Felix Wong to Mentor Daughter’s Acting Career
Last week, Felix Wong’s (黃日華) 21-year-old daughter, Adrian Wong (黃芷晴) successfully signed with CTI, and will collaborate with Felix in an upcoming detective drama produced by the company. Adrian also said that her father will be her personal director and teacher, exclaiming that she is a lot luckier than many newcomers.
Felix, who earned the name as “fire-breathing Wah” after publicly lashing out at TVB for their unfair treatment during the broadcast of Gun Metal Grey<刑警>, was asked if he was also a strict father to Adrian. Felix smiled warmly and said, “Mom is the strict one. I’m a little more open. When she said she wanted to join the entertainment industry, my wife and I did not oppose it, but we told her that she must finish college before following her pursuits.”
Felix said that he had seen many of Adrian’s school plays and she performed well in them. He laughed and said maybe it is because of the family genes, because Adrian’s mother, Leung Kit Wah (梁潔華), also used to be an actress, and was part of TVB’s Eighth Artist Training Class in which she graduated a year before Felix.
Felix continued, “At that time I was planning to sign with CTI, so why not bring Adrian along? The timing was perfect. However, it is a very difficult career. I already told her the pros and warned her about the cons. It is not equal pay for equal work. Interpersonal relationships are important and we often have unnatural sleeping patterns. I need to let her know the challenges so she is well-prepared psychologically.”
Adrian said, “Daddy told me that as a newcomer, I must do three things – I must be at work on time, memorize the script, and accept advice from seniors humbly and modestly. Daddy said as a newcomer, I must learn more and know more. In my eyes my Daddy is not fierce at all!” When asked if she considered competing in a beauty pageant to get in the circle, Adrian replied, “I’m not prepared to wear a bikini in front of so many people! Also, I was still in school at the time.”
Earlier, there were reports saying that Felix did not want his daughter to be a leng mo (pseudomodel). Felix clarified, “It’s hard to be flexible in this industry if she enters it in a certain image. My daughter asked me for advice – whether or not she should be an actress or a model. I thought she didn’t have the height and figure for a model, so I told her to just focus on acting. After she has achieved more results, she can then decide to move on to other jobs if she wants. And since I will be acting with her, I’ll be able to help her out more.”
When asked if Felix would feel a lot of pressure and stress, he said, “Not really pressured, but I think I will stress out my body! Even when I’m not working, I have to be by Adrian’s side and look after her, so I can give her some more advice.”
Felix Wong Learns from Michael Miu
Known for being a serious and prudent actor, would Felix also breathe fire and yell at his daughter? He laughed, “I’m also afraid that my daughter will see my true colors! But regardless, I will be fair and handles things the right way. If she has done something wrong, I will tell her straight off, but I will be softer. I will try not to blow up, so it does not affect her work!”
He continued, “After working with Sam Gor (Michael Miu, 苗僑偉) in Gun Metal Grey <刑警>, I’ve discovered that he has really high EQ. I’ve never seen him yell at anyone, even when he’s working with a bunch of troublesome people. If it were me, I would have blown up a long time ago! So I thought about it for a while. I actually really like Sam Gor’s approach. At least I would not need to be so wearisome all the time!”
However, Felix insisted that he would still speak out if he encountered unfair arrangements. “I used to get off of work around 4 or 5 AM in the morning, and our next call would be at 6 AM. At that time I had no car, so I had to sleep in the staircases or bathrooms of TVB City. I’ve already told my daughter about these unfair experiences.”
In August, Felix and Adrian will begin filming for CTI’s new drama. When asked if Felix would request for appropriate resting hours, he said, “No, but Ricky Wong (王維基) did tell us that we would work at most 12 to 14 hours a day. That should be okay.”
Why Adrian Did Not Sign with TVB
While working for TVB is difficult, the company is known for its marketing abilities, and newcomers can be easily recognized. When asked why Adrian opted to sign for CTI instead, Felix admitted that it was partially because of his sour relationship with TVB. Felix said, “Yes, it’s somewhat related. But I believe that a huge reason is because TVB has so many newcoming girls debuting every year, including Miss Hong Kong and Miss Chinese International contestants, as well as girls from game shows and acting training class. There are too many people. Therefore, development will be limited and the system will be chaotic. Since I’m not with TVB anymore, I don’t know how she will like be once she’s there. Would her career be affected because of what I did in the past? I’ve discussed this with her, but she said she wanted to follow me. At least I will be able to help her out.”
Asked if Adrian had requested to portray any certain character, Felix said, “I told Mr. Wong to not have my daughter be the lead role in her first drama. It will be too stressful for her. This generation is different from previous ones. When I was younger, we had the chance to work with many talented seniors, such as Lee Heung Kam (李香琴) and DoDo (Carol Cheng, 鄭裕玲). They would teach us and yell at us if we did anything wrong. They were very helpful.”
The entertainment circle is a complicated and unforgiving industry. When asked if he was worried about Adrian, Felix admitted, “I’m most worried about the stress she would have to face. Many artists end up doing silly things because they could not take the stress. I told her to try to relax and get help when she needs it. Right now, she’s signed on for three years. If she loves it, she can continue. If she hates it, she can just leave!”
Source: Ming Pao Weekly #2279 via ihktv.com
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
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wow Felix Wong and his daughter Adrian seem to be very thorough and wise in their decisions. Hope she’ll be able to handle all the stress! Although she probably will with the guidance/help of her experienced father.
Victoria,
Felix does seem like a wise father, guiding his daughter through the entertainment industry. It helps a lot to have a mentor in the first few years. With Felix’s connections, Adrian is already a few steps ahead of other new artists.
Adrian has nothing to lose by signing with CTI for 3 years. Even if her onscreen career doesn’t pan out, she is well educated with a degree from Hong Kong University and getting her name out there would be great for a future career in marketing or PR.
Adrian is lucky to have her father as a guide. I guess he changed his mind because I remember in the past when he said that he would not guide or help her. He was not against her entering the industry, but wanted her to work it out on her own and not rely on him. I think he has now decided to help his daughter as much as possible and that is sweet of him.
Adrian just like Roxanne Tong is lucky to have connections to the circle that many do not have. You are right Jayne, they are already a few steps ahead of the new artists. I remember that Adrian was even invited onto the stage with Wang Zi(singer from Lollipop, but now JPM)while he was singing during their concert tour in HK. At first I was wondering why she was able to while no one else was… I then found out that it was Adrian and Felix requested for them to invite his daughter onto the stage. No wonder… All of the other fan girls were so jealous…
Oh yea, here is the link to Wang Zi inviting her onto the stage during their 2009 concert:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GU6Di2fIfKM&feature=related
I think it is her but correct me if I am wrong…
His daughter is 21? In the other article she looks older.
Good he is guiding her career. Maybe she won’t fall into the usual traps of showbusiness. And whilst I think it is good she signs with lesser competition in a competitor’s company, but it is risky because the new company can fold. Maybe as his daughter in TVB she may get roles. If the father stops fighting with TVB.
I’m truly in awe of Felix. He’s such a wise man, great father and actor. And it sounds like Adrian is smart girl so I’m sure if she really wants to pursue acting, she will succeed. I don’t think either she or Felix would have consider acting as a career choice for her unless they have already carefully, realistically evaluated the extend of her talent.
It was very smart of Felix to ask that his daughter doesn’t lead already. Working with older, more experienced actors is truly something that benefits newcomers, even more seasoned actors. I’ve often noticed how people I don’t even particular like can improve when they act opposite much more experienced actors, and it’s sad to see how TVB is often foregoing this experience in lieu of rushing their fa dans and siu sangs.
I remember Felix saying that his daughter is pretty good but then again, who knows if he is being bias or not?? He said that he saw her in school plays and said her acting is pretty good. I am guessing maybe he does see potential in her so is allowing her to enter the e circle…
“Fire breathing wah”? Should be GJ ressurected and uses “the 18 dragon slaying palms” to blast the evil empire, LOL.
Actually it surprises me a bit that Felix is such a wise man, guess I will always view him as a stupid potato bc of GJ 😀
Still it’s a no brainer not letting his precious daughter enter the sinking ship.
More importantly is that he is able to get through his daughter(not easy due to generation gap).
MM having high EQ (or wearing a fake mask)is not surprising at all considering how friendly he is with the devil 620.
Actually once saw Felix in a game show and he was the only one who reads the newspaper and knows the world affairs. So I always knew he was intelligent and wise. I mean he is the only one (apart from Michael) who criticises TVB and still survives. Look at Wong Hei and you know TVB loves Felix.
I love Felix too v(*≧∇≦*)v
Didn’t know that since I don’t usually watch these kind of shows think it’s a waste of time.
Still remember watching a show where Steven Ma was the host, about chinese letters & literature. Most TVB artists were rubbish guess due to lack of interest and formal education.
As suspected Wu Fung is highly knowledgeable. To my surprise King Kong turns out to be very knowledgeable as well.
Sometimes the supporting ones surprise the most. I remember that old actor who always acts as drug addict or useless father turns out to be a very talented calligrapher or I think it was chinese painting. I was like AWESOME.
Yeah, I know who you referring to 😀 he always plays an addict or some low-life klf, hehe.
I disagree that not knowing chinese literature means lacking formal education. They might be educated overseas and major in something else like economics, science, or engineering.
in real life there are people without higher education who turns out smarter and more successful than people with higher formal education ROFL
Maybe, as they graduate from university of life experiences but I also notice those who has higher education does seem a bit more .. educated in the sense more refined. Not to say it is snob and all that non educated are brash and unrefined but more educated people does give a vibe of being rather more.. not sure what’s the word except .. educated.
@Kidd,
Yeah I didn’t take everything into account 🙂 I just assumed that the artists had their education in HK which should imply that they at least have the most basic knowledge abt chinese literature and letters.
he sounds like a great dad… like all great dads looking out for daughter is their no 1 priority