Frankie Lam Disappointed in TVB Standards
HKTV has been ramping up its marketing efforts, urging TV viewers to connect to its Facebook page and releasing video clips from upcoming series when they reach certain “Like” milestones. This week, Hong Kong reporters were treated to a sneak preview of medical drama Hidden Faces <三面形醫>. At the press interview, star Frankie Lam (林文龍) spoke candidly about his experiences at TVB, and pledged his support to new boss Ricky Wong (王維基).
Hidden Faces is an 18-episode medical drama starring former TVB artists Frankie, John Chiang (姜大衛), and Wilson Tsui (艾威). Frankie plays arrogant plastic surgeon Cheuk Tin Lam who changed his ways after a near-fatal liver transplant surgery. He joins a medical group later and meets obstetrician/gynecologist Chan Boon Yun, played by Wilson Tsui. The two later become involved in a power struggle between their boss and family physician Chui Jan Bong (John Chiang).
The first and last episodes will have an extended airtime, similar to TVB’s double-episode format for a series’ grand finale. Hidden Faces cost roughly $1 million HKD per episode, and $20 million HKD in total. As with other HKTV series, Hidden Faces was shot with the latest Arri Alexa digital motion picture cameras used by western film industries. The series will also incorporate real surgical videos, including a double-eyelid procedure.
While watching the preview clip for Hidden Faces, Frankie repeatedly praised its beautiful visuals and the production team’s attention to detail. “Colleagues from my former company watched the clips online and also complimented on the visuals, saying it is very detailed and has good depth of field.”
Frankie further discussed his appreciation for HKTV. “My new company allowed me to enjoy work once again. Filming for television requires team work. We can only work together if we have a common goal. Nowadays I enjoy being able to work seriously and have things to look forward to. Even though I have already worked with the crew many times when we were at TVB, we have a brand new attitude at work now and feel respected by our boss. We work in a very harmonious environment.”
TVB Has Illogical Plots
Frankie also defended former TVB artists who spoke out against the company, saying that they are simply heartbroken at the company’s current state. “I also got my start at TVB. I would not be where I am today if I didn’t join TVB. We all wish well for TVB and wish for greater things for the TV industry. While TVB’s production isn’t terrible, without any competition, it is not making any progress. I have high standards for my work as an actor, and I felt very disappointed during my time at my old company.”
Frankie further elaborated on his professional struggles during his time at TVB, saying that he hesitated to speak up against illogical plot due to fear of losing his job. Earlier Frankie and his wife Kenix Kwok (郭可盈) caught an episode of Slow Boat Home <情越海岸線> where Selena Li (李詩韻) fell down the steps and Ruco Chan (陳展鵬) accidentally kissed her while trying to save her. Citing the scene as an example, Frankie commented, “My wife and my reaction was, [Selena] fell down, why was it necessary to have the pouting and kissing? This makes no sense at all. Viewers who take dramas seriously would also feel uncomfortable with how the scene played out. For someone like me who has been acting for over 20 years, it is quite difficult to accept it as it is. I would immediately suggest revisions… and also be mentally prepared to face gossips on-set. Because in my old world (TVB) … everyone is so cautious about keeping their jobs. Changing a script is seen as questioning the production team’s professional abilities.”
When reporters mentioned the other rival station, ATV, Frankie expressed his frustrations at the current licensing progress and shared his confidence at HKTV’s broadcasting rights. “Government officials are such interesting people. They say they worry that a certain TV station would go out of business if they approve another free broadcast license. The government grants license to a TV station that has no drama in production, and then worry that said station will go out of business and refuse to grant further licenses. Does this make any sense at all? I am not worried about HKTV’s licensing situation, because I cannot find a reason for [the government] to not grant the license.”
Source: Ming Pao via ihktv.com
This article is written by Katrine for JayneStars.com.
Oh man, I agree! I really hate the “..’Accidently’ falling onto each other with their lips met”…Pisses me off because its sooo fake and cliche! haha
Totally agree. This kind of crap is an insult to every viewer’s IQ. And TVB always make sure it happens in every series.
And about the broadcasting rights, those HK politicians are afraid of ATV’s going bankrupt. Really? 1. ATV has been bankrupt for years, they the ATV people) just don’t know yet. 2. This is called competition. The strongest survives. Always thought HK is a capitalist society, HK is great because of this. We ain’t China.
Love it when someone realize that.
Most TVB dramas are just ridiculous now. It seems like they employ no thought into writing the scripts at all, and they just recycle the same old HK actresses over and over again. They need to stop bringing in untalented actresses like Rebecca Zhu and Christine Kuo and actually focus on raising their standards rather than picking artists based on their looks. It’s so frustrating, I’m sick of seeing Kate Tsui, Aimee Chan and Kenneth Ma etc. (although the latter isn’t too bad of an actor) in practically everything thanks to TVB running out of good artists because they’re all heading over to China to work instead. I’m starting to abandon TVB and watch American shows instead, they do a way better job in every aspect. Rant over.
Totally agree!!!
See, that’s the thing. TVB is trying NOT to recycle the same actresses, which is why they are bringing in people like Rebecca, Christine, Sire, Eliza, etc. The problem is, the new girls are not good enough to lead a drama!
I also see TVB trying new things instead of just using cliched plots, but the result is that viewers complain that it’s too weird or too confusing and ratings drop. It would be nice if artists and other employees can feel comfortable pointing out things they feel don’t make sense in the script, but then how will that fit into the “complete script before filming” standard that they want to adopt?
So I don’t know what the solution is. I get why people are unhappy with TVB’s recent productions, but I also wonder, is it just that we have access to SO MUCH more entertainment now that our standards are too high? It’s like, if a 2 year old can play with an iPad, will he still be as entertained by a simple wooden puzzle? It really is a race between what companies can produce and what viewers expect.
agree.
IF your point applies “only” for TVB and not for other companies (in mainland, etc.), then I’m not sure about its validity.
Also, I’m not sure why TVB thinks that beauty pageants is a good place to find talented artists. TVB seems to be the “only” company that does this. Maybe TVB is supplying beauties for their wealthy old financiers?
How to Find Actors …
http://thejet.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Find-Actors-for-Your-Movie
totally agree
The young peoples like Rebecca, Christine, Sire, Eliza can’t really act. Look at what Sire ma did to Bullet brain, she was poor acting as the superior, I mean really poor, and she needs to improve on acting.
TVB is trying to bring in more talent. They have started their own training classes and other small scale talent shows. It takes time for newbies to gain experience and warm up to the audience.
A lot of TVB fan dans & Sui Sungs wasn’t trained in acting, so that’s why they lack experience and the skills for acting. They should be the ones that should go to those training classes
Actually, TVB has always had acting classes — from 1970s until current. Over the years, the format of the classes have changed though (i.e. from 1 year intensive class that required all sorts of exams and such to a more watered down 6 month and 3 month version) and to me, that’s one reason why their acting classes have not been as effective as the ones from the 70s and 80s. Of course, the change in instructors and curriculum over the past 3 decades played a huge role as well, but honestly, over the past 20 years or so, there has been less emphasis on the acting classes, probably because they weren’t producing ‘big stars’ like they did back in the day. It wasn’t until last year that TVB really started to seriously revamp their acting classes again and bring in instructors who would really be able to cultivate talent (such as Lawrence Cheng and Dodo Cheng for example and of course, the person who started the acting classes 4 decades ago — Chung King Fai). To me, this shows that TVB really IS trying to make things better (got to give credit where credit is due) — however despite the changes that they ARE making, I still feel that, unfortunately, it’s too little, too late….
Agreed. As for the recycling bit, it’s not so much about using the same actors and actresses that bothers me because I understand those actors/actresses “belong” to TVB. But it’s like they recycle almost everything. I swear I think i hear the same old dialogue sometimes over the 10+ years I’ve watched TVB dramas. Witness Insecurity, especially the ending, was one of the most ridiculous I’ve seen of TVB dramas.
Yea, TVB is really going downhill these days. Gosh, I just finished one and my mom could not understand it at all and complained so much. It was not logical or made sense at all… Is TVB really sinking soon??? I think they will if they continue with all of the poor quality productions.
Isn’t this storyline sort of like the Michael Miu one?
Anyway Frankie oh Frankie, as much right as you have to go Sheren on TVB, may I say I am disappointed by your lack of standard when it comes to acting. Decades has passed and you’re still… boring to watch.
One man can play an arrogant man who changes to the better and that is Bobby Au Yeung!
I totally agree with u on Frankie. He is just a boring actor with not much changes or improvements to his acting. All of his drama are very boring, even his current drama as a surgeon looks like it’s going to be a boring series after all. I personally dislike all the HKTV trailers. BORING plot, casts and POOR quality. If he is bashing TVB, he is bashing his own station too(HKTV) because most of the scriptwriters & crew are from TVB.
I think Inbound Troubles has very interesting plots. Not all TVB scriptwriters are creative enough. They can’t think out of the box. Their dramas are mostly about doctors, lawyers or police. I think there are at least 1 of each every year. Its kinda cliched and they not just that, TVB makes sequels to all these boring plots. Like after Forensic Heroes, they started to make sequels, and that spin out similar plots. They do get old and become unattractive to audiences’ appeals.
Agree with you guys about Frankie’s acting.
I look forward to this drama though, because I miss seeing Wilson Tsui!
Slow Boat Home is a lighthearted drama/comedy. Why would viewers need to be so serious when watching this series? The scene with Ruco and Selena was indeed cliche, but I still thought it was cute and funny how their friends saw it and pushed them together even more.
Frankie was probably not happy with TVB since he didn’t really get any lead roles anymore. However, his acting is stiff and he has no charisma at all. He doesn’t even make a good supporting actor.
“Slow Boat Home is a lighthearted ”
But I do agree that it is so lighthearted that it amounts to nothing much. A waste of Ruco’s talent. However is that Oceane Zhu? If yes, she is very very good. And quite tall also.
You don’t like the series? I’m enjoying it because I like Ruco and Selena together. I also spent a whole day on Cheung Chau when I went on vacation to HK so maybe that’s why I ‘m liking the series. haha
It doesn’t matter. I still enjoy watching Ruco.
Hmm. Frankie is pretty charismatic onscreen. Well, I liked him as Dr. Koo. I wonder if it’s Frankie’s acting or the roles he played that made his him seemed boring. I think he was a better actor in his early days. But, his lead roles were boring. His supporting performances were better bc there were more depth to his characters. So, was it a matter of not getting good roles? We’ve seen how important a good script and a good role is to an artist, even reviving some careers.
I agree with Hannah….I actually feel Frankie is a pretty charismatic actor overall, it’s just that he’s somewhat inconsistent — to me, that’s why I’ve always thought of him as more of a ‘second tier’ type actor (meaning that even if he leads, it’s more like second lead rather than main lead). I feel he’s the type of actor who needs a good role and good script in order to shine, which is why I consider him a tier below actors such as Gallen Lo and Damian Lau who can deliver a brilliant performance despite a horrible script and/or role.
With that said though, I still like Frankie (though I remember him more for his supporting roles than for his main roles — except for Dr. Koo of course) and am definitely looking forward to his medical series. Like Funn said, it will be interesting to see whether the change in environment will truly give Frankie the push he needs in his acting…
Yeah, we all have different opinions on different actors. I guess I’m just not a fan of his acting, or even him as a person after he cheated on Kenix.
Agree Hannah – I actually find Frankie in VOH pretty good and then he did well with Colourful Life with Annie Man.
I also understand where the audience is coming from when they say he’s boring. The way he speaks his lines are rather monotone … his main drawback.
Other than that, I enjoyed most of Frankie Lam’s series. He’s very compatible with most of his co-stars i.e. Michelle Ye, Selina Li, Annie Man, Bernice Liu ..
Because it’s lighthearted doesn’t mean it has to be cliche and ridiculous. Or watching this nonsense in every series. Or are you saying every TVB series are lighthearted?
It’s not the viewers that should be less serious, it’s TVB that needs to take its viewers MORE serious.
maybe it’s you who should take things less seriously?
So that’s your argument. OK.
No wonder TVB can stay so long at the top, fanboys like you plus useless HK politicians.
No, my argument is that we all have different opinions and I did not think it was so ridiculous to have that scene in there. I thought it was funny.
I’m not a fanboy. I just don’t get angry over little things like you do.
Tsk! Tsk! Tsk!
Frankie….don’t bite the hands that has fed you. It is so unbecoming. Couldn’t agree more with Funn & Mocha.
Frankie Lam’s acting may be stiff and he may well be lacking in charisma. But it doesn’t mean his criticism of TVB is unfounded or unreasonable. He didn’t complain about not having lead roles. He just voiced his experience as an ex TVB actor who felt he couldn’t speak his mind due to fear of losing his job. It’s out in the open that actor/actresses often get ‘frozen’ if they did anything that offended TVB.
It’s rather disappointing to see people trashing Frankie who’s only speaking up against TVB. It’s sad that there are so many out there who would rather criticize an actor for his acting (which is completely irrelevant) than to acknowledge that TVB is crap. As a result, we probably won’t see any improvement from TVB.
Well, since now he has an opportunity to contribute to the development of the characters he is playing, let’s see if the ability to speak his mind now enables him to act better. His criticism is of course fair which is why I said he went Sheren on TVB but for his to perhaps go so micro on the points, perhaps he should ask himself “Did I myself help to deliver in this character with this sort of script?”
And your point is only valid IF 100% blame is on the script or direction itself. That can’t be true.
TVB has a lack of CREDIBLE competition in the HK entertainment industry which has caused it’s current programming to become stale, boring, repetitive, with little to no memorable moments.
TVB is very afraid of HKTV and is pulling every underhanded trick to not let them have their license.
“TVB is very afraid of HKTV and is pulling every underhanded trick to not let them have their license.”
Agreed, this is a good indicator that HKTV is the “real” competition and the other companies smell fishy.
– CTI (Ricky Wong)/HKTV
– PCCW Limited (Richard Li)/NowTV/Hong Kong Television Entertainment Co. Ltd. [Questionable? Negotiates with TVB. Hmmm…may be TVB scheme to waste/hog up a license? Maybe ganging up on HKTV?]
– iCable/Fantastic TV [Boycott! Does creepy shows (like ghost weddings).]
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>>> It’s David and Goliath. <<<
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huh?
I personally appreciate these ex-TVB artistes who switched to HKTV.
I mean, if you think about it, HKTV hasn’t gotten their license yet these artistes are being so optimistic with their dramas and trailers. If I were them, I would worry so much since this is an unsteady job and they could go unemployed easily.. But that’s just my two cents on this.
And rather they are better than tvb, we’ll see.
Frankie’s acting is pretty good especially in Down Memory Lane and Forensic Heroes. He is handsome to watch onscreen and his performance is above average.
I admire Frankie for voicing his opinion and I agree with him. TVB is cheap, and has no quality in filming.
I love Frankie acting especially in the old drama with gigi lai and Francis Ng (I forgot the title but I would love to watch it again). He is handsome and I believe he can really act. He made many many good drama in the old days because TVB was better that time. I agree with him- I think TVB has gone down hill since year 2000. I think I gave up on watching TVB after the Era of threshold.
I would not blame the newbies now days because TVB has issues with their plots. The story line is always the same and predictable. China TV is really growing, why you think so many celebrities left TVB. They need better script writters and spend more time in making a drama. No point of making a drama where they don’t put in the time in editing.
Why would it be admirable to speak up, as hes not an employee of tvb, but one of his competitor’s employee? His loyalty is to his new company, tvb does not pay him to feed his family, sheren, is/was on a per-series contract with tvb, so at least she was losing some of her income. In frankie’s case, hes criticising the competitor, whats admirable about that? do you find politicans admirable when they trash their competitors?
I spent my childhood watching tvb dramas and I would say the same as Frankie. I used to finish every dramas and not only that I watched them over 2 or 3 times. The new one – pshhhh I don’t even finish an episode. Felix Wong has left TVB decades ago and so did Hawick Lau – Frankie is not the only one that has the same thought. So what’s wrong for Frankie to speak up his opinion? Competition is good especially when one company is not improving, why not give another company a chance? It’s business… it’s all about profit just like restaurant/grocery stores… there are tons out there to compete. If TVB is all that then it shouldn’t hurt them if HKTV gets approval from the gov. Is TVB afraid? What’s criticism? – it’s freedom of speech and nothing wrong for saying what ones like or dislike. The truth is TVB is super ridiculous and disappoint many audiences.
Yes, you would say the same as frankie, so you admire yourself for saying so? Or maybe all of us who criticise tvb on jaynestars are to be admired as well?
I have no problem with frankie saying what he wants to. But i have a problem with the analogy hes a freedom hero of hk television industry. Hes already an employee of the competitor. Have you heard frankie say anything bad about tvb before he signed with CTI? Compared to felix, michael tao, wong hei? Now, those are people who candidly speak their minds, compared to this bootlicker.
This was the drama I mentioned above :龍的天空
English Name: The Change of Time. I highly recommend.
sounds to me – you don’t want HKTV to get their license.
I admire him for being brave and speak up his opinion. It is hard to do b/c it will make him unfavorable to some audience – like you. Of course it’s good to say nothing at all and this way people will like you more and that is called “suck up”. It is totally okay to say what you like and dislike. TVB should not react like that when there’s competition. They should be able to take on challenges unless they are afraid. This is how business runs – to be able to beat new company or go against other competitors. Just like our typical work life – we quit our job and go through different companies so nothing wrong with that. I dislike and have negative thought of my old jobs. Nothing wrong for finding new change or company that we will enjoy.
TVB needs to improve their plots and spend more money in the drama (always use same scenery). Also needs to treat their employees better. Too many unhappy actors/actresses such as steven ma, hawick lau, frankie lam, felix wong etc
Er, why wont i want competition? If there isnt competition, we would all be posting on jaynestars on internet explorer 10, searching on msn.com, using nokia phones with those slide out keyboards, buying overpriced products if there arent internet competitors, or accepting politicans blindly because there arent other choices. Competitive markets benefits us so much more.
I just dont think its anything to be admired to speak badly about your competition, they are just doing what they can to retain their jobs. Dont let your love for frankie blind the fact that he is trashing the competitor. Understandable, but nothing admirable, and kinda low.
I just now realized you don’t understand english.
He’s not my idol and he is just telling the truth about TVB dramas are so ridiculous.
i agree that the quality of TVB’s series has not been the same since 2000 or so. I think it’s not just the plot, but the quality of the actors and actresses. I mean, back then you have Bobby and Esther, Lawrence and Ada, Kenix and Michael, Louis and Jessica with such good chemistry and now, even when the leads have a tiny bit of spark, I’m already happy. Personally, I feel that my expectations in TVB dramas have decreased since then.
Oh man, just give HKTV its licence!,
Giving HKTV its licence means giving the audience a nightmare.
The audience already got nightmares with bullet brain and beauty at war.
How can the audience have a nightmare? You are little bias aren’t you? Who say you have to tune into HKTV channel to view? Hong Kong only have ONE channel HKTV only? There no other channel on TV for the audience to see?
If HKTV is bad, then nobody will tune into theior channel to view, they just go bankruptcy, simple as that.
Give them fair competition, audience will tune in which ever channel they want to see.
Beauty At War is a bit slow and there are boring parts, but, overall, I still think it’s a quality production. I enjoy watching the series, especially now that the story has picked up.
Well, im disappointed in your acting standard, frankie. Does it matter to you? You cant please everyone, although tvb (and frankie) should try harder.
It’s really disheartening to see former tvb artistes who have gone over to HKTV, lashing out at TVB. I mean, by putting your opponents/competitors down, does it make you any more superior?
I’m not trying to take sides with TVB but truth to be told, I’m not exactly impressed with any of the HKTV dramas till date having watched the trailers.
Ur right! They are talking crap cuz they think they found a better company. That’s good, but if it wasn’t for TVB, you guys are nothing.
HKTV move outta the way. It’s crap. Most of ppl in Hong kong are housewives, I’m sure they won’t like as much.
I totally agree with Mlove and melted hearing former TVB artist bashing TVB. They have been brainwashed by HKTV, thinking is will be a better company. All companies are the same, there’s no difference. At first they will sweet talk you in, giving you something good at first, like all companies will do, then after they will reveal their true colors.
Stepping on their former company only makes them look whiny, ungrateful, and unprofessional.
Even more sad if HKTV is encouraging their artists to do this because you have to wonder…a company that uses these dirty methods, what will this company do to you when it’s time to abandon you for better artists?
You said as though TVB did not use dirty methods? Please, business is like that, especially the entertainment industry.
Yes, I agree. I meant that TVB used dirty methods and look what they end up doing to their artists. You’d think they would learn from experience and to not burn their bridges…
HKTV also uses dirty tricks to get their artists.
tvb should stop with 4 clichéd plot lines.
– the father/mother that ran away from their kid but now is a changed person wanting to reunite with their child
– a police officer who got fired & joins the triad. how dumb are the triads if they believe the ex cop isn’t a mole
– the female lead goes in a coma in the last episode & for some reason the unborn baby survives and lives on when the mum dies. last scene is where the baby is at the mums gravestone with the dad.
– bad guys not killing good guys but instead kidnapping them for days or weeks and then telling them all the evidence and why they did it. cops conveniently turn up right when bad guy finally decides to kill
Haha Kevin I totally agree!!!
Yes, plots being recycled too often. With more options in Chinese (China), Korean and Japanese drama the HK govt should grant more TV licences so its productions can compete globally.
After sooo many years of making series, TVB is obviously out of fresh and new ideas. It is not just TVB though because Korean and Mainland series often have the same old recycled plots too. After making so many series, what more is there to talk about??? I used to love series and still like watching them but don’t like many of the new ones due to the same old plots and IF they try to get creative, it ends up backfiring… Is there really no more hope for TVB???
@HTS – it’s not so much running out of ideas that’s bad. I feel what’s worse is the chemistry between the actors and actresses. I feel that even when the script is poor, if the leads can act and have good chemistry, they can save a series. But lacking that – such as when you have a good male lead but a poor female lead a la Bullet Brain, or leads who can act, but just somehow have no chemistry – such as Beauty at War – then that’s just too bad for the series. Admittedly, some of my favorite series in the 80’s and 90’s had a cliche or simple plot – but the acting and chemistry between the leads saved the series.
Having spent my childhood watching TVB dramas, it’s hard not to feel a sense of loyalty for TVB. I certainly feel that TVB can improve the quality of their productions and I know that deep down I (and HK audiences) would always give TVB the second chance.
I look forward to HKTV getting their broadcasting license. Competition is good. And also because I would really love to see the actors and actresses that I have grown up admiring again.
P.S. A trailer for 客家女人, starring Maggie Cheung Ho Yee, will be out on Friday night!
Watch…all these actors will be going back to TVB. The world is round…
definitely true
Many people still believe that the world is flat…
Good drama with Gigi Lai and Francis Ng 龍的天空
English Name: The Change of Time
Frankie should keep his mouth shut bc ppl are questioning his intention even though he is doing TVB a favor and wants them to improve. Seems like even the housewives are getting sick of TVB, haha.
Indeed HK Gov. officials are such interesting ppl. protecting one company (anti free market) and what is worst base it on groundless assumptions that the cake isn’t big enough.
For the audience there is no downside whatsover no conflict of interest. You keep watching your precious TVB series and I watch HKTV.
HKTV series sucks so much, look at their trailers, poor quality, poor plot and casts
Sim, just shut up!
Reading most of the comments in this thread, sounds to me as though the general mindset is that HKTV will ‘destroy’ TVB and therefore TVB supporters don’t want HKTV to get their license (for the record, I’m a long-time TVB supporter and still am to this day — but I also support HKTV getting their license).
I think one thing that everyone is forgetting is that just because new stations are coming into the market, doesn’t mean that TVB will be ‘annihilated’ – honestly, why can’t the stations co-exist together in the same city? Only time will tell whether the other stations will be successful or not, so why not give them the chance and see what they are able to do? As Ricky Wong himself said, he’s not expecting HKTV to overtake TVB in terms of ratings or to even ‘catch up’ with TVB financially because it’s pretty much impossible given TVB’s long history, steady foundation, and loyalty base (though in my opinion, it’s not THAT impossible – take a look at ATV….) – from a business standpoint, once HKTV gets their license, it will take at least 7 to 8 years before they will be able to see any ROI, so from a financial standpoint, TVB shouldn’t need to worry as long as they do things right on their side.
As for ex-TVB artists criticizing their former employer….well, I’ve already said too much on that part, so not going to comment much on that piece. I will reiterate though that I feel sorry for those who choose to speak up….it doesn’t matter whether what they say has merit or not – as long as it paints the other party in an unfavorable light, it will always be viewed as ‘bashing’….unfortunately, that’s the reality. In that type of environment, those artists are better off just keeping their mouths shut….
Yes I agree with you, I too am a tvb supporter but I also want Hktv to get their license. A little healthy competition is good as it will make both parties work harder in improving themselves. Besides, it doesn’t hurt that viewers will get more choices.
Ooh I mean tvb supporter as in I’ve been watching their stuff since I was growing up. Not that I am in support of their low wages, long hours, work their employees to exhaustion and petty methods type of supporter.
Actually, i find both sides too overboard with their support. Ive definitely seen people hoping that CTI doesnt get their license, but also have seen supporters of HKTV saying that they hope TVB fails.
At the end of the day, they are both money making corporations.
@Nicole: Very true….and that’s partly why this whole free license issue has gotten as contentious as it has (though of course, the Media isn’t helping any by constantly adding fuel to the fire). I know it might be difficult when people are emotionally invested in something (i.e. audiences loyalty towards TVB) for them to see things from the other end of the spectrum and there’s definitely nothing wrong with that — but it does complicate matters way more than necessary. As with most issues, there IS a middle ground on this whole free TV licensing issue — it’s just a matter of whether people are willing/able to put aside the emotional aspect and see the issue for what it truly is…
@llwy12
We cant simply blame it on the media though. remember ricky wong’s press conference when he had his artistes shooting the tvb-ques logo with water guns? That was just silly and actually adds to the fire. Not surprising that more loyal tvb fans would react negatively with such symbolism.
if he didnt go overboard with the publicity stunts, many people on the fence may have more respect (and thus support) for him.
Now he just looks like the kid shooting rubber bands at others. Of course tvb is no better, being the bully owning the entire playground. Yes, throw in atv the class dunce, and loony icable with their “ghost wedding” and you have a real gang there.
Oh dear. Ricky Wong should learn to let his shows do the talking and not engage in such silly antics…
IIWy12: Absolutely right, this is bussiness so TVB should not react like that when there’s competition. They should be able to take on challenges unless they are afraid. This is how business runs – to be able to beat new company or go against other competitors.
A business would want to be monopolistic …. Not competitive… Lol.
Glad to know that I’m not the only one who shares the same sentiment. It did get annoying though when I heard my dad ranting about the plot. Frankly, I dropped my expectations when it comes to TVB.
The only TVB series that was close to a masterpiece was ‘The Blood of Good and Evil’ which had its faults with the subplots. But it had a solid story to tell, the acting was great, there was chemistry between the leads and it actually had a budget and a good ending (something that most great TVB series fail to have)!
It’s dissapointing when you know that quality TV dramas are possible. The only assurance I have is that I have a good copy of TBOGE to rewatch at home.
Woohoo~ I’m so bored these days that I’m even following recaps of Blood of Good and Evil instead.
I dont believe that an actor *should* challenge the production crew every time he dislikes the storyline and plot. This undermines a teams effort and also delays production time.
I would say this is quite selfish and unprofessional behaviour coming from and employee who is an actor. The final reception of the storyline and plot should be left to the viewers.
I don’t think that he was saying that he should be able to challenge the production crew if he dislikes the storyline and plot. I think this point was that as an actor, when he reads the script, and finds that some parts seem illogical, he should be able to give feedback and say the scene seems a bit off, maybe they could express it in a different way.
I would think that it should be professional for the actor to take his job seriously and give suggestions on how to improve the scene. There should be open communication. His suggestions might not be taken, but they should have communicated and come to a consensus. I think what he was saying was that they were strongly discouraged from giving feedback and there would be repercussions from giving feedback (like being frozen). I’m sure all the famous actors like Tony Leung and Sean Lau, don’t just blindly do whatever the directors and scriptwriters ask them to do. I’m sure they ask questions or give feedback about the scripts.
everyone knows tvb is going downhill now. most people have given up on tvb and prefer mainland and korean dramas!
Yea that’s quite true. I prefer watching the mainland series with TVB actors and actresses leading. Because their acting skills are good and the plot is interesting and creative. It doesn’t bore out the audiences. Some veteran TVB actors and actresses should really consider leaving TVB and venture abroad, get more exposure. They shouldn’t waste their talent in a small market.
I really don’t think that he should say bad stuff about TVB because that’s really ungrateful since they were the only reason why he’s famous now. It’s also really dumb because it leaves no chance in the future for him to go back to TVB should he ever need to . As a professional actor, he should just keep his opinions to himself.