| April
Snow Charity Gala Premiere |
April
Snow on an October Evening
The prospect of having members of Joon’s
Family liking being called “aunties”
is as rare as having snowfall during spring.
Curious to find out what this is all about?
Read on to find out more about MovieXclusive.com’s
coverage!
MovieXclusive.com was honoured to have
been invited to the Charity Gala Premiere
of April Snow on 5th October 2005 at Cathay
Cineleisure. The event was jointly held
by United International Pictures (UIP) and
Encore Films in aid of the Breast Cancer
Foundation. Proceeds from the gala event
would be contributed to the Breast Cancer
Foundation of Singapore.
The
evening was an exciting one as fans of Korean
drama and especially that of Bae Yong Joon
turned up and as everyone crowded around
Level 6 of Cathay Cineleisure, they were
able to mingle with Mediacorp artistes like
Priscelia Chan, Pan Ling Ling and Apple
Hong. Those who turned up also received
an April Snow poster and of course, the
opportunity to be the first few in Singapore
to watch the most promising love story of
2005.
Joon’s
Family
While
it was a night to support charity, it was
also a big night for the Joon’s Family.
What’s Joon’s Family you ask?
Well, that’s what the Bae Yong Joon
Fan Club of Singapore calls themselves.
MovieXclusive.com caught up with Tiffany,
a committee member of the two-year old club.
She explained that the number of people
coming out to support Bae Yong Joon has
grown over the years and the club now boasts
an estimated 100 official members.
The
age range of the members is between those
in their twenties to those in their seventies;
the most ranging in their early 30s. As
such, Tiffany revealed that “members
of the Joon’s Family are a diverse
group consisting of lawyers, teachers, accountants,
doctors and a small handful of housewives.”
Thus,
being a working adult, Tiffany lamented
“the media has the wrong impression
of Bae Yong Joon fans.” She went further
by saying the club is often frustrated at
being labeled “aunties” as most
of them are professionals in their respective
crafts and that their club consist a variety
of people. While they set out to change
this stigma, Tiffany was very happy to share
that about thirty members of the club were
at the gala premiere and that they had booked
a theatre at Cathay for a special screening
for their club members during the weekend.
Slowly but surely, the fans are coming out
in full force!
To
find out more about the Bae Yong Joon Fan
Club of Singapore known as Joon’s
Family, you can visit www.joonsfamily.com
Why
Bae?
While MovieXclusive.com managed to learn
more about the fan club, we were mighty
curious whether our own Mediacorp artistes
are fans of Bae Yong Joon. We caught up
with them and most of them were more than
happy to admit that they are his fans!
The burning question we
had for them was “Why [support] Bae
Yong Joon?” The answers came fast
and furious. There were those who felt that
Bae Yong Joon’s charm is just too
irresistible. Lina Ng, former Mediacorp
artiste said “He is good at romance
and has charming gestures which have captured
the hearts of both young and old.”
J Team artiste, Margaret
Lee echoed Lina Ng’s sentiments by
saying that “every girl grows up dreaming
of fairytales and finding their Prince Charming.”
When asked if Bae Yong Joon is her Prince
Charming, she gamely revealed, “Yes!”
For many, Winter Sonata
remains the TV series that introduced Bae
Yong Joon to the world. For Mediacorp artiste,
Apple Hong, who has followed his TV serials
and caught his last movie, Untold Scandal,
she became a fan of Bae Yong Joon for his
versatility. She said, “He can play
the role of a good lover in one [movie]
yet a baddie in another.” In knowing
that the premise of April Snow is a very
challenging one for the actors, Apple continued,
“He [Bae Yong Joon] will be able to
portray [the character as to] what the director
wants.”
Tiffany
said it best when she retorted, “Why
not?” We went further by asking why
she had chosen Bae Yong Joon over other
Korean actors. She smiled saying that this
was the kind of things that one could not
explain. Later, when the club brought out
their banner for a photo-taking session,
we saw the phrase “Love needs no reason.”
We then understood what Tiffany had meant
and we nodded in agreement.
What
about the men?
While
everyone seems to be talking about Bae Yong
Joon, many have forgotten that his co-star,
Son Ye-Jin, is a versatile actress who is
able to hold her own on screen. We were
curious to find out if any of the men in
attendance are fans of hers.
A
male audience member who was there avoided
the question and explained that he was just
there to accompany his partner, who is a
Bae fan. We also asked Pan Ling Ling if
her husband, Huang Shinan is a fan of Son
Ye-Jin, to which she replied that both of
them are fans of Korean dramas.
While
some of our male friends out there were
pretty coy when it came to revealing their
liking for Son Ye-Jin, there were those
who talked to us. Andy, who caught Son Ye-Jin’s
last movie, A Moment to Remember, explained
that she was able to carry off her character
well enough to warrant his presence at the
premiere.
Another
male audience member who only wanted to
be known as “S” proclaimed his
support for the pretty Korean actress. “I
first saw her [Son Ye-Jin] in The Classic
and she really made me cry and cry.”
He continued, “I’ve seen all
her movies since then and I’ve been
waiting for April Snow.”
Things
may seem relatively quiet on the male front
as Andy and “S” were the only
two male members of the audience who were
game enough to confess their support for
Son Ye-Jin. The husbands, too, are not making
a big deal out of things or so Tiffany said.
When asked what her husband had to say about
her being a fan of Bae Yong Joon, she confidently
replied, “He is supportive but he
thinks I’m nuts!” To which she
added, “I’ve never done such
a thing when I was a teenager!”
Gentlemen,
beware the power of Bae perhaps?
Expectations
Knowing that they are fans of Bae Yong Joon,
we naturally asked if they had any expectations
for April Snow. While the general response
was “not really,” Tiffany said
that she “would probably see it [April
Snow] again, again and again.” Pan
Ling Ling confessed that April Snow is her
first Korean movie and while she had no
expectations of the movie, she was looking
out for the cinematography as she believed
the Koreans are very particular about their
scenery.
April Snow has
been touted as Korea’s biggest movie
of 2005 and “it will be a blockbuster
despite the mixed reviews it has received,”
said Heartlanders actress, Priscelia Chan.
She continued, “Fans from both camps
[Bae’s and Son’s] will turn
out in full-force to support their respective
stars.”
Have you purchased your
ticket for the love story that will transcend
all seasons yet?
Rated NC-16, April Snow
opens in theatres nationwide 13th October
2005.
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Reported by Mohamad
Shaifulbahri
Photos Credit: Richard Lim Jr
and UIP
Layout by: Linus Tee
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