Dear You: the Film with a Small Budget and a Big Heart
I had spoken about a low-budget indie film with Teochew dialogue telling diaspora experiences in Thailand, which had taken China by storm on Anglophone social media. Usually this would lead to immense enthusiasm from my followers, who would enquire about the release date, to which I would woefully reply, there’s no international release. So imagine my delight at being told that Trinity CineAsia had won the rights to Dear You. Sadly unable to attend the premier due to an engagement at a book festival, I made sure I saw it at the cinema. I’m currently recovering from a sleep-deprived fortnight and a bug, but wanted to make sure my thoughts and insights are articulated into an article, to support this amazing film that has captured the hearts of so many around the world. As I sat in the screen in London, letting the Cantonese nostalgia wash over me, it felt surreal.
Posted in Articles, Events
Sneaky Supper: Snack or Busted, Your Call!
I may not talk about my new found love for boardgames and TTRPGs enough, as I actively work on promoting Sinosphere created games, and help western creators produce culturally appropriate games content. It was with this hat on that I found myself at UK Games Expo this year, touching base with creators and generally looking around.
I stopped off at Capital Gains games, drawn in by their Zombie Life Insurance game (which I will be talking about soon), and found a lovely Singaporean company producing small box games with fun graphics, a wide range of subjects, quick playtimes, many of them capturing that Sinophone experience.
So many games of this type are food based. It’s a universal experience, but also carries the specificities of home. Apps and boardgames commonly draw on cooking, hot pot, buffet, dim sums, or ‘guess the dish’ mechanics, and I’ve found myself having to triple check which hotpot deck building dice game I’m playing. I get it. When there is SO MUCH content tied to culinary tradition, it’s hard to be original (says your girl as she edits another “Roll For Noodles” video). Sneaky Supper, however, is a subgenre I hadn’t seen before.
Posted in Articles, Events and tagged Asian, food, game, pop culture, review, Singapore, snacks, tabletop
Into the Maze of Human Nature with Mystery Narratives: Chinese Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Fiction Writers: An International Outlook
I was invited to a showcase of ‘mystery and suspense’ writer in China by the China Writer’s Association recently, as one of the international experts, to hear the authors speak and to give a short talk on my work in curating horror literature. I found the author speeches a very interesting window into their attitudes as writers and their work, and was delighted to see Cai Jun, one of the most contributors to my anthology Sinophagia, with the greatest renown. Here’s the short talk I gave.
Posted in Events and tagged books, Chinese, horror writing, literature
Jia Zhangke’s A Touch of Sin: A Modern Wuxia Tale
I had the pleasure of giving a talking at Genesis Cinema when A Touch of Sin came out in the U.K. Over decade later, for the Jia Zhangke season at the Garden Cinema this year, I return to take a look at the director’s expression of Wuxia stylistics in the setting of contemporary China.
Posted in Articles, Events and tagged A Touch of Sin, cinema, come drink with me, film, Jia Zhangke, king hu, opera, Wuxia
The Woo-Xia in The Killer: John Woo’s Modern Cinematic Wuxia
On the release of the 40th anniversary ultimate collection’s edition of John Woo’s The Killer, I take a look at the director’s creation of modern cinematic Wuxia storytelling.
Posted in Articles, Events and tagged action, essay, film, john woo, last hurrah to chivalry, the killer, Wuxia
The Odyssey of Sinophone Cinema Opens with Four Trails
I first met Dr Hiu Man Chan, the Director of UK China Film Collab, as a fellow panellist at the BFI, and have admired their project and goals ever since, so was delighted this week, to have the pleasure of attending the opening of one the NGO’s projects, the Odyssey Film Festival.
Posted in Events and tagged cinema, film, Sinophone, trail running
Blades of the Guardians: Heroes for Hire
An amazing piece of Wuxia cinema that lends hope not just for a sequel, but for the future of the genre as a whole…
Posted in Articles, Events and tagged action, blades of the guardians, bounty hunter, choreography, cinema, film, manhua, preview, Wuxia, yuen woo-ping
A Thousand Eyes and One
I had a lot of fun chatting to the lovely Tanya and Nikki for their speculative fiction book club, Wine On an Empty Stomach about Sinophagia. We talked about resonating aspects of The Waking Dream, the the terrifying Death of Nala, and the unique female voice in Immortal Beauty, also discussing translation and the great genre fiction out there, ending with their fun signature finish.
Posted in Events and tagged books, genre, horror, literature, POC, podcast, SFF, women
Bringing Light to Chinese Culture and Science Fiction
A very interesting discussion with author Jane McConnell of Imaginize World about science fiction and the future, the key points of discussion. Author and curator of literature and cultureThe origins and purpose of “Sinopticon: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction”The role of science fiction in exploring societal issues and the future and the pastThe interplay between technology progress and preserving humanity and human connectionThe meaning in The Return of AdamPeople in China are looking to the past to see who we were in order to inform the futureOlder Chinese Sci-fi writers Wang Jinkang and Han SongThe depth and themes in Chinese science fiction, including the influence of historical events like the Cultural RevolutionThe importance of storytelling and reading in shaping the futureEthical dilemmas around technology, privacy, inequality, and AIMisconceptions about the futureHow the future may develop
Posted in Events and tagged AI, author, future, podcast, science fiction, social issues, society, technology
Be Gay, For God’s Sake: Literary Consultancy
Even during the incredibly eventful and busy year of 2025, I found time to fit in some literary consultancy on the play Be Gay, For God’s Sake. I really wanted my fellow queer Asian creators to succeed and to amplify these intersectional voices that are so key to global queer dialogues. I’m delighted that after performing at Totnes Fringe, they gained a residency at the Voila Theatre Festival, and won Best New Play at the 2025 Fringe Theatre Awards.
Posted in Events and tagged Asian, award, consultancy, East Asian, ESEA, fringe, intersectionality, play, queer, theatre