The Banquet
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News Archives - March 2006 to Feb 2007
Ziyi nominated for Chinese World Influence Award
Zhang Ziyi and 25 other Chinese have been nominated for a special World Influence award to be presented by the National Peoples Congress of China. Nominees were chosen from the fields of scientific research, public affairs, sports, arts and culture. Other nominees in the arts and culture category include Ang Lee, Jet Li, Jia Zhangke (director of Still Life and Shijie) Tan Dun, and Lang Lang (pianist, heard in The Banquet.) 10-12 of the nominees will be chosen for the awards, which will be presented on March 31st in Beijing. Source: Sohu.
02/27/07
Ziyi Wallpapers
A selection of new Zhang Ziyi wallpapers, made by Wangerlai. All of these are 1280 x 1024.
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02/25/07
Oscar Photoshoot
These lovely photos were taken at the 2006 Academy Awards. The set below was retouched by Chinese scannist Astraea, the larger originals can be found in this forum thread. A wallpaper based on the set is here.
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12/09/06
Asience commercial
The most recent of Ziyi's commercials for Asience, broadcast in October. Click play to start the video.
For all of her Asience commercials see here.
12/09/06
Zhang Ziyi in iLook magazine
Ziyi on the cover of iLook, a Chinese fashion magazine.
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Thanks to Crystal.
12/09/06
Zhang Ziyi becomes a Global Ambassador for the Special Olympics
In November, Ziyi joined with the Special Olympics to spread the organization’s message of inclusion and acceptance of people with intellectual disabilities, and to help promote the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games which will be held in Shanghai
“As a Global Ambassador, I am committed to helping Special Olympics transform attitudes and dispel negative stereotypes on a global level,” said Ms. Zhang. “I hope to help people understand that we need to celebrate and appreciate differences. We all have worth, we all have value, and we’re all better off when we help each other out.”
She attended the "Special Olympics for Social Harmony" photo exhibit held at the United Nations, where she met with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and many other diplomats.
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For more details see this forum thread. Thanks to MyMuseIsZiyi.
12/09/06
Zhang Ziyi's next film: The Horsemen
Ziyi will starring alongside Dennis Quaid in her next film, The Horsemen. From an AP story
Chinese movie star Zhang Ziyi's new Hollywood project will be a crime thriller revolving around a series of killings that also stars Dennis Quaid, one of the movie's production companies said Tuesday.
In "Horsemen," Quaid plays a detective who discovers a personal connection to the suspects in a group of serial killings that are linked to the biblical characters Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the production company, Los Angeles-based Mandate Pictures said in a statement.
Zhang plays a "manipulative young woman" who's crucial to solving the case, the statement said.
Her character in this film, to be named Kristen, seems to be exactly what she has previously said she wanted to play. From an earlier interview
Zhang Ziyi is one of China's hottest movie stars and right now, could pick and choose any role she wanted in the world. Hollywood producers are falling over themselves to entice the 27-year-old Beijing-born actress into a major US production. What really interests Zhang Ziyi is playing a wild American girl.
"I'd like to play an American teen, a very modern, typical American girl with a very rebellious character. I don't smoke, I don't drink, but I want to play someone who is really absurd. I think that would be so cool," she told Time magazine.
For more, see The Horsemen forum thread.
12/09/06
For the most recent news about The Banquet, including it's premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, please see here, and for pictures see here.
Pictures from Venice - The Banquet Premiere and Portraits
The Venice gallery has been updated with 40 new pictures, including Ziyi on the red carpet for the European premiere of The Banquet, and a lovely series of portraits.
Gallery: Ziyi in Venice - 75 pics
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Thanks CrystalGaia, Kambo, and Rulez for the pics.
09/06/06
Ziyi talks about Venice, The Banquet, and Hua Mulan
Another interview from Venice, via our tireless translator Jim. The most interesting news is about Ziyi's upcoming projects. Hua Mulan she says is "basically a sure-go now, but it's not expected to start any time soon" and another English language film is mentioned. There are also some plot spoilers for The Banquet. Read it the interview here.
As for the festival, it feels somewhat different from the others I've been to, probably because Venice is unique. Here you get to see so much exotic scenery when you go to places by boat. It's so wonderful to able to experience the pure and simple local way of life...
Hua Mulan is basically a sure-go now, but it's not expected to start any time soon, because of hassles with the script, cast and what not. I'm going to make another English-language movie by the end of the year (presumably before Hua Mulan starts filming). Hope you guys out there keep an eye on it.
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You can download a video of the interview here. Thanks to Jim and Zphenom.
09/06/06
Ziyi in Venice - Day 1
Photocall for The Banquet at the Venice Film Festival
Gallery: Venice photocall - 35 pics
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09/05/06
Ask Ziyi
If you have a question you would like to ask Ziyi or Daniel Wu about The Banquet, head over to Movieexclusive.com. The Singapore based site is inviting fans to send in questions to be asked at an upcoming press conference.
Zhang Ziyi will be coming to Singapore for a Press Conference with co-star Daniel Wu on the 14th Sept 06. Moviexclusive.com will be attending the Press Conference and we will be asking her a couple of questions. We thought of giving fans of Zhang Ziyi an opportunity to ask this fantastic actress question (s) that they might have wanted to ask but didn't have the chance to. Question(s) that are creative, insightful or pertaining to her latest movie, The Banquet will get a higher chance to be asked.
Just simply send us the question to moviexclusive@gmail.com with subject header "Ask Ziyi and Daniel"! Please indicate your question is for Zhang Ziyi, Daniel Wu or both of them. MovieXclusive.com will choose the most insightful and creative questions to ask the stars. (read: decent, poised toward "The Banquet", etc and not "What's your favourite colour underwear?" kind) will stand a higher chance.
09/05/06
Interview with Ziyi from the Venice Film Festival
Zhang Ziyi has been attending the Venice Film Festival this week where The Banquet received its European premiere. She gave a long and interesting interview to a reporter from Sohu, which has been rendered into English by our translator-in-residence Jim. Read it all here
...Now the European and American markets are increasingly interested in Chinese movies, the number of Chinese productions shown at the top international festivals have grown noticeably. This in a way shows our country is becoming stronger, whether for its economy or global status. Every Chinese, being in the movie industry or not, should feel proud about this. I think we have opened the door to the international market, but that's just the first step. The key lies in how we keep it open to us in the future...
I feel blessed with every film I've made so far. If the characters I portray in Jasmine Women had not given me so much room to show what I was capable of, people probably would have found little in terms of my acting skill. Take The Banquet for example, this character (Queen Wan) gave me so much space for acting. I felt as strongly as I had done while watching The Story of Qiu Ju. This film is about one woman, who is the essence and soul of the story. That's why we all gush about how fortunate an actor is to be given a role like that, because you can thoroughly enjoy the whole process with your character...
When I am acting, I cry whenever it is required (by the script), but what really moves the audience is not a tear or two, but the story behind them. Nowadays, what I emphasize most is the inner feelings. I have been aspiring to do my job steadily rather than hurriedly.
Big thanks to Jiminthemiddle!
09/04/06
Ziyi promotes Garnier in Shanghai
Ziyi was in Shanghai last Wednesday to attend a promotional press conference for Garnier skincare products. Garnier, a sister brand of Maybelline owned by L'Oreal, is introducing their products into China and Ziyi was chosen to be their spokeswoman. "Jiminthemiddle" summarizes a Chinese news report of the event.
The crowd burst into cheers and applause as she stepped onto the stage... Ziyi said she had been very busy this summer working mostly overseas and returned to Beijing only the day before. When asked about the secrets of keeping her skin so good, she replied with her trademark smile: "I take extra care of my skin and look because I'm always hurrying around the world. I often apply face mask during flights to make good use of that sparetime. Apart from a great skincare product line, I also make sure I have enough sleep, eat a lot of fruit and drink plenty of water everyday." She then advised the audience not to take her word for it and encouraged them to try Garnier for themselves.
The report says L'Oreal threw in an eight-digit budget for the marketing campaign in China featuring Ziyi the new face of Garnier. Before the gathering wound up, she witnessed the auction of some Garnier skincare sets as well as a few memorabilia in her name, including stamps from her own collection and movie posters. The winning bidders added 100,000 yuan (RMB) to donations for a nature preservation project in China launched by World Wildlife Fund. She then matched the sum with cash from her own savings for the same cause.
Gallery: Garnier event in Shanghai - 28 pics
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Video: A two minute Chinese TV report
Thanks to Jim and CrystalGaia for the news.
09/04/06
Ziyi in Elle China: "Life is a Banquet"
Ziyi is featured on the cover of the September issue of Elle China and there are a few pictures inside. These scans were retouched by myself, enjoy
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09/01/06
Ziyi in Cosmo Star and iLook
New scans of Ziyi in Cosmo Star and iLook magazine. These have been turned black & white by the talented scannist Maggie.
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09/01/06
Maybelline Commercial
Last year Ziyi filmed a Maybelline commercial in New York with model Adriana Lima. Here is a recording of the commercial as broadcast in Thailand. Press the play button to start
For a gallery of the photoshoot click here.
9/01/06
The Banquet "Making Of" videos
Media Asia's official site for The Banquet has been updated with several "Making Of" clips that give a behind the scenes look at the film's production. Since the site is horribly slow, I've mirrored them all here along with the trailers. Hit the play button or select from the drop down box. Make sure to see the clip about Yuen Wo-Ping and his action choreography.
8/21/06
Posters for The Banquet
Two sets of posters for The Banquet have been released recently. Below is a set in high resolution
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and a previous set from Sina
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08/21/06
Forum tidbits
Ziyi in Xian
HQ scans from Figaro
HQ Jasmine Women pics
Videos by Zphenom