Ekin Cheng Yee- KinNews -February 2005 |
February 2, 2005
Ekin's manager Shan Shan has been recruited by BMA record company to a top management position. Recently many record companies have had changes of personnel. Some top managers have left the company. The boss of the record company sought Shan Shan because he appreciates her competence and experience, especially in the field of promoting singers and actors. Her first order of business will be to promote a new singer Nikki. The company heard Nikki sing in a radio drama and felt that she would be a good addition to their company as her voice was described as unforgettable. They want her to be both a singer and actress. Although Shan Shan is still Ekin's agent, he has said he will also help with Nikki's promotion. Nikki was a model before. In addition to an album the company is also working on a movie for Nikki to take the lead role, they are also planning that Ekin will collaborate with her in this movie as the male lead character.
February 8, 2005
Ekin and Jerry Lam both take seriously the new year dumpling meal. Ekin said," Whenever our family has a traditional holiday celebration, we gather together in one place, sit in a circle, eat and chat, it is extremely lively and extremely happy."
Jerry has a similar feeling. He said that before he was married and had children he really didn't distinguish between the holiday meal and an ordinary meal. But now he takes this important day more seriously.
Ekin added that in recent years because of the many natural and social disasters that have taken place, the opportunity to spend time with family is to be cherished. Ekin loves food but he worries about getting fat. Celebrating the New Year he likes to pan fried radish cake, but now his work involvement means it is impossible for him to get fat, so he has to try to restrain himself to keep his weight at a suitable level.
It has been 5 or 6 years since Ekin last made a television drama. Even though the filming of the new drama gives no time for rest, Ekin is not worried about the difficulty of adapting to the schedule. After all his background is television. Such dramas frequently take months to accomplish. Ekin indicated that he would not prepare a new album until afterwards.
The day before, together with Jerry and his wife, Ekin went to buy flowers to celebrate the new year. He made a special purchase of peach flowers to bring home to celebrate the new year holiday. Ekin openly said that his purchase didn't represent luck with the opposite sex, he already has a girlfriend, but peach flowers also represent popularity. Because actors all need popularity so the peach flowers represent the idea that in the new year he will have even more "success".
February 9, 2005
Every year Ekin asks for his fortune from master scholar Yang Tian Ming. Yang shifu this year predicted that Ekin will find work very laborious and also he may find himself under pressure to get married from August to October. So Yang gave a gift of red boxer shorts to Ekin embroidered with auspicious symbols to help him to walk fast away from any disasters. Ekin laughed, " If this year cause a person compelled to get married then can use the fact that work is very busy to quell the gossip, however I have a great deal of freedom, I am not concentrating on this idea, I concentrate on the idea of having fun. When the time comes to settle down, then I will."
Ekin was thinking that this year might be a good time to begin a new undertaking, maybe a restaurant or shops, but Yang Tian Ming suggested that he should as much as possible reduce investments to avoid breaking his wealth. The purchase risk compare poor, but on the other hand might be easy to make a profit. Yang explained the embroidery on the boxer shorts gives the idea of 'wealth and honor', and also they represent the dragon.
Yang also prophesied that Ekin should as much as possible avoid trips to Japan for work and pleasure. He predicts that in the third, sixth, ninth or twelth months of the lunar calendar there will be a big earthquake. He felt that the sixth and ninth months have the highest risk. He further prophesied that when the earths crust beneath Japan moves, Taiwan will be the first to experience the aftershocks and there would be a tsunami threat. So Yang Tian Ming suggested that Ekin and his friends should as much as possible avoid being in Japan during those months. Ekin also expressed that last month after he was in Japan seemed peaceful, however in the short term it was unlikely he would be going there.
Apple Daily
February 16, 2005
Ekin is in the middle of filming TVB's new drama, due to the fact he will act as a member of the Hong Kong Flying Rescue Service he spent the entire day at the team's heqadquarters. It so happened that they were called out to make a rescue of some climbers, so Ekin was able to see first hand how they respond to an emergency situation. Yesterday he was in Central filming some outdoor scenes.
Because Ekin had to work on filming on Valentines Day, he and his girlfriend Gigi had a meal together in advance of the holiday. He was asked if he had given her flowers. He replied that because so many pesticides are used to make the flowers bright and large, this can destroy the environment and ecology, so he didn't give either flowers or a gift.
Ekin spoke about his manager's joining new Record Company BMA. He pointed out that he and Lam Shan Shan have a silent contract. He said that he had been invited to join the same record company, but now he didn't know where he will definitely go. He openly said he didn't rule out working at BMA but currently filming for TVB was his priority.
Additionally, Ekin indicated that there have been some break-ins in his neighborhood. He said that at one time he actually believed he witnessed the whole process. He immediately called the police. When asked if he had strengthened the protection of his home, he laughed and said that his most valuable possessions were his two cats.
February 18, 2005
Finally the movie Divergence will be released on April 28, 2005. Originally everyone had wanted a January premiere, but it proved difficult to accomplish, even though the actors worked extremely hard to have all scenes finished before the end of the year.
The climatic scenes of the movie take place at night in the rain. The actors had for days on end to work overnight. The scene is a fight between the two main leading actors, Ekin and Aaron. To create the right mood Director Benny Chan arranged for two fire engines to spray water to make it look like a heavy rain. To complete the scene the actors were drenched with water for 8 or 9 hours on each of 5 consecutive days. In addition during the scene Ekin was bound by the neck with wire netting for a half hour. Aaron suffered the most, as his eyes became very red and swollen, so much so that at one point he went to the hospital to have them checked out.
Aaron plays a Police Officer, and Ekin plays a lawyer who is representing a criminal, the main female lead Angelica Lee plays Ekin's wife. Aaron thinks she may once have been his girlfriend who disappeared, and after investigating them, he takes the law into his own hands sparking the brawl in the rain. Angelica during the scene has to lie on her stomach to embrace Ekin, she said that because of all the water he mouth was full of mud, but still the director didn't shout cut, so she had to endure until the scene was finished to spit the sand and mud out of her mouth. She also said that the staff were most attentive to Ekin handing him a towel and tea, while she had to go in search of a towel herself. Angelica noted that as a single female lead this was the first time she had confronted not getting special treatment.
Benny Chan is renown for working his actors very hard, and has in the past ordered some impossible scenes. Ekin however, despite exhaustion still chatted and laughed with the staff. Even the director often specially took care to teach Ekin how to perform the scene. Aaron on the other hand at the end of a scene went to the side to rest. He didn't chat with Ekin at all. The staff seldom went near afraid to disturb his rest.
February 21, 2005
In Ekin's latest film “后备甜心“ he has kissing scenes with both Karina Lam and Bobo Chan. Reporters asked Ekin if there was a lot of saliva. He laughed and said that the saliva was all dry. This is the fourth time that Ekin has collaborated on a movie with Karina, this time however his hot kissing scene is with his old friend Chen Guangrong's girlfriend. Ekin was not at all embarrassed, he indicated that collaborate much and already have a tacit agreement, and even more importantly everyone is a professional actor. He was asked which was the most difficult and unforgettable scene. He pointed to a scene where he is like a spider hanging upside down, but this is not a kiss scene, but rather an intimate conversation. During filming he was upside down for a long time, and it became late, he said he felt as if all his blood had rushed to his brain.
Reporters also wanted to know about other kissing scenes a nd asked whether the kissing scene with Gigi in the musical stage play had the most significance. Ekin was embarrassed and declined to talk about it saying merely that it was a hard question to answer because each person he has worked with has a different feeling. However the first such scene probably made the deepest impression, since then there have been many scenes with many actresses. But even the hotly aroused scene with Kelly Lin in Legend of Speed is just what is required by the script.
February 23, 2005
Ekin was interviewed about his new movie “后备甜心“ which is due to premiere the beginning of March. As well as passionate scenes with both Bobo Chan and Karena Lam, Ekin as Jack is in one part of the film like a partner in an illicit affair. Ekin discussed this impression:
In the scene Karena and I together keep someone in reserve. But it is not all tragic, the most miserable is Karena unaware I keep someone in reserve, and erroneously thinks she is my girlfriend. The reality is I have never experienced this kind of experience, but I think that for men such a situation is difficult, however for women relatively easy."
Ekin talked more about the tacit agreement Karena and himself have developed after three past movies, Floating Landscape, Heroic Duo, and Six Strong Guys.
Even when have to do passionate scenes it is not embarrassing, completely is work, everyone is a professional. At the beginning when first meet Karena she wasn't very communicative, however gradually there is talk. I am still by others accused of being the go-between for my friend Chen Guangrong and Karena.
Also mention the passionate kiss with Bobo Chan is one very much have to see. Bobo indicated that she needed Ekin's experience to help her with this scene.
In the scene Bobo takes the initiative and I have to bend at the waist and that way kiss. At the beginning think is very ordinary, but after an evening's filming it was sufficient. There was no exchange of saliva because the whole evening both dry. However Bobo filmed a TV drama before and has received training, I feel she is a pretty good actress, she particularly performed this scene well.
Ekin explained that this talk of passionate scenes caused his to remember 1992, the first time he performed a passionate in bed scene with Liu Jia Ling. This scene his whole life he has never forgotten.
Now remembering this, a kiss scene seems a small thing, an in bed scene a bigger thing. At that time I was very afraid, I made a telephone call to my manager's company to ask that they don't add this scene. The company say no problem, but seem like I was deceived, I didn't prepare mentally and feel good. Because of the stormy situation then, now doing similar scenes I am unafraid.
Ekin spoke of the movie's hardest scene being when he hangs upside down from a skylight.
The director demanded I play the part of a spider, so for an evening indoors I hang upside down for the camera shots, before film drink wine and in additionthere are 'time rush' scenes where day meets night, night meets day like that.
Ekin also remembers the hardships of filming Stormriders, and also when Karena had to step on a stool to be tall enough. Ekin teased her and laughed saying "too bad"
Ekin also mentioned that nowadays the Hong Kong movie business is not very good. In addition home produced films seem to be limited in direction, so he quietly waits for a good movie theme, then will make the movie. Currently, Ekin is in the process of filming the TV drama 随时候命。 The story revolves around the Hong Kong aviation rescue service team's story. Ekin is well aware that the challenge nature is very great.
tom ent 
February 28, 2005
Yesterday Ekin and Charmaine were in Kowloon filming an outside scene for the TVB drama 随时候缪命. Due to the fact that they are both wel known celebrities they attracted a large number of people surrounding the area to watch and using camera's to take pictures.At one point they blocked the entrance to the shopping plaza. Midway through the security team had to disperse them so that they wouldn't cause the filming to have to stop.
It has been a long time since Ekin filmed a TV drama, the beginning part acting as a couple with Charmaine was developped later when he receieved the script he only just knew. He explained that he had already spent a week at the flying service base training. He explained that he has some command over his role in the drama, and as he likes action scenes he can ask to have more. Reporters asked him if he was especially excited over this role. He replied that to pilot and airplane to save life was completely interesting, because the reality is that it is very hard to do. As to dangerous scenes he hadn't yet filmed them.
Charmaine only wore thin clothes despite the cool temperatures. She explained that to wear thicker clothes for the scene was not possible. She was asked how she felt about working with Ekin. She said that the filming time wasn't enough for her to answer, however temporarily both fairly comfortable. Charmaine also explained why she had her hair cut short. In the story she has to do brain surgery so she can't have long hair.
