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Table of Contents
PING PONG PLAYA Screenings
Jimmy Tsai, co-writer and star of PING PONG PLAYA JASON SOEDA: Aloha, Jimmy! Was it fun co-writing the script for PING PONG PLAYA, knowing that you would get to recite your own lines? JIMMY TSAI: Aloha!!! Co-writing the script with Jessica was a total blast! The funny thing is, I originally didn't know I was going to be reciting C-dub's lines myself. We had actually started writing it just with the character in mind, not necessarily me playing him - let me make a correction: rather, I didn't know I was necessarily going to play him. But Jessica did! After we established that I was going to indeed be playing C-dub, then, yeah, it became a fun exercise where I would make sure C-dub's lines felt natural by saying them out loud. I actually use that as a tool myself sometimes when writing dialogue - just reading the lines out loud to make sure that there's some flow to them. I think there are certainly times when screenwriters fall in love too much with words on the page, not necessarily thinking about how they will sound out loud. You have to take that into account 'cause not everyone's going to be able to get an actor like an Al Pacino or Tom Cruise for every role. I mention those guys 'cause they're such great actors they could essentially read a phone book and make it sound dramatic. JS: Did you enjoy collaborating with Jessica Yu? How did that come about? JT: I can't say enough how great a time I had working with Jessica - she is an absolutely amazing woman! The story behind how that all came about basically goes like this - let me break it down. In chronological order. First off, I work for Cherry Sky Films, the production company behind PING PONG PLAYA and THE KILLING OF A CHINESE COOKIE. I was doing stuff on the business and development side, including accounting. We had helped Jessica out with a documentary of hers called IN THE REALMS OF THE UNREAL, and we had such a great time working with her that we were all like, "We definitely need to find another project to work with Jessica on again." Sometime after that, some friends and I (including Cherry Sky producers Joan Huang and Jeffrey Gou) started this online clothing Web site called venomsportswear.com that featured these commercials I made and this obnoxious character named Christopher "C-dub" Wang. Jessica actually saw these commercials at a screening we did, and I guess she took a liking to the character, because when Joan later came up with the idea of doing a ping pong comedy and mentioned it to Jessica, Jessica said something to the effect of, "Wouldn't it be funny to do that movie and put C-dub in as the lead?" And that's how it all started! JS: What inspired you and Jessica to create the character C-Dub? (Or did you once dream of becoming a baller, too?) JT: Well, as I mentioned, the character started out of these spots that I did our Web site www.venomsportswear.com. I would say that, yeah, he partially came from this space in my youth where I did, at one point, dream of becoming a professional basketball player. Of course, reality sets in sooner or later, and you realize how impossible of a goal that is to achieve. But I think he's also inspired by the idea that maybe there was a Chinese-American guy who had the natural physiology and the true skill and potential to make it into the NBA (and make it as the first Chinese-American player in the NBA, 'cause you know how all the Chinese players - like Yao or Yi Jianlian or Wang Zhizhi - are all straight-up from China), but instead of cultivating and nurturing his natural talents, his parents forced him to do things like play the piano or violin or study for the SATs, even though that wasn't what he was best suited for. And now, the guy is probably doing something like - oh, I don't know. Accounting, maybe? Or IT? JS: THE KILLING OF A CHINESE COOKIE, which you produced, is also premiering at LVHIFF. What was your biggest challenge in the production of this movie? JT: I think the biggest challenge is happening right now - and that's getting this thing seen! Everyone who I tell about the movie, just off of hearing it's a documentary about the fortune cookie, are like, "Cool! What IS the story exactly?" It's a subject matter that everyone is familiar with, but very few people know about all this history of where it actually came from, etc., so people are naturally fascinated. Because who hasn't eaten a fortune cookie before? The production process was very, very smooth, and that credit really goes to Derek (the writer-director-producer) because he was so self-contained with the production and knew what he wanted to say. There's a lot of humor in the movie, and that's reflective of Derek, I think. The challenging part is in trying to find a distributor so that it can be seen by as many people as possible. Whether that's TV or DVD or whatever. I just want to help it find its home. It's a story that needs to be told but also is, at the same time, very educational and very entertaining. Very stylish, as well. JS: Is there any filmmaker you dream of collaborating with? JT: Well, hell yeah! The No.1 answer for that has got to be my cinematic hero: John Woo. I totally grew up on John Woo movies. Some of my favorites of all time: A BULLET IN THE HEAD, A BETTER TOMORROW, THE KILLER, HARD BOILED, and FACE/OFF. I was lucky enough to intern for him one summer over a decade ago - and let me say: not only is he a cinematic genius, but as a person, he is so kind-hearted and generous. I can't say enough good things about Mr. Woo. He is definitely a huge influence on the stories I want to tell - stories about brotherhood, friendship, honor, and loyalty. All with a healthy dose of bullets, blood, and high-octane action, of course! I want to help bring back that sub-genre of heroic bloodshed movies that he started. Also, here is a handful of filmmakers who I really admire and would collaborate with or work for in a heartbeat: Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Kevin Smith and Ang Lee. And two people I have to say that it's already been a dream to work for and with: Jessica Yu and Justin Lin! Both are amazing people and amazing artists. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to call them both my heroes as well as my friends. JS: Can you tell us about your upcoming projects? JT: Well, I'm working on a few scripts right now - several of which are much more action-oriented. As I mentioned before, one is in the vein of the heroic bloodshed movies that John Woo used to do in Hong Kong. I'm also collaborating with Jessica on another comedy script that she'll direct. Can't say too much about it since it's so early. I also continue to have my hands in producing two movies at Cherry Sky: one is a crime thriller set along the U.S.-Mexican border, the other is a horror movie that I think has the potential to become the next THE FLY (the Cronenberg version). And I think you might see C-dub again down the line somewhere. I've always kind of seen him as a Mars Blackmon-type character. And you know how Mars Blackmon had those Nike commercials with Michael Jordan after SHE'S GOTTA HAVE IT? I could definitely see some shoe spots with C-dub and Yao Ming or something to that effect. If you know anyone at Nike or Reebok or Adidas - please have them give me a call! Mahalo!!!
Just For Fun: HIFF Survey
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