Actor Tim Kang takes a less-than-appealing role and turns it into what may be the studliest Asian American character on TV.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Han Cho
With a season-to-date average of 14.4 million viewers, CBS’s highly rated show The Mentalist begins its fourth season this fall. The crime drama follows Patrick Jane (Simon Baker), a specialist hired for his “psychic” abilities, and a team of top-rate investigators, including Special Agent Kimball Cho, played by Korean American actor Tim Kang.
Viewers may find it hard to believe that the levelheaded, deadpan Cho was originally written as a socially inept, slightly overweight married man with two kids. Instead, the character has morphed into a former teen gang member with the brilliant mind and athletic physique of a Green Beret, a strong, silent type with a new girlfriend (played by Chinese-French Canadian beauty Sandrine Holt). So what happened?
“It took some juggling to shape him into something that I could believe in,” says the 38-year-old. Growing up as an avid TV and film fan in San Francisco, Kang was always bothered with the lack of positive representation of Asian Americans in the media. “They were never the heroes. Bruce Lee was the only ‘Asian American’ hero that we could look up to and not be ashamed of. And that was a little disconcerting.”
When Kang first read the script for The Mentalist, he realized that Cho “was just yet another example of not seeing a potential in a certain character. I thought, ‘Wow, some of this is really funny, but stereotypical.’ So I took some of it, kept some of it, and changed it around.
“He is certainly all the things the producers had originally envisioned,” adds Kang, “but he’s not just a book- worm. He’s a little more than that.”
Kang’s fresh take on the character can be attributed to his training in Off Off Broadway shows and the America Repertory Theater’s M.F.A. program. However, he sees “nothing sexy” about his role or his big break as a series regular on a hit show. In fact, he sees it as a “gift and responsibility.”
“To this day, I have not figured out the rhyme or reason to this business,” says Kang. “But I have certainly been afforded the kind of success that you should be proud of. And I am proud of it. I get to do something that I love every single day.”
— Han Cho
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“Runway is fantastic because it is so high energy. Anything can happen, anything can go wrong, and everything can be phenomenal.” — Brent Chua
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Shirley Lau
Brent Chua’s inimitable look graces designer clothing ads and high fashion catwalks.
Killer abs, a signature Mohawk and a fabulously fierce mug have made Chinese- Filipino American model Brent Chua a hot commodity in the modeling world. The 26-year-old now calls East Village in New York City home, but he used to spend his days traveling around Europe and Asia, strutting down the runway for Versace and Gucci, and starring in ad campaigns for Macy’s and United Colors of Benetton.
“Creating images for editorials or fashion houses with talented individuals is an amazing experience; [I’m] constantly trying to bring something new,” says Chua. “And runway is fantastic because it is so high energy. Anything can happen, anything can go wrong, and everything can be phenomenal.”
That anything-can-happen mentality was what actually started Chua on the road to fame. He was spotted by a fashion show producer in a club — at this point he’d never even considered being a model — and his career skyrocketed. In 2004, he was voted Male Model of the Year at the Singapore Fashion Awards.
So why is Chua’s look so sought-after? It may well be his androgynous mien, epitomized in a series of photos where he’s donning a blanket of feathers and a hot pair of heels. Chua’s a bit more philosophical about it. “Your perception of yourself seems to basically be a gathered perception of what others have thought of you and made you aware of,” he says.
Whatever it is that makes Chua supermodel-worthy, it doesn’t seem to affect his down-to-earth perspective on life. He recognizes that modeling isn’t a lifelong career, so he wants to reverse roles and become the man behind the camera.
“I really enjoy taking photographs so it would be great to keep doing that,” he says. “I find a lot of inspiration in cinema and reading and observing the passersby in the city.”
— Shirley Lau
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
Cheers to a fabulous new year of love, health, fashion and fun!
Passion Play executive producer Rebecca Wang is a woman on top.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Janice Jann
Don’t call Rebecca Wang a multi- hyphenate.
“Multi-hyphenates do not present motion pictures,” says the film producer who released her first Hollywood film, Passion Play in May 2011, starring Mickey Rourke, Bill Murray and Megan Fox. “What I am striving to achieve through Rebecca Wang Entertainment will prove that.”
But the stunning beauty, with her milky skin and a figure made for ball gowns, has already found enviable success in several challenging fields in her young lifetime.
The Chinese American moved to the U.S. for *college. After graduating, Wang worked as a therapist for several years. Though she found the job rewarding, Wang wanted to exercise her creativity, so she left her practice and opened a fashion boutique in China. She inherited her passion for fashion from her mother. “From a young age, I would accompany my mother to Paris and to Milan every year to experience the fashion shows,” says Wang.
A career in fashion eventually turned into a career in film. Though Wang loves all the arts, film is her favorite because, she explains, it “will not only tell a story but engage the viewers.”
The first few years of breaking into producing was not easy. “I had to be clear with the direction my decisions were taking me while being patient and diligent,” she says. When the Passion Play project got around to Wang, the industry novice took charge as executive producer, rounding up an impressive cast and working for months in Albuquerque, N.M., to lift the romantic-fantasy drama from paper to screen.
Wang handled being a newcomer — and a rare female in power — well. “It was a difficult position regardless of gender,” she says. “There are many talented women in this field; they are simply a little more incognito than we realize.”
So as a producer, has Wang found her professional calling? “If I knew the details, then it would spoil the surprise,” she says of her long-term goals. Currently, Wang’s production company is looking for another project to produce, but she is also working on a self-help book. Wang may not consider herself a multi-hyphenate, but she is definitely something else.
*Wang attended UC Berkeley, obtained a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology and subsequently became a psychotherapist.
More info on Rebecca here at www.rebeccawangentertainment.com
— Janice Jann
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
After a slew of one-hit-wonders, U.S. audiences may be hesitant to embrace another Asian artist, let alone a five-woman, pan-Asian group brought together by an Asian reality TV show. So what sets Alisha Budhrani, Natsuko Danjo, Angeli Flores, Victoria Chan and Ji Hae Lee apart? Could be their raw talent, harmonious tunes or the fact that they reeled in Snoop Dogg for their newest single, Undivided, now available on iTunes. We get the scoop.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Plugged In
HED: Blush
STORY: Shirley Lau
Audrey Magazine: Blush is the product of the reality TV show, Project Lotus. What was that experience like?
Angeli: FarWest [Entertainment] found me via Facebook and so my dad and I didn’t think it would be so big or real, but then once we went to the auditions, it was clear how serious Project Lotus was.
Ji Hae: Project Lotus was my first time to perform — I had only practiced and auditioned [before]. It was also my first time [making] foreign friends. It was only my second time outside of South Korea, my first time in Hong Kong, and I had very rarely used any English until Project Lotus. AM: How do you feel about being the only pan-Asian girl group in the U.S. right now?
Victoria: It’s really exciting because we are representing so many people and we want to do a good job. We hope Blush will inspire others to connect with their own culture.
AM: Who would you like to collaborate with?
Natsuko: Pink — she rocks! Victoria: Justin Timberlake ‘cause he’s hot!
Angeli: Bruno Mars. He is so talented and part Filipino!
Ji Hae: Karina Pasian. She has a beautiful voice.
Alisha: A.R. Rahman because he creates beautiful music.
Details Blushband.com.
— Shirley Lau
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
David Chiu’s in a race to become San Francisco’s first Asian American mayor.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Personalities
STORY: Shirley Lau
He’s living the American dream most immigrant parents have for their children — he attended an Ivy League college, attained a master’s and law degree, and is on his way to changing the world … one political campaign at a time.
“I want to continue leadership that brings people together to get things done,” says David Chiu via telephone one busy morning. The Chinese American politician, who is one of the frontrunners in a 16-person race (at press time) for mayor of San Francisco, spends his days campaigning and sharing his vision for a revitalized city. If he wins, he will become the first Asian American mayor of the 13th largest city in the U.S.
The political world is nothing new to Chiu, who currently serves as president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors (he was the first Chinese American elected to the position and he’s done so twice). The 41-year-old has been a civil rights attorney and criminal prosecutor, Democratic Counsel to the U.S. Senate Constitution Subcommittee, and founder and chief operating officer of Grassroots Enterprise, a public affairs technology company. He says this gave him the skills he’ll need to execute one of his goals as mayor — to create a 21st century economy for a city he’s called home for the last 15 years.
So to whom does Chiu owe his success thus far? “I give my parents a tremendous amount of credit for their sacrifices,” he says. Even though Chiu didn’t become a doctor like his parents wanted — he even took all the required pre-med courses while at Harvard — he says they eventually came around and have “become my biggest champions.”
Growing up in Boston, Mass., Chiu’s parents made a conscious decision not to raise their three children to be bilingual. But the language barrier doesn’t stop him from trying to ad- dress the needs of the Asian American community. “Chinatown is one of the poorest neighborhoods in San Francisco — by income, by job opportunities,” says Chiu. “We’re a city with a huge, huge population of immigrants and diverse communities. … [San Francisco] hasn’t been represented by an Asian American in the 160-year history of the neighborhood and the city.”
If the campaign continues its uphill climb, Chiu will be breaking that record come November 8.
— Shirley Lau
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
ISSUE: FALL 2011
DEPT: CULTURAL COLLAGE
PHOTOS: CHRISTINA SONG
Nature and the outdoors greatly inspire me in my art. I find it a chance to share some of the visceral moments seen and experienced during a hike or a walk through a scenic route. Thinking of fall fills my mind with free-spirited and youthful imagery, like leaves freely falling whilst changing colors. I kept these thoughts in mind and it led me to depict the wonderful season in a bold, playful manner.
Check out more stories here. Purchase the Fall issue of Audrey Magazine here.
Got a Cultural Collage story you’d like to share with us? Now accepting submissions of poems, drawings, pictures, and more from our readers! Email your submissions to editor@audreymagazine.com
Beats Per Mnet (BPM) is the Asian pop culture cable channel’s newest primetime lifestyle show, featuring everything from fashion advice to on-location segments about food to interviews with Asian celebrities. Model and actress Yvonne Lu chats with Audrey about being the face of the daily two-hour series “where Asian pop lives.”
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Plugged In
HED: Beats Per Mnet’s Yvonne Lu
STORY: Shirley Lau
The show’s goal: I want our viewers to feel like they’re our best friends. When we go on these shoots where we go out to eat at a cool restaurant or go find a cool new shop to buy things at, I want our viewers to feel like they’re with us and we’re experiencing it together.
Working with co-host PK: He’s not just a pretty face. (Laughs) We had an instant rapport. He’s the best friend that you’ve always wanted — very cool, very funny. It’s challenging because we always have to be quick on our feet and play off each other. Whatever you see on set is literally what you see behind the scenes.
Why we need BPM: I think it’s a really cool platform for Asian entertainers and public figures to showcase their talents and skills. We have all walks of life come on our show and that’s really important because it allows you to think outside the box. Sometimes in a traditional Asian family, your parents expect you to do certain things, and now we’re showing you it’s OK to do other things, as long as you follow your heart.
Details Airs Monday through Friday at 7 pm and 10 pm. Check Mnet.com for local listings.
— Shirley Lau
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
What you see isn’t exactly what you get with Chin Han. The professionally trained dancer and theater veteran made his Hollywood debut in the 2008 hit The Dark Knight, opposite Heath Ledger and Christian Bale. After a 20-year acting career, the Chinese American actor, 41, pulls double duty in two film releases this fall, the Steven Soderbergh action thriller Contagion and Gus Van Sant’s Restless.
ISSUE: Fall 2011
DEPT: Plugged In
HED: Chin Han
STORY: Shirley Lau
Mega set: [The Dark Knight] was my introduction to Hollywood and seeing movies operate on that scale. When I was younger, my brother and I would always read these graphic novels [so] when I got to do [the film], it was really, really cool.
Favorite project: I produced a musical, based on Ang Lee’s The Wedding Banquet, a couple years ago. We managed to tell the story we wanted to tell and I fulfilled my dream of probably be producing a musical, which is a creature unto itself.
On my bucket list: I actually like love stories, which is why Restless was kind of special to me. I better do one of those movies before I get too old. (Laughs) I like the interior landscape of the human heart as much I like to do big-budget action movies.
– Shirley Lau
More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.
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