01. A COLLECTOR I collect everything. I believe everything will be useful someday. Cardboard boxes, candy wrappers, styrofoam, bottles, cloth, branches, rocks, etc. The more I collect, the more I can create.
02. THE DOGGY EFFECT To this day, I don't know what makes me happy faster and more effectively than playing with my dog. My first dog was a Pekingese. Her name was Amber and we raised her since I was in sixth grade. Our second dog, SanSan, is a Silky Terrier and she is one of the best parts of going home.
03. ON MY HEAD I can move my ears. Simultaneously and individually as well. I also have freckles on my face.
04. SPENDING POWER When it comes to shopping, I like to see all the options before buying. However, if I know what I want, and how much I want it, I'm not afraid of buying right away. I value how exclusive and unique a product is, and I'm willing to pay more for that. I also tend to shop alone.
05. GRANDFATHERS I grew up without knowing my grandfathers. My parents' fathers both died during the Cultural Revolution in China. It would be nice to have known them.
06. WANT IT ALL My weakness is that I want to do everything. I have interests and passions in many different areas. I am learning to focus my energy and concentrate on one skill at a time. Tough.
07. PAST TIME I am an extremely nostalgic person. The simplest sight or sound can bring me back to years before. And I'll stay there until I'm forced to return to the present.
08. BRIAN CHAN My brother, Brian, is the most creative person I know. He has a constant flow of amazing ideas and skills. From designing origami, forging swords, drawing, painting, to building complex machines and robots. I feel like he can make anything he imagines and that's truly inspiring to me.
09. MAVERICK AND MARTY For someone that's involved in film and video as a career, I'm not a huge movie buff. Not that I don't want to be. My first favorite movies I can remember are "Top Gun" and the "Back to the Future" trilogy. Maverick and Marty were my heroes. Someone get me an F-14 Tomcat and DeLorean with flux-capacitor and hover conversion. Thanks.
10. RELATIONSHIPS I am a hopeless romantic and/or romantically hopeless. I have been in very few relationships. I don't fall for people often; so when I do, I know it means something. I used to think I could be fine for the longest time, even if I was alone. I don't know about that anymore. Unfortunately, I haven't had the best luck. Wallowing and dwelling are familiar friends to me. Writing all these love stories for our shorts doesn't help either. *Facepalm*
11. PET PARTY My brother and I used to have pet ducks. We raised them from ducklings and they lived in our backyard. We had many many other pets as well. But not the usual: Lizards, frogs, crabs, turtles, fish, crayfish, sea monkeys, praying mantis, other insects, hamsters, chickens, quail, rabbits, and dogs. All these made growing up very fun and memorable.
12. ASIAN BUT NOT AZN I admit that at some point in my life, I had the typical center-parted asian boy hairstyle. No long bangs though. Dont worry. Asian but not AzN.
13. GETTING PHYSICAL I enjoy physical activity. Especially in the forms of Ultimate Frisbee, running, biking, or hiking.
14. MOM AND DAD I have so much respect and admiration for my parents' accomplishments and successes. They have endured and overcome so much in their lives. Because of the harsh circumstances at the time, they did not receive more than a high school education. Now, my mom works at Visa handling different countries' currencies. And my dad is well known fine furniture-maker, author of his own book, and teaches woodworking seminars regularly.
15. GET LOST I like getting lost in new places. Wandering and exploring until I find my way back. Usually that works. Usually.
16. UNNATURAL BLONDE I bleached my hair blonde during the last week of high school. It was a fun experience but I don't think I'll do it again.
17. DINORMOUS DESIRE Since second or third grade, I wanted to be a paleontologist and dig for dinosaur fossils in Montana. I still remember a lot of dinosaur names! When Jurassic Park came out, it further reinforced that desire. Then when I saw the dinosaurs "alive" in the movie, I wanted to be a visual effects artist for motion pictures.
18. DON'T MESS I am a clean/neat freak. I am very particular and meticulous about my surroundings and tend to spend a lot of time arranging things to be "in their place." Everything must be aesthetically pleasing according to their size, spatial proximity, color scheme, convenience, etc.
19. ABC I am American Born Chinese and I speak Cantonese (with my parents). I hope my vocabulary improves. I hear HK dramas are the answer.
20. LIFE SOUNDTRACK I enjoy listening to instrumental music like movie scores. I think I like to imagine them being soundtracks to my own life. Though lately, nothing has been as epic as the music I listen to. Maybe that's a good thing (?)
21. SE HABLA ESPANOL As an infant, I had a hispanic babysitter/nanny that spoke Spanish to me. And according to my parents, I picked up the language quickly. I think my first words may have been "agua."
22. FRESSHH If I can, I shower every night. I like to know I'm getting into bed so fresh and so clean.
23. TOYING AROUND I used to make stop-motion animations with my toy action figures. I have to admit, it's something I still [want to] do.
24. OUTDOORS My family would take regular camping trips when I was younger. My dad made nets for my brother and I so we could catch insects. Being outdoors in the wilderness is one of the best experiences and I hope to do the same with my own family one day.
25. ME MELLOW Whether it's apparent or not, I am a very mellow person. It will take quite a bit to get me mad or upset. I like to believe that I can channel all those negative feelings to a protective area inside me. And when it's necessary I can release all that energy at once. When that happens...you best get out the way!
I've neglected xanga. That's the truth and I can't deny it. I used to be a lot more active here...because it was all I had. In terms of an online "outlet" it was all I had. Things are sorta different now. Now, if you want to know what's going on with Wes, there's more than a few places you can go. It's great and all, but it's seriously hard to keep up with all the new avenues. Before, this xanga was a one stop shop for everything. But now...
WONG FU BLOG: New blog by Philip, Ted, and Wes updated daily! FACEBOOK: Poke, wall-write, and stalk learn all you want. YOUTUBE: Watch our Wong Fu Video Blogs for updates about news and upcoming projects/events. FLICKR: Photos were at first put exclusively here..but now some migrated to Facebook too. TWITTER: Just started using this. It's literally like "following" me. May not be as exciting as it sounds. MYSPACE: I don't really use this, but Wong Fu has an account to stay connected with people.
So yeah. Now it's more of an adventure to see what gets updated. That's right, I'm gonna make you work for new information! But don't worry. I'm not gonna stop writing here. It's just that my attention is being redistributed to all these new sites. To ease into this new world of online presence, I'll give you a kickstart. Here are just some new photos from Flickr/Facebook I've posted.
Grass is always greener on the other side. Hiking/Exploring around Pasadena foothills
The Flatirons of Boulder, Colorado
Robynn. At Victoria Peak in Hong Kong
Helen. On our way to a beach beyond Sai Kung in Hong Kong
Screenshot from a new, yet-to-be-released "One Days: HK" short. Prequel to "The Spare" (Watch it HERE)
Here's an entry I wrote for our Wong Fu Productions Blog. I know, I'm recycling old material. Just read.
Okay. I’m not one to pick fights or cause drama. But we recently
went to a (not-so-amazing) Chinese buffet place for dinner and I was
challenged by my long time foe. That’s right. The fortune cookie.
After stuffing our faces with mediocre orange chicken, greasy green
beans, and expired sashimi– our challenger approached along with his
faithful tag-team partner, the check. With the help of my boyz, we handled the check.
But then, it was between me and mister fortune. For as long as I
remember, he’s been taunting me with his sweet words of prosperity and
romance. Oh the way he tempts me! Enough is enough. We settle this
now. I invite you guys to join in on the Mostest Epic-est Battle of
Foreverness. Let’s get ready to rumble.
Back in my room, it was an intense stand-off. He hid behind his
crisp and lightly sugared armor plating. I knew better. I knew all
the trickeries of my opponent. After some delicious chewing
brutal fist brawls and bloody gun fights, I exposed him. Looking deep
into my soul, there he was, butt-ass nekkid, it was Fortune.
Pah! There he goes again. Oh how Fortune knows my weak spots. I
have to be honest. It was hard to resist his tactics. I almost felt a
smile and ease of heart creep into me, but I quickly came to my senses
and refocused. My plan was to chip away at him little by little until
it was something I could handle. So I deployed some more chewing of my super secret weapons of mass destruction and managed to explode all of his armor.
Done and done. But it wasn’t over. At this very moment, Fortune
has not been defeated. He says I will travel far and wide for business
and pleasure. I say…”we’ll see.” It might be difficult but I’ll try
to update you as we continue our fight throughout the day. Make sure
you come back to see who’s kicking ass. Seeing how I’m sitting at my
desk, at my computer, typing this blog, (which is neither traveling far
NOR wide) I think I’m definitely winning so far. Stupid Fortune. You
ask, “when is it over?” Oh, it’s over when I say it’s over!
High Noon: Mostest Epic-est Battle of Foreverness begins.
12:20pm: Wes goes to the bathroom to pee. And wash his hands. - Wes still winning
12:27pm: Wes “travels” downstairs for some OJ. And a cookie. - Fortune taunts Wes
1:04pm: Wes wonders what’s for lunch. Stay in or go out? - Decisive blow from Fortune
1:48pm: Wes called for meeting by Phil - Not far enough. Wes still thinks Fortune is lame
2:06pm: Wes back in his room - “Is this all you got?!”
3:32pm: Wes and Phil go to Tap Ex to brainstorm - Watermelon juice counts as pleasure?
7:04pm: Wes, Phil, Tom go to meeting for ISA - Cool but Wes thinks meetings = weaksauce
11:52pm: Wes returns to his room. Needs dinner - Chinese? Another fortune cookie?
1:00am-ish: Wes growing tiresome of battle with Fortune.
Well I guess the day has come to an end. What exactly happened
today? I went out a few times for food and I went to a meeting. And I
stayed in my room a lot. If you add up all the total distance
today…sure I guess I traveled “far” like Fortune claimed. And if you
measure my physical circumference, I probably did get wider from all
the eating, so technically, sure the fortune was right. I wouldn’t
call it a victory though. The battle rages on. Sorry was that
anti-climatic? The results are simple. Wesley wins and Fortune fails. And in case you’re wondering…Yes, alliteration is a perfectly reasonable justification of the final outcome.
I should have posted this months ago. It's old news now. If you haven't seen it already, this is the short I made which, to my surprise, got accepted to the 2008 Cannes Film Festival Short Films Corner. Special thanks to Philip, Ted, Mimi, Will, Jesse and Henry on this one.
Okay, I wasn't sure if I wanted to do this...but I'll do it anyway. I haven't analyzed films since my UCSD Visual Arts classes. What better way to start up again, than to analyze my own short film? Trust me, I'm not trying to show off or anything, but rather maybe give some insight about the work. When I made this short, I knew I wanted to see and hear certain things, but I didn't really think about the reasons. Now that it's been completed for awhile, I'm beginning to think I had a subconscious plan for everything (okay that sounded kinda cocky, sorry). Either that, or you can just say I'm BS-ing all this. Which...I would still be semi-proud of.
NARRATIVE STRUCTURE: Glimpses and windows. I have a thing for just seeing a part rather than a whole. Why? Maybe I'd rather savor one instance rather than know the whole story. There's something fascinating about catching two people in mid-conversation and trying to figure out what's going on. To me, it's much more genuine and believable. Or maybe I'm just a lazy writer. In the case of this short, the structure is fragmented because I feel like that's how our memories and thoughts come to us. However, one memory sparks another and this is how Robin's story is told.
COLOR: If you notice carefully, most of the shots are a mixture of warm and cool tones, especially blues and oranges. According to the one high school art class I took, blue and orange are complementary colors. When we see them repeated in the piece, they work to emphasize the ups and downs, beginning and end, reality and daydream.
ENERGY AND CYCLES: The spinning coin, the radiometer. These are both revolving objects that require energy to keep moving. Maybe it's obvious, but as we see more and more of Robin and Adams' relationship, we see the energy fade away until it is no longer in motion. In terms of cycles, the beginning and ending of the short are vaguely connected. How much truth and fiction behind Robin and Adam is uncertain but it is very possible that they did meet or will meet in the future. Even the last shot of the short dissolves seamlessly into the first shot to suggest a sort of repetition and cycle.
VISUAL DEPENDENCE: Have you ever had a phone conversation where you are communicating, but your gaze is out the window– or doodling on some paper? Sometimes, we don't need to see a character say a line to know how they feel, or what they're thinking. If we see what they see within that conversation, we have a more intimate and matching experience. Our imaginations are powerful and a lot of times it can fill in the blanks much better than what is shown on screen.
TIME: We spend so much of our life waiting for things to happen. Or waiting for things not to happen. Sometimes we wait with someone, sometimes we wait alone, sometimes we enjoy the time, sometimes it's painfully unbearable. Within the short, there are numerous moments where the characters wait for each other. The reason for waiting, duration of waiting, and willingness to wait differ greatly but are significant markers in the relationship.
CHANCE AND POTENTIAL: We are told about a young man and womans' relationship through Robin's thoughts. Whether it is a recollection of personal memories or a fictional story, is irrelevant. However, in the representation of her story, we see her and the young man across the street, as characters. Is the man across the street Adam? Not necessarily, but Robin does insert the image of him as Adam's character in the story she tells. When she bumps into him at the end, she is given a chance to say something. Like Robin said to Adam, if she's one in a million and there's six million people in the city, there could be five other versions of her in the city. Perhaps the man she bumps into is a different version of the Adam in her story.
INFLUENCES: Wong Kar Wai, Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Tom Tykwer, and Makoto Shinkai
Wow...I'm kinda rusty but I really do feel like I just wrote something up for one of my old classes. Now is the time when I simply hope the TA falls for my transparent ideas and gets lost in my overly-complex sentence structure. Pretty please.
In other news...making shorts about bittersweet love stories is fun n' all..but c'mon. Where's the real thing?
