Paris Fashion Week collection,Bea Valdes presents

WHEN BEA Valdes says she is inspired by nothing when she creates something, it is not said with an air of arrogance or snobbery. In the vein of true craftsmanship, it all starts with material.

“I don’t see the big picture at first,” says the artist/designer who starts the creative process by examining what she has at hand, then proceeds to construct or “build,”as she puts it, a creation.

Where it goes, nobody knows. Not even she, until the material takes on a life of its own in Bea’s hands—she positions it, tweaks and tumbles it, combines it with other materials, even deconstructs it until it morphs into something that is, in the designer’s eyes, a feasible notion she can develop. Then that something takes shape.

The new collection, “The Burden of Silk,” pieces of which were launched in mid-October this year in Paris Fashion week, is a rare glimpse into the designer’s craft.

Spaces, shadows

From the idea’s momentum comes “the building at the edge of spaces, crafting shadows, finding the intersections of these yet non-existent pieces. From the nucleus of these imaginings, we spin out our embroidery—some vegetal, some slick, some floral suggestions.

Crystals traverse imaginary paths, silk strings collapse and streak along the tulle...” as the description of her creative process goes.

The concepts, translated into objects of desire, aside from the accessories she is already known for, are astonishing shawls or vests or scarves that can be worn in many ways, some of them unimaginable until they are put on.”

“The pieces are taking over the body,” muses sister Marga, who handles Bea’s marketing.

The description of the work: “We prey on organic transformations, on changelings, on hybrids, ideas of adornment.”

A vest of athletic ribbon shaped into florals, perhaps the most casual item in the collection, is not spared the elegant complexity. A similar dressier version in gold fabric, rolled, then encased in black tulle recalls the use of corded lace in a Valera gown.

Swarovski

Swarovski beads and crystals, ever present in a Bea piece, are placed in stunning combinations for a clutch bag in flamenco and coal. (Since 2007, Bea has been handpicked by Swarovski to represent Asian design.)

Yards-long tassles are wound and bundled in Turkish knots on another clutch in rich chocolate fudge brown, first diagonally, then the opposite, creating a pattern reminiscent of Punjabi turban.

Bea has never been satisfied with the usual acceptable color combinations, even in her initial offerings that looked like Don Luis Araneta’s candy-colored-beaded Christmas balls.

In this collection, she opts for “grown up colors,” not one color definable, each deliciously off: toffee, camel, amber, fog, ash, pewter, eggshell, mist, indigo, pearlized robin’s egg, flamenco.

Sequins are sewn in differently, adequately described as a non-traditional lateral application. The result is a furry silhouette from afar and up close, a tight pattern of minute fish scales. Very tactile, delicate looking but sturdy.

One particular bag of understated elegance makes use of faceted brushed alloy beads, something of a pale verdigris hue, surrounded by charcoal-colored tiny pearls, forming a reticulated effect, similar to the art deco diamante negra jewelry of the ’20s.

Tallulah Bankhead

The unusual combination of short feathers, the shade of soured milk and pale ice colored teardrop beads that gently sway around the bag opening, with the bottom of tiny eggshell colored sequins, is a perfect Tallulah Bankhead accessory.

Since 2005 when her oversized and now much copied) “statement neckpiece” was noticed by major fashion accessory arbiters, Bea has found a place alongside fashion legends as Lanvin and Balmain when she was named one among the Top Five Designers of the Year by the JC Report in 2008.

There have been collaborations with shoe designer Christian Louboutin, jeweler Justin Giunta, 2009 CFDA Awardee for Accessory design; and lately, with New York fashion house J. Mendel.

For all the international recognition, Bea chooses to stay in the Philippines, running her workshop in Manila, where her senior artisans mentor the newer ones, keeping the quality of craftsmanship at a high level.

For the labor and time-intensive work that goes into every piece, she sees the importance of maintaining a creative environment.

Bea the brand

Carmen Busquets, co-founder of Couturelab and Net-a-Porter, the world’s leading luxury fashion retail magazine online, and who has worked with Bea since 2006, says of her: “Time is luxury and this is its skillful and artful expression—the indulgence of creating something tantalizingly unique and meticulously crafted.”

Today, Bea’s name is a brand. As she says, “it is not just about me.”

Between her, her artisans, the people who support her like sister Marga and mother Pamela, there is no gap, as intentioned by the brand name “beavaldes.” One word. No gaps in between. It has become one solid enterprise.

Ms. Busquets observes: “What Bea has been able to successfully accomplish is the creation of a new niche in the market for the kind of work that she is known for—couture, bespoke items. This expertise has firmly placed her in a category Luxury Fashion Accessories, that did not even exist in the Philippines five years ago.”

The thing about crafts people like Bea Valdez is that there is really no simple way to construct things. Complexity and layering seem to be the only way about it. Whether it is bringing back favorite materials such as long black resin beads and reinterpreting them to fit into a new creation, or adaptively re-using unlikely materials like athletic ribbon, the process does not stop there.

She doesn’t limit her shapes to fashion accessories. In 2008, she mounted an exhibit of unusually beaded animals in a collection she called “Bedtime Stories.”

Of her creative process Bea says: “It’s like a spider building it’s web,” as she expounds on a quote by A.S. Byatt—“This need is like the spider’s need who carries before her a huge burden of silk which she must spin out.why, what can she do but make more, spin afresh, design anew.”

And like Bea’s stunning pieces, no two spider webs are ever alike.

”The Burden of Silk” unfolds on Nov. 11 hosted by Firma at Greenbelt 3, with sponors Moet, Ayala Malls, HSBC Premiere and Restaurante Pia y Damaso.

(source:lifestyle.inquirer.net)

Seoul's star designers share future outlook

Seoul Fashion Week’s 10th anniversary greets the public in an exhibition of 10 Korean designers in a one-day showcase today at the Samsung Leeum Museum of Art, central Seoul.

Industry veterans from newer mainstays on the scene such as the internationally-known Lie Sang-bong and design couple Andy & Debb will take part. Seven women’s wear designers and three in men’s wear were chosen by a panel of foreign and domestic press, with each contributing three of their most representative styles to the exhibition.

Korea’s largest fashion event began in 2000 with a modest lineup of 12 designers, now playing host to more than 130. Those currently featured have helped develop the field with their work and, while some look to unfold a new beginning, others seek to preserve the traditions of the land.

“Designers are so dead. In the market, because of what people look for, distribution and everything is moving with foreign brands, there are some designers whose skills have died, and there are big companies whose marketing has been crushed. Until now, foreign brands have been coming in like a flood, whether they’re cheap or expensive,” the outspoken, business-savvy Gee Choon-hee of Miss Gee Collection, a favorite among Korean celebrities, told The Korea Times. The designer explains that because of the need for domestic designers to have to learn to create Western-style clothing, it has — of course — taken some time. “But I think that things will get better now, because a lot of other designers wear our clothes now... so doesn’t it have to? That’s what I’m hoping.”

Her latest collection will be characterized by nightlife sparkles and brighter colors, she said, not only for the warmer seasons but also in celebration of the recovering economy. Always of a practical mindset, however, Gee prefers to express her creativity through subtle lines and delicate details.

“You have to exert efforts to cut the fat, because these clothes have to be worn and sold, so if you lose that goal and fall into an artist-priority mindset by yourself... well, this clothing is being sold by South Korea to live off of, it’s the same as knowing how to read the market.”

This year also marks another occasion: While Gee was the opening show in the very first fashion week held in October 2000, she will serve as the grand finale for this season’s edition.

Modern hanbok designer Lee Young-hee has made waves across the oceans, banishing the image of hanbok as the “Korean kimono” in Paris and finding new audiences for that nation’s traditional wear — revamped with bold palettes, modern cuts, and her signature, hand-dyed natural colors.

“Has it been 10 years?” mused Lee, surprised at how quickly the time had passed. Indeed, for the pioneer who held a show in Washington, D.C., as early as the 1980s and fought her way toward the Pret-a-Porter Paris stage by 1993, these fashion weeks are now old hat.

“When we first went to Paris, there wasn’t anything like (Seoul Fashion Week), and we worried that there wasn’t,” she explained of her inaugural show, in which she participated as an individual. “After we came back, we still needed to show our work... And to show your work on that large a scale once or twice a year, there are a lot of problems, as an individual.”

But the Korean event, which has grown enormously, has now become an advantageous springboard, she said. Although, she laughs, it still takes money.

“People can gain bravery and spread their wings from participating in events like this, it’s far better than not having an opportunity. It’s good for those rising designers because they can grow from a place that does well.”

But for Lee, who fearlessly opened a boutique in Paris the year following her debut there, she has no regrets. Though she fell into the design trade by fate and admits to not having had a clear goal in mind at the time, the mainstay for traditional Korean wear now hopes to keep history alive in her work.

“I want people to know the culture and beauty of the hanbok,” Lee said. “I can’t give up, I have to finish my work.”

For Jung Wook-jun of JUUN.J, his participation in the exhibition is also a time of commemoration and introspection. For the designer who first launched his collection in 2000, Jung has seen the progress of his own style.

“Over the past 10 years, I was able to become a grown fashion designer,” he said. “It (has been) an opportunity for JUNN.J to have his own identity.”

And any advice for the next rising stars? “The most important thing is a designer should have his or her own creativity.”

Other designers participating in the show are Wooyoungmi, Park Choon-moo, Song Jung-wan, Moon Young-hee and Chang Kwang-ho of Caruso.

The anniversary exhibition begins at 7 p.m. tonight at the Leeum. More than 200 guests are expected to attend, including Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon.

(source:koreatimes.co.kr)

Severe fatigue behind swimmer's(Fran Crippen) death

Fran Crippen, a star open-water swimmer, was at a competition in the United Arab Emirates when made a promise to his longtime prep-school coach back in the states.

He would call by five in the morning Saturday with the outcome and details of the 10-kilometer Marathon Swimming World Cup.

Richard Shoulberg, who began coaching Crippen since he was seven, knew something was wrong when the athlete had not called by 5:45 a.m. ET, he told CNN.

Indeed, in the UAB, divers were searching for Crippen after he did not finish the race. They found his body two hours later.

The loss of Crippen, 26, hit hard in suburban Philadelphia, where he grew up in a family of swimmers who trained and began competing there. Crippen was on target to achieve his goal of being an Olympian -- a dream cut short.

"We're all grieving. We're all in shock," Shoulberg said.

Doctors determined that severe fatigue was behind Crippen's sudden death, UAE Swimming Federation Secretary Saeed Al Hamour told CNN Sunday.

Earlier, however, the head of the water sports club in Fujairah, Ahmed Ibrahim, said that preliminary tests showed that he suffered a heart attack.

The official report released by the UAE Swimming Federation made no mention of a heart attack.

Crippen died Saturday during the last leg of the Marathon Swimming World Cup in Fujairah, the International Swimming Federation (FINA) said in a news release.

The cause of death is under investigation, FINA said.

In a conversation with Shoulberg 12 hours before the race, Crippen said that the outside temperature was 100 degrees and that the water was 87 degrees.

The high temperatures have led to some speculation that it may have contributed to the death.

However, Al Hamour denied any reports that Crippen's death may have been caused by water temperature or cleanliness.

"The competition was monitored and supervised by the International Swimming Federation. All security measures were taken care of as needed," Al Hamour said. "We've organized so far 14 competitions and championships and never had any death."

Swimming World magazine reported that Crippen fell unconscious during the event and was found by deep-sea divers two hours later near the race's final buoy.

The U.S. Olympic Committee issued a statement Saturday saying it was "extremely saddened" to learn of Crippen's death.

"We send our condolences and deepest sympathies to the Crippen family as well as to our entire swimming community," the USOC statement said. "While details of this tragedy are still forthcoming, we shall keep this outstanding young athlete and his family in our thoughts and prayers."

Crippen won bronze in the 10-kilometer event at the 2009 FINA World Championships and was the gold medalist in the same event at the 2007 Pan American games, according to USA Swimming.

Crippen, of Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, was inspired to take up swimming at age 6 after watching older sister Maddy Crippen compete in the water.

Maddy Crippen was a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympic team, according to USA Swimming.

Crippen graduated in 2006 from the University of Virginia where he was twice named Atlantic Coast Conference Swimmer of the Year.

He was to be inducted into the athletic hall of fame of his former prep school, the Germantown Academy next month. Instead, he is being remembered as a dedicated swimmer who gave his time to teaching young children how to swim, and introducing high school swimmers to open-water swimming.

"He was an unselfish human being," Shoulberg said.

Crippen's body will be handed over to U.S. Swimming Federation authorities on Monday.

(source:cnn.com)

Holidays to suffer as French petrol pumps run short

A strike at French oil refineries over pension reform disrupted school holidays and sporting events over the weekend, with a quarter of petrol stations short of fuel and popular resorts likely to be particularly hit.

Raymond Soubie, a senior adviser to President Nicolas Sarkozy, told Europe 1 radio the regions of Brittany, Loire-Atlantic and Auvergne in the northwest and center would be among the worst affected by the shortages, which come at the start of a 12-day school holiday.

Several football matches in the north over the weekend had to be postponed.

Sarkozy scored a victory on Friday by getting his bill to make people work two more years for their pensions through the Senate, but striking refinery workers are putting a strain on businesses and daily life and show no sign of backing down.

Workers at two refineries have voted to stay on strike next week, and workers at the other plants will meet in the days ahead to decide their course of action, CGT union official Charles Foulard at energy company Total said on Sunday.

"The movement continues," Foulard told Reuters. "Everything will be debated among the workers and will depend on the mobilization of the workers."

Rail strikes are also set to carry on next week, although at least half of all services will likely run.

Two-thirds of French people oppose the pension law and have put up some of the fiercest resistance in Europe to austerity measures aimed at reining in huge deficits.

Sarkozy sent in police last week to break up blockades at fuel depots and the government battled to get diesel and petrol out to motorway service stations before a flood of families hit the road this weekend.

COMPLEX LOGISTICS

Protests are complicating the government's efforts to restore normalcy to the country's energy sector. Soubie said how complex it was to improve the distribution situation quickly.

"It is a very difficult logistical problem," he said, adding: "... it will improve very gradually."

France's main oil refinery in the northwest, in Donges, is blocked and operations at a nearby fuel depot have also been interrupted at times this week, hindering deliveries to the entire region.

The government on Friday obtained a court order to require four employees at the fuel depot to go back to work to get the operation running again.

A union official in the port of Nantes said 300 protesters have prevented a tug boat from towing a tanker carrying 10,000 liters of oil up the Loire River to the Donges fuel depot.

(source:reuters.com)

Sarkozy approval at record low

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's approval rating has sunk to its lowest level yet, a poll reported Sunday, as protests over his pension reforms left the country struggling with gas shortages, travel chaos and school shutdowns.

Despite raids by riot police last week to force open refineries blocked by striking workers, France's 12 refineries were blocked again Sunday, as were ports in Marseille and Le Havre, where dozens of tankers are still anchored, waiting to unload.

The poll, published in the Journal du Dimanche newspaper, showed that only 29 percent of those surveyed were satisfied with Sarkozy's performance. That was down 3 percent from September and was the French leader's lowest rating since taking office in 2007. It was also among the lowest approval ratings of any French president in recent memory, the newspaper said.

The survey of 1,828 people was conducted in person and by telephone by the Ifop polling agency from Oct. 14-22. No margin of error was given.

Sarkozy has tied his political future to the contested pension reform, which if it becomes law as expected this week will raise the retirement age from 60 to 62. The government contends the reform is necessary to save the money-losing pension system, but the opposition calls it an attack on French workers' rights.

The demonstrations have brought millions onto the streets, and open-ended walkouts by railway and petroleum workers have wreaked havoc on commuters and travelers. Still, polls have shown the vast majority of French people support the strikers.

Sarkozy adviser Raymond Soubie told Europe-1 radio on Sunday that gasoline shortages had eased but admitted that a quarter of France's gas stations were still shuttered. The hardest-hit areas were in western France and around Paris, he said.

"Will the situation improve? Yes it will, but slowly, progressively," Soubie said, adding that the government made stocking highway gas stations a priority ahead of the two-week Toussaint school holidays that began Saturday.

But Saturday's unusually smooth traffic suggested many would-be vacationers opted to stay home.

With garbage collectors in Marseille still on strike, 9,000 tons of rubbish has piled up on the streets of the Mediterranean port city and its suburbs. The head of the region took legal action Sunday to force strikers back to work, and some workers will begin clearing the hills of festering trash on Monday.

The Senate voted 177-153 Friday to pass the pension reform bill, which is expected to win final formal approval this week. Nevertheless, unions have already announced two new nationwide protests for Thursday and Nov. 6.

Sarkozy insists with French life expectancy increasing and the country's debt soaring, the retirement age must be raised to save the pension system. Other countries across Europe are in a similar bind and many have overhauled their own retirement plans.

(source:afp)

US rules out mediation over Kashmir dispute

Foreign office spokesman of the United States Philip Crowley has said that the USA has serious concerns over the situation in the Indian held Kashmir however it does not intend to mediate on the dispute. US urged Pakistan and India to resolve the issue bilaterally.

Philip Crowley said, in Washington, that the US is in continuous contact with Pakistan and India over the situation in Kashmir and aspires for the solution of the dispute. The spokesman also said that the situation in Kashmir is extremely violent and should be resolved by table-talks. Philip Crowley briefed the media personnel that mediation on Kashmir dispute is not a part of the US policy.

Earlier Foreign Minister of Pakistan Shah Mehmood Qureshi, in a joint press conference with Hilary Clinton, said that the Kashmir dispute must be resolved for durable peace in the region. He also urged the USA to play its part in resolving the issue. 

(source:thepakistaninewspaper.com)

US says no salary with out work,for Pakistani rulers

While the United States has agreed to give an additional two billion dollars as aid in the form of military assistance to Pakistan with their terms and conditions, it seems to have subtly conveyed that this proposed assistance should not be viewed as a "free lunch" and comes with an increasing expectation that Islamabad needs to deliver actual results on the ground in the context of the war on terror.

Pakistan, on the other hand, approached Washington with a wish list that not only included a demand for more financial aid to deal with the above, but also with a demand that the Obama administration take on a third-party mediator role in resolving its decades-long Kashmir dispute with India.

The third United States-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue in Washington ended last week with the repeated hopes and understanding to "do more" in the multi-faceted war on terror.

The US, however, put the ball in Islamabad's court after promising to give two billion dollar 'carrots' of further military assistance, subject to approval of the U.S. Congress.

The talks in Washington were held at a crucial moment-at a time when U.S. mid-term elections are to take place in the first week of November - placing the Obama administration in a quandary.

The review of the Afghanistan policy is also scheduled this December amid rising tension and trust deficit between the two countries, and amidst reports of the US and Afghan Taliban having secret talks.

The trust deficit between Pakistan and the US is no secret. Recently, the stopping of NATO supplies from Pakistan into Afghanistan and the burning of a hundred NATO oil tankers were an indication that both sides would have come to the dialogue table with their respective agendas, issues and apprehensions.

It is generally seen that both sides have opposing views when it comes to achieving their goals, as both partners see the glass as 'half empty' from their point of view.

On ground, a sharp difference in objectives of both countries is quite clear. The US wants to get results to show that it has achieved something in the run-up to the mid-term election and nurtures hope for giving a final direction to this prolonged and partially won war on terror by the end of 2010.

On the other hand, Pakistani military-controlled foreign policy has and will always be India-centric.

It has the threatening card of moving its forces towards its eastern border with India anytime, and is sympathetic to its "unofficial army" of jihadi organizations, which many in the establishment in Islamabad term as an "asset".

In such a situation, which has been described as "tough love" between the US and Pakistan, miracles should not be expected.

"Strategic dialogue is always based on long-term policy and mutual benefit, but in this case, it is not happening so," Professor (Dr.) Farooq Hasnat, a Pakistani scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington, said.

He said there is a convergence of interest, in which, both sides are looking for commonalities.

"US policy is Afghan-focused, and in Pakistan, their interest is to safeguard atomic weapons and to save them from militants," Dr. Hasnat said, adding, "neither Islamabad can meet American interests, nor it has capacity. The rulers are looking for American aid for short term gain, instead of improving governance and tax collection mechanism."

He said this partnership cannot be long term, or high-pitched, because of a clash of interest on both sides.

"In one line, it is two steps forward and a three steps backward policy," he said, recommending for mere "cooperation" instead of "long term strategic dialogue."

This high pitch short-term gain would also trouble the neighbouring powers like India, China and Iran, he warned.

The US has its own agenda for its taxpayers-to improve economy and ensure security. The Indian-centric military controlled dialogue from Pakistan includes a demand for a similar civil nuclear cooperation deal, a demand for the Kashmir issue to move towards a solution and access to American markets to improve its economy.

Nothing has been officially discussed, but there was a "long discussion" on the Afghanistan situation. It seems that the U.S. is not ready to accept Pakistan's India centric view, but wants to address the problem of Pakistan's alleged persistent "double game" of getting US aid and abetting Taliban and not acting against the Haqqani network etc.

"The road to Kabul from New Delhi only passes through Srinagar," former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director-General Lt. Gen. (retired) Hameed Gul said.

"Pakistan's key issue is Kashmir, which must be exploited at this moment, as the US is not showing an even-handed policy with Islamabad and New Delhi. Obama must take up the Kashmir issue during his visit (to India), publicly or privately," demands Gul, a known sympathiser of the Pakistani Taliban and Mullah Omer, the Afghan Taliban leader.

"Recent aid is just to push Islamabad to launch an operation in North Waziristan at this crucial time when America wants to show some results to its domestic audience in a couple of months," he remarked on the recent dialogue.

He added that a tactical move from Pakistan is required, because this is the time America desperately needs Pakistan, as the trust deficit between the two countries is rising gradually due to the frustration over losing the war on terror.

He also said that the U.S. thinks Islamabad can help them in this war, as they are in a fix but it is time Pakistan realizes that the Americans will leave Afghanistan sooner or later, and therefore, the question that arises is "What will it get at the end?"

He said that in talks with the Taliban, Pakistan and Afghanistan cannot play a substantive role.

"Only two Os (Obama and Omer) can help them out in succeeding in the talks with the Taliban," he said.

Lt. Gen. (retired) Talat Masood, a prominent defence analyst, said: " In a partnership, you have to be engaged in structured dialogue to deliver. This aid is also to neutralize threat and countering some insurgency areas."

"There is no free lunch. America expects that Islamabad should contribute in some form so that they can say that we (Pakistan) have done something to reduce the threats, which emerge from Kabul. And of course, there is the question of the Haqqani network too."

"Pakistan has to decide whether it wants to have writ of state in tribal belt and owns up this area or wants to continue compromising its sovereignty," he added.

He said Pakistan should pursue policies, which are good for the region and help in improving ties.

"India is another issue. Such aid is also irritating for India, but it does not mean that Pakistan should expect equal treatment from America. How we can expect that? It is unrealistic," he said.

Though the US aid packages are publicly questioned all the time in the corridors of power in Islamabad, with a call to "give more", or to "do more", Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi believes the "results" of the successful "strategic dialogue" would emerge soon.

To what extent this approval of a two billion dollar aid will help in bridging the sharp differences, is yet to be seen, as signals from the Pakistani Army are awaited after this important round of talks.

Important questions have been raised in the dialogue and answers are awaited to bridge the mistrust amid doubts and suspicions on both sides.

(source:sify.com)

Stars Line Up to Support G20 Summit

Celebrities from show business, sport and other sectors of society volunteered as supporters of the G20 Summit in Seoul on Nov. 11 and 12. The list of stars includes K-pop groups Girls' Generation and 2NE1, film director Im Kwon-taek, actress Han Ji-min, actor Ji Jin-hee, retired baseball hero Yang Joon-hyeok, female soccer star Yeo Min-ji, and renowned chef Edward Kwon.

The organizing committee of the G20 Summit held a supporters' event on Thursday at COEX in Seoul, and appointed 14 celebrities and the two bands. Sakong Il, who chairs the Presidential Committee for the G20 Summit, said the aim is "to generate more interest and participation from people as well as to boost the confidence of Korea as the chair country of the summit."

selected as star supporters for the upcoming G20 summit,

Girl group 2NE1 pose after being selected as star supporters for the upcoming G20 Summit in Seoul on Thursday. /Newsis Girl group 2NE1 pose after being selected as star supporters for the upcoming G20 Summit in Seoul on Thursday. /Newsis

Other stars on the supporters' list are fashion designer Lee Sang-bong, photographer Kim Jung-man, Olympic gold medalist speed skaters Mo Tae-bum and Lee Sang-hwa, musical actor Nam Kyung-joo, and actresses Jo Yeo-jung, Kim So-eun, and Park Bo-young.

Im Kwon-taek said, "Korea's reputation in the world has been greatly enhanced, and Korean films can compete with foreign films on the world stage. I will cheer for the successful hosting of the G20 Summit, which is an excellent opportunity to improve Korea's image not only in politics and economy, but also in culture, arts and society in general."

(source:english.chosun.com)

Hsu's star rising as she contemplates her future

Taiwan-born actress/recording artist Vivian Hsu may be the most exposed actress at the 2010 Hawaii International Film Festival, starring in three films.

But with the film festival winding down this weekend, Sunday's repeat showing of "Fire of Conscience" is the last chance to catch Hsu on screen. Last night she joined award-winning directors Li Qian Kuan and Xiao Guiyan here for the world premiere of "The Star and The Sea." She also had a role in "Hot Summer Days," which showed earlier in the festival.

With the assistance of interpreter Marshall Wu, Hsu talked about her dual careers in film and music, the roles she'd like to play, and a story she'd like to share with America in a major film.

John Berger: You have three movies here at the festival. Each one represents a different genre. Do you have a favorite genre or a favorite type of character?

Vivian Hsu: I particularly like "The Star and The Sea." The role of Xinghai's mother is very challenging. I've never played a mother before. Also, it is a period piece that takes place 100 years ago. However, l also like the challenge of working with different crews and different directors because it inspires different kinds of creative sparks. In the future I would like to do something I've never done before, particularly like a thriller, a crime story or a ghost movie.

(source:staradvertiser.com)