide (Empty Nutshell)
• La révolution des salopes (Bitches Revolution)

On 10th of May 2008, one day after the end of the festival Vag1 Kao, a new photoshoot of d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e. was organised. In the second of the three series of photos taken by Fanny (co-programmer of the festival Vag1 Kao), Akasha and So. are posing in front of their work (paintings, masks etc...). You can check the whole behind the scenes gallery of this photo session HERE.

Also, two of the d.e.v.i.a.n.c.e. tracks will be available on the CD soundtrack of “Plaintes Contre X” (Complaint Against X) , which  is not a movie but the first book written by So. Noel, which will be released in France at the end of 2008 (or the beginning of 2009).

This intense “drug story”, in the vein of Trainspotting, Requiem for a Dream and Spun, is an autobiographical novel (inspired by true events at 90%) about a rock ‘n’ roll journalist who learns that she got multiple sclerosis.  This novel will be illustrated by photos of Lu.Bo., artwork of Sick Lust and draws by Syl. 

“Plaintes Contre X” soundtrack will also contain songs by IKU, Anadyomène, Kinesin, Le Collector, Lust Control, Laamdatün and No Rest 4 the Brave. 

Here is a video teaser of the “PCX” project directed by Kinesin...

Plaintes Contre X (Teaser)

 Frédéric Ambroisine (May 12^th, 2008)