Fala Chen Felt Uneasy With Her Own Acting
At first glance, it would seem that Fala Chen (陳法拉) has everything – a stable career, getting the lead role in heavily promoted Triumph in the Skies 2 <衝上雲霄II>, and a wealthy boyfriend. However, Fala’s life took a hit in May when her contract ended with TVB and her relationship continued to spiral downwards when she broke up with Daniel Sit (薛世恆). With her acting skills in Triumph in the Skies 2 being widely criticized, Fala admitted that she had difficulty improvising her acting and felt lost and confused in her scenes.
Difficulties Adjusting in “Triumph in the Skies 2”
Last year when Fala was filming for Triumph in the Skies 2, it was already rumored that she was not on good terms with both Francis Ng (吳鎮宇) and the rest of the production crew due to her tardiness and inability to pull her weight. When asked about this, Fala revealed that she had difficulties adjusting to Triumph in the Skies 2’s filming style because of the different places they had to fly to and her jetlag.
“I still had jetlag on the first day in England. The next morning, I had a solo scene with lots of dialogue. The scene spoke of me going to a beautiful countryside and staring at the open sky while becoming very emotional. Francis was a passerby. However, we arrived at a ball field and there was a big bus. A good actor will not be disturbed by [these changes] and has to be fully immersed in character. That day, it was very cold, below zero degrees in England. We wore a few layers and had warming pads. It should have been very romantic, but it was very cold. My clothes were very thin and I wore a skirt. I was shivering when I took off my clothes. I could not even utter the lines, and they had to change the dialogue last minute. The director had something to say; Francis had something to say, and I wanted to recite the lines I had memorized. With so many things going on, I felt confused and lost. Although I cried and did my part, when I returned [to the hotel] I realized there were many things that I shouldn’t have done that way. But I could not regret and redo the scene.”
Fala continued, “I could not sleep because of the jetlag. I was reading the script in the hotel room and feeling upset, I cried out. I have a lot of scenes in England, from the beginning until the end [of the series]. I did not adjust well, and each night I felt the same way [returning to the hotel].”
Fala added that Francis liked to improvise on the filming set. Fala said, “There were many things that I had to adjust to on the set. It was very different from past series. It was tough trying to adapt. Perhaps I am a person who has a standardized process and doesn’t know how to be flexible. I try to understand and do something using the same formula, so I don’t really know how to adapt. I’m too tight and tired. While filming, I realized there are bound to be problems. I didn’t even know how to act the upcoming [scenes], but I didn’t want to just utter the dialogue with some expressions; I wouldn’t be true to myself.
Fala felt that she lacked the strong acting foundation that Francis possessed due to his extensive acting resume. “I felt very hollow; this feeling was especially strong over the last two years. This was the same unease that accompanied me each day at work.”
Besides filming Triumph in the Skies 2, Fala took part in upcoming Anniversary series, Will Power <傳愛事務所>. “Both series evoked different emotions, while one required a lot of filming locations, Will Power was based on mostly office settings. I thought it would be simple, but it’s not. The number of documents and legal terms on paper scared me; I didn’t know what to do.” According to Fala, she is rather stiff when it comes to acting because she does not know how to improvise properly. Rather than being flexible with the script, she would play it by the books but would not get the satisfactory results everyone was looking for.
Tracing Back the Steps
Fala realized that in order to sort out her problems, she would have to take a short hiatus from acting. In order to pursue her dreams, she made the decision to go back to school in the United States. Fala believed it is a great opportunity for her to unwind from the stress and pick up the books again. “I can go shopping, attend concerts and watch shows! It’s been nine years since I’ve graduated from university. I’ve missed the lifestyle of a student where all the weekends are jam-packed with fun activities!”
On the topic of her meeting up with HKTV’s Ricky Wong (王維基) and Media Asia’s Peter Lam (林建岳), Fala said that she is only attending classes in the summer and has not fully planned her next step yet. She will try out her summer classes and decide whether she will continue studying, or accept intermittent work projects as well. She had a good experience filming horror movie, Tales from the Dark 2 <奇幻夜>, which allowed her more preparation time as opposed to filming TV series.
There is still a lot more left for Fala to learn, including finding the right balance in her life to be happy. “Right now, I need to learn how to live, to observe and experience life more. To spend more time with my family and the people around me, allowing me to mature.”
Source: Apple Daily
This article is written by Su for JayneStars.com.
“The director had something to say; Francis had something to say, and I wanted to recite the lines I had memorized.”
Filming opposite Francis may have triggered all the insecurities Fala had about her own acting over the last two years. Francis admitted to improvising his lines to make his character more vivid in another interview, which would have thrown off Fala in their mutual scenes.
Both mention their filming experience in England and their different acting approaches may have spurred the resulting rumors that they didn’t get along.
Jet lag and insomnia are another big problems for Fala Chen in filming TITS 2 in England and France. How can a person function well with such problems? It was even more difficult for Fala to react to Francis when he improvised his lines.
I think it is wise for Fala to take some acting courses to enrich her acting skills.
This isn’t the first time Fala has worked with Francis though and surely she should’ve prepared herself better.
I’m not against Fala and although I find her performance in TITS2 a little below par than usual, I still think she can improve. Hopefully the acting course and a break from filming will help her out.
Not the first time working with Francis …… which other drama series? Can’t remember.
Fala and Francis were both in the first movie of Laughing Gor. She played Francis’s sister if I remember correctly.
Filming movies is a different experience than TV. It’s not filmed at the same pace. I remember even when Kate was struggling in TVB shows, she won a newcomer award for a movie
Fala, don’t blame Francis if you can’t keep up. You’re not new at this game anymore. And Francis can improvise, you can still recite your lines. Your problems is not reciting lines. As the pictures at the top shows, your problem is acting itself. The problem is some part you, but mainly the role is not for you. You in the end should know your capabilities. If you feel you can’t be tested, surrender the role to someone who can or who dares to say I can.
well said.
do want to note, this problem is not just in fala though. it’s also in a lot of other tvb artist, including some of my favorite ones.
the blame is on tvb though. artist don’t have much selecting abilities. they have to take the passive end of the stick.
Where does she blame Francis? She says he likes to improvise which is of course hard for her since her acting is very by the books. She admits it’s her problem directly, and indirectly by leaving to take acting classes. We all know that you don’t pick roles in TVB, you are given roles. How was she supposed to know she would be so inadequate against Francis before starting to film – and by then it’s too late to change your mind.
How do you know that her problem with reciting lines (which she does not say is the only problem) aren’t ruining her concentration, making it hard to get into the character? How do you know that Francis improvising doesn’t throw her off, since she has to adapt to his changes? I’m not an actor, so I have no idea how one submerses yourself into a character.
agree. sounds like fala although admitting her weakness still trying to push the blame onto jetlags, and francis improvisation and experience.
this funn lim’s thought her english is powerful and anyhow accuse ppl. SINCE WHEN SHE BLAME FRANCIS??? GO BACK TO SCHOOL FUNN LIM BEFORE YOU THOUGHT YOUR ENGLISH IS POWERFUL. AND FOR GOODNESS SAKE, STOP WRITING GRANDMOTHER REVIEWS!
Fala isn’t that bad with her role as Holiday… You can’t be criticizing her now as Jet Lag could have possibly affected her a little therefore she was a little not up to standard… However I still like Fala as Holiday in Triumph In the Skies. She could have tried her best in filming that role and even decided to go for acting classes… Fala, 我永遠支持你！♥
Other people not having jet lag as well?
I feel nasty for saying this, but i kinda agree with you. Fala is definitely not up to standard! I think TVB was trying too hard to promote fala hence giving her a starring role with a veteran actor. A big mistake! kate would have been a better choice
Since when did she blame of Francis? The girl blamed herself for not being able to adapt.
“Fala added that Francis liked to improvise on the filming set. Fala said, “There were many things that I had to adjust to on the set. It was very different from past series. It was tough trying to adapt. Perhaps I am a person who has a standardized process and doesn’t know how to be flexible. I try to understand and do something using the same formula, so I don’t really know how to adapt. I’m too tight and tired. While filming, I realized there are bound to be problems. I didn’t even know how to act the upcoming [scenes], but I didn’t want to just utter the dialogue with some expressions; I wouldn’t be true to myself.”
SInce you’re a writer, shouldn’t you at least read an article thoroughly, and objectively before making comment?
Sky, you can say she blames herself but in her own words in some ways she is explaining why she acted the way she did because of Francis. Isn’t that shifting a bit of the blame?
I do think Fala is a competent actress and maybe it just so happen that there are so many articles about her inability to cope, etc which makes it seem as if she is not ready yet, as an actress and in the barrage of criticism. But I do think other actresses had it just as bad, even the actors, just so happens we have similar articles in one place so make it seem like she is really really in a bad light; you may say she was exceptionally harsh on herself, but to others she seems whiny and all that. For me, I have followed this series for 15 episodes now and all I can say is she is a total miscast and she really was terrible in a character that does not suit her which means she is an actress now exposed as a weak one. Such articles may show her humility but I see blaming; conditions, actors, dialogues, scripts and of course in the end all point to herself as she aptly pointed out. Like I said, she is already in this business for how many years? TVB in the past allowed her 8 hours of sleep? She never had jet lag or travel lag? Or she is the only one? It does her a disservice to explain too much.
Which brings me to a question; all these articles are they from one source of interview with Fala (which meant she only ever said all these once) or multiple interviews (which means she has been repeating more than once, each with more reasons added)?
Funn,
I think the best way to not see it as blaming is to don’t interpret it that way. Yes, the extensive explanations can make it sound like she is blaming but it also just sounds like she is telling it as it was. She was jet lagging, she was uncomfortable, she was insecure and being paired with veteran just happened to magnify it ten folds. Lol. Thats how I read it.
@ Funn
Why did you focus on just Francis? Fala mentions numerous reasons for why she failed, including saying she’s too standarised and inflexible in her acting. How is that shifting the blame? And especially, how is that blaming Francis when she only mentions he did something in the context of how she wasn’t good enough to keep up?
We have different way of reading this article. For me I agree with Funn. She do seems like pushing it to Francis or jetlag and whatsoever. She does admit that she is not that good but she do meant that it is all because of jetlag, lag of sleep, director & Francis.
I’m also with Funn on this article. Yes Fala acknowledge her lacking ability, but she seems to push excuses such as jet lag and costars impromptu improvisation as the ‘reason’ she can’t do well.
It’s just like someone who’s late, of course admitting he’s late, but then started throwing excuses about traffic jams and lack of sleep due to noisy neighbours.
I agree with Advo. Lol. I don’t see how she’s blaming.
“…she seems to push excuses such as jet lag and costars impromptu improvisation as the ‘reason’ she can’t do well.”
But what I read was she can’t improvise and it wasn’t because of others she couldn’t improvise. Its simply she doesn’t know how so when she saw all the others improvising, she knew she isn’t up there at all in terms of acting skills.
“It’s just like someone who’s late, of course admitting he’s late, but then started throwing excuses about traffic jams and lack of sleep due to noisy neighbours.”
I don’t count those as excuses because the truth is there were traffic jams and probably, maybe lack of sleep due to noisy neighbors. But of course if you’re the supervisor, you would see them as excuses since you’re the tardy employee but it does not wipe out the fact there were traffic jams. Lol.
@ menuiq
Fala says: “A good actor will not be disturbed by [these changes] and has to be fully immersed in character.”
Fala says explicitly a good actor would not have been thrown off by the things that she was thrown off by, which were this, this and this. She is ADMITTING that she wasn’t adequate. How is that excusing, pushing the blame, etc. etc.?
Shifting the blame would be sorry I’m late, but it’s because of this, this and this.
Yes, people read what they want to read.
@Advo,
you may be right.
But.. Since everyone has their own interpretation for this article. So do Fala. We never know what she really meant. We are just making assumption here. 🙂
I agree with funn, she does seem to be pushin the blame onto external factors other than herself.
Taking the traffic analogy, even if there was a traffic jam, for her it seems like theres a traffic jam everyday then cos most of her scenes seemed still, not well executed etc. then she should either wake up earlier to avoid the jam or make a detour and not bang head with the jam situation everyday when she knows its a problem.
Sidetrack a bit, i remember the scene where she spilled coffee over francis’s notebook and when francis found out and she was trying to explain she accidentally spilled coffee on it, she fumbled with her pronounciation of the word “spill” but was surprised that it wasnt edited and tvb still showed that. Never seen b4..
It certainly did strike me that she had problems with filming with Francis because I’ve mostly noticed particular sub par acting in their scenes. Not necessarily a clash or personalities, but that his acting throws her off – and given the pacing for TV filming, there’s no room for error and retakes. So they basically have to make do.
I mean, I’ve never noticed Fala had a problem with crying scenes in any of her past shows so it’s strange that she suddenly can’t even squeeze out a couple fake tears. And stranger that the director didn’t give her some eyedrops and re-did the scene.
Fala Chen is very honest and true to herself. She knows what she is lacking and what she needs to acquire in order to be a good and professional artiste. Not many people are so brave to accept her hollowness.
Best of luck, Fala. You are so young and have lots of time to achieve your goals.
Francis Ng is 52 years old while you just 31; You are still very young so don’t cry, you will be great in the near future. Your acting are very good in the previous series.
Francis Ng’s acting was not good when he was 31 years old. Moreover, he graduated from TVB’s training classes in 1985, which helped him a lot in his acting skills.
Fala could have done better in TITS II..
it’s good that she was given an opportunity to work with veteran actors like Francis Ng, it might be tough, at least it allowed her to identify all the elements that are absent in her acting skillset .. time to change for the better…
I agree, especially when she ran up the hill, supposed to cry, she looked sad but no tears were seen. she looked like she was crying when she wasnt that made the weakness obvious. If she looked like she was holding back her tears, i believe it would have seemed better
It’s good that Fala acknowledges her flaws in acting but this article also sounds like Fala is complaining and ranting about her difficulties while filming TITS2.
How come it’s only Fala who has difficulties filming with Francis? Nancy and Ron has their best scenes when they’re with Francis, how come they don’t face the difficulties that Fala faced? I think it’s more of Fala’s own inability to adapt to her more experienced costar than Francis being a difficult person to film with, because other cast are having their best scenes when Francis are with them, but it went opposite for Fala, who I think her best scenes are when she’s with Michelle Yim or Chilam.
It is quite difficult to act Holiday’s character (Fala). Holiday is a very complicated character ……….smart, lively, intelligent and very independent, but at the same time strong-headed, stubborn, doesn’t know what she wants, day-dream about her suddenly-disappeared boyfriend, does not want to show her emotions to anyone including her mother.
On the other hand, Isaac is just a straight-forward, sincere, and lovable brother of Sam Tong. A lot easier to act this character.
Coco is also a lovable character. She is loyal to her friends and Sam Tong’s family. Nothing special about her personality. Easy to act.
Therefore, it is not fair to say that Fala’s inability to act with veteran Francis. Moreover, Fala has a lot of scenes and dialogues co-acting with Francis and Chilam, but the other two don’t. Ron’s role is not very heavy and Nancy’s is even lighter.
Personally I don’t think any of the top 5 fadans can act Holiday’s character to everyone’s expectations.
Understandably that the character has depth (I mean that is why Holiday is one of the main actresses) but how much is she getting paid again for this series?
So far, Holiday is seen as this lively, stubborn, independent (to a certain extent), strong-headed, immature, inconsiderate character. Sure, the character may be a twenty-something year old who doesn’t know what she wants in life but if Fala can’t handle the being a main character with depth, personality, and flaws, she shouldn’t have taken the role.
Honestly, she’s been acting since 2006…which is approximately…7 years? She is not exactly new to the industry.
@sandycherry –
Your analysis thus far is only up to episode 15. Let’s wait until the end of the series to give Fala that excuse. I’m convinced other characters on the show have more complexity than what you have just listed.
myolie has a more complex role. her history with chilam is kept hidden from audience and her role isn’t supposed to show emotions and is an ice queen but she’s expected to make audience empathized with her and she makes a great crying scene in episode 15 when audience don’t know her history with chilam but still able to feel her pain. fala failed to connect to audience in her sad scenes.
It is certainly Fala’s inability to adapt to Francis’ acting no matter what. But compare the types of scenes she has had with Francis with Nancy and Ron’s scenes with Francis first. Both Coco and Issac have had very straight forward, jovial scenes only. In fact, Nancy especially, have had very little to do. Those are not complex scenes so of course, they would not be hard regardless of if it was with Francis or someone else entirely. As you said, Fala has better scenes with Michelle and Chilam. I would also say she has good scenes with Him Law and the guy who plays Hero. So clearly, Fala has mostly a problem filming with Francis – that’s not an excuse, just a fact. Fala just doesn’t have adequate technique or experiences and it shows the most with someone as good as Francis.
So what I speculated was right. She wasnt living. She is an actress, the robotic kind. Wake up, memorize lines, recite them, act, repeat.
Glad she knows she has issues with her acting, that is already a gigantic step. Plus the fact she is willing to accept her flaws and go on to fix them that deserves applause. This lady will do fine in the future.
From the interview here Fala does sounds like a robotic type who plays by predetermined instructions and by the book, and this type will have a hard time adapting to flying scripts or changes, since she prefers to memorize and prepare everything earlier.
In the future, I suggest that Fala stay away from Chik Kei Yi and foul mouthed Eric Tsang’s productions, who are notable for their last minute scripts.
I think most artistes (if not all) have difficulty in acting Jonathan Chik’s or Eric Tsang’s drama series with their none or “flying paper” scripts
Aimee Chan was in a Jonathan Chik’s production (Master of Play) and still managed to do well. Jonathan praised her in an interview he did. Aimee is someone who has limited Chinese skills too. (she couldn’t read Chinese at all when she started although she has been learning it these recent years).
So if you really put a lot of effort into what you do, I think any barrier can be overcomed.
On the fly scripts work fine with people who can memorize things real quickly so they can focus on the emotional part of the acting.
This isn’t exactly a determinant of whether the artist is good or not. It’s just finding a certain trait and making it more suitable to acting. I rather watch Sheren excel flawlessly on a well-prepared script than to say she’s not a good enough actress because she didn’t have the skill set to “memorize quickly.”
katy kung has much lesser experience than fala and got a quite heavy and complex role in chik’s beauty at war, sparring with veterans ada, moses, sheren and she still did a great job even with all the ‘flying paper’. what she did was she makes sure she understood and have the image of what her role is like, so that it’s easy for her to adapt to all the ‘flying paper’. i have a feeling fala doesn’t understand holly that’s why her performance is below par.
Katy Kung’s character in “Beauty at War” is much simpler than Fala’s character in “TITS 2”. Though it is hard to memorize the “flying paper” scripts in “Beauty at War”, but her emotions were much simpler than Fala’s character in “TITS 2”.
But is this a problem with Fala, or with how TVB pushes these artists? We’ve all read stories about the tight schedules, long filming times, and short filming goals. It’s quite possible that what Fala became was a product of this system. When scriptwriters can’t even provide you with a script until hours before a shoot how can you study and prepare? TVB series seem more and more to be empty promotional shells… where roles are given to actors/actresses based on whom they think people will watch, rather than based on whom would best fill the role.
Hopefully after moving away from TVB Fala will be able to continue to challenge herself and grow… rather than stick to formulaic performances designed to please fans.
but fala isn’t the only artiste in tvb who experience all the harshness of filming. for example in triumph2 everyone else such as myolie, ron, nancy all mist be having jetlags and lots of scene in a limited time too but why they can still do a great job? that explains fala’s weakness in acting and great that she decided to take acting class!
I think it depends on what you consider to be a great job. I honestly haven’t watched a memorable “drama” in quite some time from TVB. They’ve been average at best. The only TVB productions I’ve found interesting have been the comedy dramas, but they don’t really rely on strong performances.
Yes, I think she has pretty much admitted as much, and even Francis said she was a very by the book type of actress. The problem is that she’s hasn’t had any training – TVB had already ceased their acting classes – so she’s only been through the TVB grinder.
The first step towards improvement is admitting you need to improve. I like that she’s not too proud to admit it and is willing to take the steps towards improvement.
Sheesh stop writing articles about Fala’s acting. The more I read about it, the more I don’t care. Her acting is not any worst than those chubby or curvy newcomers TVB is trying to promote.
My goodness, how can you compare Fala’s acting with those newcomers (such as Rebecca Zhu, Christine Kuo, Eliza Sam, or even Aimee Chan)? Fala has a lot of flaws, so does everyone else.
You said it yourself those are newcomers. So Fala should be better than them, otherwise what has she been doing these past 8 years?
what are you on about. You basically agree with what I said.
At least she recognize her flaws unlike so many other actors who keep repeating their mistakes and refuse to acknowledge them. Her acting is not on point on some certain scenes but i wouldn’t say I feel annoyed whenever I see her on screen.
She’s not a bad actress but not a great one either, just like others she has her flaws but the difference is she knows it and is willing to do something about it and that should be appreciated.
My opinion Charmaine is capable for this character “Holiday” she is more experienced and has worked on many different types of characters in her past but anyway is a good experienced for Fala to improve.
Charmaine is a good fit for this series.
Yoyo Mung would have worked except she may be too old for Chilam.
Well, Holly is the less emo version of Ah Yan in WHB
I was thinking Ada Choi, but both Charmaine and Ada are maybe a bit too old because Holiday is so unfocused/unsettled?
Charmaine got great chemistry with chilam in the past so i think she may be able to fit into the role well except audience may pigeon hole her with Chilam leaving Francis in a lose-lose situation.
I don’t tend to imagine Charmaine in someone else role and vice versa. Even though Fala is lacking in her portrayal of Holly, it never crossed my mind to think of another actress in her role.
The old CC shipper in me would like to see Chilam & Charmaine collaborate again in the future, though chances are very slim.
I don’t think Fala is miscast in Holiday just because she is lacking in some aspects of the character. And the reason is because I can’t think of anyone else who would be more suiting, considering who’s left in TVB and so on. I do think both Charmaine and Ada would be competent enough to portray a layered character like Holiday – and they would not stumble against Francis like Fala unfortunately did. But they are also more seasoned of course.
I cannot see Charmaine as a pilot……..
I am not a fan of Fala but really didn’t think she is that bad in TIT2. Then again making all these excuses is just adding fuel to flames
how can you be an actress if you cant rmb your lines…
well it’s good that she recognizes her flaws.
sigh..
maybe she’s just tired, should have stayed married
I actually don’t think she did that bad!!
It’s not easy to work with some veterans. I tried to imagine myself in Fala’s shoes, I think I probably wont be able to pull it at all. Hope she will move on, a lot of times it’s not easy to say that we dont get distracted from our personal lives when we go to work. We know we’ve to be professional, just that sometimes not all of us can control our emotions & thus affect our performance on our job.
Fala, really do not know how to act even talk really can’t hear what she talk in TITS 2. She acting not improved at all and very surprise why TVB will ask her to act in this series. supposed ask back Flora Chan go back TVB and act back in this series.
IMO, Fala did well in the laughing gor series (can’t recall the title of the series), worse off in queen of hearts n worst still now….
Fala is suck since episode 1 until now. No excuse, her acting is not natural at all, over acting n dun understand her character at all. Dressing also worst – tvb fault..
I actually think her character as holiday is rather difficult to act, and I do not personally feel fala is that bad after all.
I’m not talking side, but I find it is sad that a leading actress would go this far to explain why she cannot act. Tho I blame TVB for giving her a role she cannot handle. But quite honestly, I find Fala bad in all leading roles handed to her.
If I remember correctly, this whole thing about going back to school was even before TITS broadcasted. Did she realize her acting was bad even before audience criticism?
“Did she realize her acting was bad even before audience criticism?” – Yes, she did.
Fala just only has three leading roles, out of two are terrible, the comedy one is ok.
If I could give Fala some advice, I would recommend her to take up some writing, do some reading and learn how to ‘get in the character’s head’. That might be one way of learning how to improvise.
I don’t think her acting is that bad. I think most actresses would find a character like Holiday difficult to play.
I think Fala already studies up for her characters – she has mentioned that in the past. I actually think she should let go of the books and try different types of acting instead. Like stage work – if she can find anything. But most likely, she will try the movie industry because movie-filming allows for more time to get into character and getting a good take.
Exactly, Fala’s problem is she’s too cerebral as an actress (it’s like you can see the wheels turning in her head trying to figure out what is the appropriate reaction to a particular scene) and it pulls me, as a viewer out of the scene in that moment as I am reminded that she is only acting and not ‘being’ that character. Fala isn’t an instinctive actress who can build her characters in an organic way, the way the really good actors like Francis Ng do. Taking some time off from TVB to learn the basics of acting might help her to improve and come off as less robotic or too mannered in her delivery of lines.
I think the problem with Fala’s Holiday is that Fala doesn’t understand Holiday. Then there were all the other factors – jetlag, veteran actor, last minute script, her actual acting skills… Combine them all and Fala is doomed to fail. I know we’ve only watched 15 episodes thus far, but if she’s like this now I have little hope for her character becoming any more convincing. Good for her that she’s taking steps to improve herself, so I wish her good luck with that.
All the other actors dealt with those factors too and a majority of them are fine on-screen. They’re just excuses for Fala.
a lot of people in this world are not that talented and can’t accept the fact that they are not talented, that’s the problem
I wonder where the Fala Chen who was Ah Hing in MR went. Her tears were real… alright.
Yes! I was thinking about Fala in MR too. I remember the job interview scene was quite memorable and emotional, so I know Fala can cry!
Yes that scene was definitely memorable. I suppose she was able to connect with the character. Who knows?
But its good she’s taking a break and fix her flaws. She will be fine, very fine in the future.
most of her acting in dramas are not good, but the only time i thought she was good was in Moonlight Resonance 😛
Fala was good in Moonlight Resonance but that was a supporting role. She was quite bad in LOO and the modern series with Steven Ma and Yoyo Mung, and mediocre in NR. I was surprised when SG gave her an Asian drama award for that role because although the role was good, Fala’s performance itself was lacking. The last straw is TITS.
haha yeah i know it was a supprting role lol Moonlight Resonance was the only time her acting was good lol everything else was meh…
she always has this same expression lol
Funny how Fala still has so much news when she’s overseas, lol Did she do the interview beforehand and they’re just publishing them now?
I honestly have no clue. Are the reporters actually interviewing her in NY or on the phone? Well, in that case she can’t be blamed for not doing enough to promote the show!
All in all, Fala as Holiday is thumbSSSSSS down. Cannot see the depth of Holiday’s characters in her acting.
Well she did not do her homework I supposed but she has motivations anyways support u all d way Fala Chen!
This Holiday character is quite difficult to act. The character’s action in London is really annoying, so not totally her fault I guess.
Wow, Francis Ng’s take on Fala’s acting style/problem was spot on. He said Fala used too much logic in her acting and reading this interview, Fala herself confirmed it. She act by the book.
I watched TITS from episode 1-3 over the weekend. I personally don’t have problem with her acting. In fact, I think she did well in her role. I can really see her as someone without direction and lost because she can’t let go of her missing/dead boyfriend.
I think the casting of Fala in this role is not a bad choice. I don’t know how old Holiday is supposed to be, but, she’s not meant to be some teenager/young girl who hasn’t found her direction. She’s someone who was lost because she has not healed from her relationship, someone still floating at sea and not able to find land yet.
Just curious…..if someone replaced fala’s role who would that be?
Linda Chung is my pic. She excels at crying scenes & she’s played immature, spoiled brats before.
Any one of the fadans. Tavia, Kate or Linda. Tavia might be too old but she plays the immature and mischievous type of character well. Kate and Linda would have been perfect. It’s a really bland and generic role. It was probably up to who was available when Fala was cast.
KAte Tsui . I think she is able to play Holly well .
I totally cant fathom linda portraying holiday. Linda is better off becoming one of those air stewardess. Like others who commented, I agree that Kate is quite a good choice too.
Kate would be good at playing the emo part of Holiday, but I don’t think she would be good at playing the over-the-top happy part of Holiday.
She blames jet lag, the weather and her lack of ability to improvise.
While her admitting that she lacks the ability to make the script flexible, she blames the other actors for setting that standard where just memorizing the script isn’t enough anymore.
Instead of focusing on improving her acting, she takes a break from it to have “me” time in the United States.
You can tell why she’s such an inadequate actress.
I don’t see anything wrong with it. Some people are excellent to improvise …. such as Eric Tsang, Louis Yuen, Stephen Chow, or Lee Sze Chit, and some people are not. Improvise is only a minor part of acting, and not every artiste has to be good in it. Sheren Tang, Tony Leung, and Dodo Cheng are excellent artistes, but I don’t think they like or are good to improvise their lines.
Agree that Fala has to be more flexible in future if she wants to excel in her acting skills, especially if she is going to co-star with Stephen Chow, Eric Tsang, or Francis Ng.
Actually, it is wrong to say that Eric Tsang is good at improvising while Tony Leung is not. Eric is a very good emcee and tv host – that’s where his improvisational skills shine the most, because tv hosts need to think on their feet to ensure there’s no boring lag in between segments in a program. However, Eric Tsang is not that brilliant when it comes to improvising scenes and changing lines as an actor. Teresa Mo has complained that working in movies with Eric is very stressful because he keeps changing her lines haphazardly, even on the day of shooting, but she doesn’t praise Eric unlike how she praised Stephen Chow for his improvisational skills and brilliant comic timing.
As for Tony Leung, he is Wong Kar Wai’s muse and regular collaborator. Wong Kar Wai is notorious for filming without scripts and often changing the entire storyline of a movie halfway through filming. If Tony Leung cannot improvise, there is no way he could have worked so much with Wong Kar Wai, and win so many best actor awards for acting in WKW films. It’s completely wrong to say that Tony Leung cannot improvise his lines.
I don’t see where you disagree with me?
I was saying that Fala is partly blaming her bad acting on the fact that Francis likes to improvise his lines while she likes to go by the script, when there are actors that just stick to the script and are still good at acting unlike Fala.
First of all, she wasn’t blaming Francis and admitted a good actor would not be thrown off by any of the things she mentions, including someone who improvises.
Second, taking acting classes in NY IS working to improve her acting, and not what you call taking some “me” time. The fact that you interpret acting classes to be a vacation just shows your agenda.
Completely agree with Advo.
What I get from this interview of Fala’s is she admitted she’s not a good enough actress and her acting method is inadequate.
And because of this experience and realisation, she go on a hiatus to take up acting classes to improve herself. From this action, you can see her resolution to improve her acting. How many actresses will drop everything to go study when they are still under heavy promotion? It takes courage to leave the safety nest.
I’m bewildered that anyone can interpret her going away to take acting classes as not focusing on improving her acting.
Lastly, the jet lag and insomnia comment is just telling as it is.
Agree completely. It’s amazing to see how people twist her words into her blaming others… she clearly isn’t. She’s listing her shortcomings and giving us the reasons why she felt she didn’t perform as well as giving us the reasons why she’s leaving TVB to pursue acting lessons to improve. She obviously felt that she wasn’t going to get better in the meat grinder that is TVB.
I think people’s comments are jaded by their dislike for the person.
I like her and I think she’s gorgeous. I think she has enough charisma to be a leading actress, just not the acting skills. In the article, she admits that she’s not good at acting because of reasons x and y. Those reasons have nothing to do with herself but more external conflicts that have interfered with her ability to act. Which is really blaming her bad acting on other things.
I really don’t care about Fala’s personal life so I had no idea that she was taking acting classes in New York. All it says in this article, which is what we’re discussing, is that she is going to America to take some classes, go shopping, attend concerts and watch shows.
And Fala portrays herself as a professional and acts like a diva and getting paid well too but can’t weathered through difficult filming conditions while other casts and crew members are able too…Oh pity for her, NOT!!!
people just needs to stop critizing fala in this series, like what else do u want her to do.. she already admitted that she didnt perform her best in this series, therefore shes doing something about it and for future series and going to the states to attend acting classes to improve herself and find herself so she can be better in the future.
It is not only this series that the viewers are critical of her acting, but the other series as well.
I think most people here don’t like her personality no matter how well
she acts.
I agree that she is not the most polite and considerate artiste. She never bothers to please her colleagues or audience. This is one of Fala’s flaws.
Fala, if you want to be well-liked by people and achieve future success, you need to change your blunt and straight-forward personality besides improving your acting skills.
Sandcherry,
I like her personality. Straight forward, straight to the point. It is true you get the easier road if you suck up or always try to be the person you’re not, but to each their own.
It really isn’t just the entertainment industry. People in almost every field strongly believes ‘lets be considerate and put on a good show in front of everyone’ but once you really get to know that person, you want to strangle them. I had a couple of students (students, older students, graduate students, ages 25+) when I taught the introductory OT course where they put this front where team work was highly emphasized. I caught them at a bad time. Heard them speak… present themselves outside… My oh my.
So really, I like people who stick to who they are. Why? Because it’s a long life ahead. A little leisure here for pretending to be someone you’re not. I don’t know. Sounds crazy to me.
I agree with you, Crystal, because I am not much different. I try to be polite most of the time, but I don’t like to “suck up” to people. I have my own principles and philosophy. If you don’t like me, fine. However, in the entertainment industry, it is really quite different. If you want to achieve more success and have more people like you, you need to put up with people.
Typical examples:
Myolie always praised Francis since the first day they collaborated together in TITS, and Francis always talked well about her. Have to agree that Myolie is very smart and knows how to get along with people well, especially her seniors.
Fala had so much problem with Francis because she did not suck up to Francis. This was to her disadvantage.
In terms of acting, I wouldn’t say Myolie’s is senior or better than Fala’s. But why did Fala have so many criticisms from Francis? Of course, another reason is Fala has too many scenes co-acting with Francis, and Holday (Fala) is a very wild. weird and unreal character.
That is true. But I think Myolie is just like that by nature, not that she was purposely trying to go for those compliments and good words. Given that, can’t compare someone with that kind of get-along nature (innate) vs someone who is blunt/straight forward (innate as well). Lol.
I don’t think highly of anyone in TVB right now. Tavia use to sparkle, she lost that touch recently… maybe she should take a break, like Fala. Kate can act almost any kind of role but she’s lacking something. I don’t know what that something is. Fala is eye candy and is quite competent but she already spoke out her flaws. Myolie, same as Tavia, lost that touch a long time ago.