Hong Kong is the biggest small town in which I have ever lived.  For a city of 7 million people, it's amazing how often you run into people you know on the street; what's even more amazing is when you meet someone cool who all your friends know, but you didn't.  And musician and music producer Anton Wong falls smack into that category.

I remember superstar guitarist D'in Cheung asking me to come meet the new band that he was putting together and to talk to a music producer who was helping them out - Anton.  We ended up talking about a million things that night, but most of it seemed to revolve back to 80's metal and pop. 

Anton's wide ranging taste in music paired with his encyclopedic knowledge is something I am perpetually fascinated with and the fact that he also a talented musician in his own right is doubly cool.  I have the honor of having the fantastically paced, instantly likable sounds of "LoveSong Sing It" end LUMINA Webisode 6: Windows.  One of these days I'm going to write a screenplay that's going to be ripe for lots of guitar driven dance music and I'm going to deck it out with Anton's songs.

 

LUMINA writer/director Jen Thym sits down with Hong Kong music producer & musician Anton Wong for an exclusive interview:

JT: How long have you been writing, creating and producing music?  Was there a particular moment in your life when you realised you wanted to be a musician?

Anton: I don't remember exactly how long.  I've always been playing guitars and piano since I was a kid.  The writing part came more naturally when a few years ago, one day, I woke up and realized I had something to say to the world.  And my message wasn't entirely what's already been told before.

Hey everyone,

We are so close to the end of the first LUMINA season, and I'm excited because I know that the webisodes are getting more and more intense (and some things are finally explained!)  You can catch LUMINA Webisode 7 now on YouTube:



Did you notice anything different with the embedded video above?  Yes, that's right!  It shows the English subtitles automatically!

So now I want to introduce you to a new added accessibility feature to our website. Under the LUMINA VIDEOS tab, we have new categories by LANGUAGE. So if you want to watch the series with traditional CHINESE subtitles, just click here to check out our new interface:

http://www.luminaseries.com/traditional-chinese/

Or you can simply test the traditional Chinese embed here:


We have subtitles available in ENGLISH, SPANISH, NORWEGIAN, JAPANESE, and FRENCH!

And on to the reviews:

We got reviewed by the awesomely titled Film Site MOVIE CREMATORIUM (thanks for the tip, Spencer!!)

http://moviecrematorium.com/2009/10/13/must-watch-lumina-the-web-series-trailer-1st-episode.html

and by the women-in-horror (VERY cool idea for a website) PRETTY SCARY:

http://pretty-scary.net/content/lumina-2009

and by the amazingly well organised web series site 93 STUDIOS:

http://ninetythrees.com/screenings/lumina/

and by ultratrendy dramasite FANGIRLTAINMENT:

http://fangirltainment.wordpress.com/2009/10/10/feature-web-series-lumina/

and by German digital entertainment news site TV DIGITAL:

http://www.tvdigital.de/entertainment/web-tv/web-serien/ein-hong-kong-thriller-werw-lfe-und-vermisste

And by a media/PR site (woo!) called MEDIA ASIA:

http://blog.media.asia/diary/lumina-at-web-wednesday-hk/

Thanks for the support everyone!

Jen & the Cast and Crew of LUMINA

LUMINA Websiode 4 is my favorite webisode in the entire series.  I felt like we truly captured that magic moment in a relationship, when things could either go completely wrong or blossom into the most wonderful experience ever.

I remember combing through hundreds of songs looking for the right one to end Webisode 4.  I found many that I enjoyed listening to, but somehow they didn't quite capture that feeling of being on that narrow ledge between amazing and frightening.  Then my producer Sommer Nguyen mentioned this up and coming band called Tim Be Told from my homestate of Virginia and the rest is history.

The band is comprised of singer Tim Ouyang, guitarists Andrew Chae and Luan Nguyen, drummer Jim Barredo and bassist Parker Stanley.  Tim Be Told's soulful music transcends the pop genre that people will inevitably classify them in - the music is timeless and true, in the moment and heartfelt.

And.  They.  Rock.  Live.  Go check out any of the numerous videos on YouTube and even though the audio quality varies greatly according to which audience member recorded it on whatever phone or handycam, the passion and raw musical talent of this five piece band shines through.   Just read through the comments on any of the forums and fanpages they have, and you know they inspire everyone who listens to them in concert.  In an age of digital everything, this band still has the real in-person magic mojo.

LUMINA Writer/director Jen Thym sits down for a chat with Tim Ouyang, lead singer of Tim Be Told.

JT: Where did the name "Tim Be Told" come from? 

Tim:  This is a common question.  I want to say that my last name means "Be Told" when translated in English.  But the truth is that it comes from the expression "truth be told."

JT: Talk a little bit about "All of Me."  What's the song writing process for you like?  How long does it take and what inspires you?

Tim:  I wrote "All of Me" during a time in my life when I was doubting a lot of things. Writing the song was a way of dealing with it. When I write music, I have to have something to write about. I generally don't write unless I feel like I have something to say or express. So that means I can sometimes write multiple songs in day, or sometimes I won't write a song for months. It can be unpredictable.

JT: What attracted you as a band to the LUMINA project?  Do you have any favorite web series or TV shows?

Tim: We were really impressed by the care that went into creating the LUMINA project.  I also like the way Jennifer Thym directed it with the Internet in mind and the depths she went to combine the video elements with music that really brings out the story she was looking to tell.  My favorite TV show right now is Law and Order SVU which I happen to watch on Netflix.

JT: Name your five top musical influences. 

Tim: My top five musical influences at the moment are Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel, Kirk Franklin, Aretha Franklin and Disney movies.

JT:  Any recent news to share with your fans?  Any info on upcoming concerts?

Tim: Right now we are on the road heading to play a show with the band Reilly who are close friends of ours.  We just put out a brand new EP called "From The Inside," which is available for sale on our online store at www.tbtstore.com.  We hope to see you all out on the road.

JT:  Thank you, Tim!  Don't forget to check out Tim Be Told on their Facebook page, their myspace page, and YES you can buy "All of Me" from iTunes!  You can also follow them on Twitter.

Thank you very much to Napoleon Biggs, host of WEB WEDNESDAY, the premiere digital networking event in Hong Kong, for a FANTASTIC evening and a highly entertaining interview.  We all met such wonderful digitally savvy people, including Hong Kong's top twitterer and fabulous geek-in-golf-attire @JayOatway, Hong Kong StartUp Association co-founder Henry Oh, and Xanga CTO Dan Huddle.

Our wonderful LUMINA stars JuJu Chan, Michael Chan, Jacob Ziacan, and Jayson Li kicked off the evening with a hilarious skit MC'd by our one and only Simon Yin!  Watch the "live recap" of LUMINA Webisode 1 through 5 here:

And then came Napoleon's interview with LUMINA writer/director Jen Thym.  Aquarium time!  But seriously, it was the first time I felt comfortable on a stage, and I really have to thank Napoleon for being an awesome host.

 And finally the winners of our fabulous door prizes are:

FIRST PRIZE: Charlie Bodycote won the HKD 888 gift certificate for a dinner with LUMINA actress JuJu Chan at Jeffrey LeBon's trendy new restaurant SOHO 8!

SECOND PRIZE:  Simon Lambon won the walk-on role for our new subtitling video that will feature LUMINA's Simon Yin and Emilie Guillot!

THIRD PRIZE:  Vivan Wong won the LUMINA notebook autographed by the cast!

Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to everyone who came out to support us!

All photos courtesy of JuJu Chan from her very cool AnD blog!

This coming Wednesday is going to be smokin' - the LUMINA cast will be the featured guest at this month's WEB WEDNESDAY, Hong Kong's premiere digital networking event, hosted by Napoleon Biggs.


WHEN:  October 7, 2009, 6.30 pm to 9.30 pm
WHERE:  Volar, Basement, 38-44 D'Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong


We're going to kick off the evening with a live sketch starring the LUMINA cast, so don't be late!  Napoleon will then interview LUMINA writer/director Jen Thym about how she made the series and what's in store for the future!  So if you're curious about web series and the future of digital entertainment, please come and join the discussion!

And check out these fabulous door prizes that we will be giving away:

DOOR PRIZE NO. 1:  Gift certificate for dinner at trendy new restaurant SOHO 8 with either LUMINA star JuJu Chan or Michael Chan (value of the gift certificate is HKD 888, and it's your chance to ask JuJu or Michael all about the show!!)

DOOR PRIZE NO. 2:  Be a YouTube star with a walk-on role on our next video starring LUMINA actors Emilie Guillot and Simon Yin. 

DOOR PRIZE NO. 3:  Autographed glossy LUMINA notebook plus an array of LUMINA postcards and stickers! 

PLUS a percentage of the door fee will go to Oxfam for their relief work in Vietnam and and the Philippines in wake of Typhoon Ketsana.  Enjoy a good night out with us and do good for a charity at the same time!

Sign up for the event here on AlivenotDead:

http://www.alivenotdead.com/luminaseries/LUMINA-at-Web-Wednesday-Live-LUMINA-Cast-Performance-Fab-Door-Prizes--event-776867.html

Or on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143708026739&ref=mf

We'll be going to Speak Up at M1NT afterwards, so come and hang out with us!