All right, here are my Oscar predictions. Like the Golden Globes, I'm only going to look at the major categories. One is my prediction, the other's my preference.
A couple of weeks before my departure to Perth last year, I was visited by a high school friend who's also an aspiring filmmaker. The guy was collaborating with another friend of his to work on something for the Astro Chinese Short Film Competition, so he came over to pitch his ideas to me, and also wondered whether I can help them out as well. Alas, I was going to Perth, so I had no choice but to turn down his kind offer, even though I was very tempted to join them.
Most films that are nominated for the Oscars are usually not shown in Malaysian theatres. In fact, among the five films that were nominated for this year's Oscar (Ray, Finding Neverland, The Aviator, Sideways and Million Dollar Baby), only one, The Aviator, was shown in the cinemas, probably because it had a star-studded cast, and a pretty huge budget.
Books Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco - Always wanted to read a book by Umberto Eco, so I picked up the very first book he wrote. A Heartbreaking Work of Overwhelming Genius by Dave Eggers - Was attracted by the title. Obviously.
More personal memories from Cantopop of the mid-90s. The lady beside me is Kelly Chen. It was 1996, there was a celebration after an award ceremony in Singapore, but she was also celebrating her birthday. Ronald Cheng and Calvin Choi (one of the guys from the pop group, Grasshopper) were there too.