Kung Fu Yoga: One Really Long Poster!

and a few others:

Happy Birthday Jackie Chan

Jackie spent his birthday launching a new company on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The company had a private share listing last year when Jackie, Feng Xiaogang, Zhang Goali, Li Bingbing, Eric Tsang, Stanley Tong and Huang Xiaoming became the main shareholders. A public share offering was listed on the 7th April.

Following a major reorganization in the corporation, it was decided to focus on investment in the film industry, television production and the development of computer games.

The 7th of April is also Stanley Tong's and Eric Tsang's birthday so they celebrated with cake and a private meal.

Kung Fu Yoga: Photos in Iceland

Kung Fu Yoga: Filming Starts in Iceland

Stanley Tong, JC Stunt Team and various other cast members have arrived in Iceland where filming has resumed on Kung Fu Yoga.

Kung Fu Yoga: Concept Poster

A concept poster for Kung Fu Yoga has been revealed on Weibo.

Kung Fu Yoga: Plot Synopsis

A synopsis of the plot of Kung Fu Yoga from IMDB:

Jack (Jackie Chan), a renowned professor of archeology at the Terracotta Warriors Museum in Xi'an, teams up with beautiful Indian professor Ashmita and assistant Kyra to locate India's lost Magadha treasure in Tibet. Jack's assistants Xiaoguang (Lay Zhang) and Nuomin (Miya Muqi) accompany them. They are later joined by Jones Lee (Aarif Rahman), whose father was Jack's old friend. Using various new clues and GPS, the group locates the lost Magadha army that had escorted the treasure in ancient times, buried in an ice cave that has been hidden for centuries. They are suddenly ambushed by Randall (Sonu Sood), a descendant of a rebel army leader who claims a right to the royal treasure. During the scuffle, Jones snatches a large diamond from the cave and flees, leaving Jack and his team trapped inside the frozen cave. Using yoga breathing techniques, Jack and Ashmita escape the cave through an icy river, returning to free the others. Defeated, Ashmita and Kyra return to India; Jack, Xiaogang and Nuomin travel to Dubai where the diamond is being auctioned. Although Jack secures the diamond, it is snatched by Randall leading to a daring car chase in which Ashmita secures it on a passing motorbike and vanishes. Realizing that the professor is not who she claims to be, Jack, his team and Jones fly to India. Ashmita and Kyra are in fact sisters and descendants of Magadha royalty, who wish to restore their family name. Jack agrees to help them again. When Jones and Kyra are kidnapped, Jack and Ashmita travel to the Sacred Mountain to unlock the treasure...

SOURCE: IMDB

Here's Hoping!

Golden Network Asia has the international distribution rights to Kung Fu Yoga, and Railroad Tigers. They will be marketing the films at the American Film Market which runs from November 4 - 11 in Santa Monica. Here's hoping these films get picked up.

Golden Network will be at the AFM with a trio of Jackie Chan films including action comedy Railroad Tigers and adventure comedy Kung Fu Yoga.

Directed by Stanley Tong, big budget Chinese-Indian action-adventure Kung Fu Yoga has begun shooting in China and Dubai with a cast that includes Chan, Sonu Sood (Dabangg), Aarif Rahman, K-pop star Lay, Zhang Yi Xing and Miya Muqi.

The film is financed by Sparkle Roll Media Corporation and Beijing Taihe Entertainment, with the shoot due to move to India next year.

Chan next shoots action-comedy Railroad Tigers for director Ding Sheng, who previously collaborated with Jackie Chan on Police Story 2013 and Little Big Soldier.

Sparkle Roll Media Corporation, Shanghai Film Group and Beijing Going Zoom Media are on board to finance.

Golden Network is also handling completed martial arts film The Master from director Xu Haofeng, screenwriter on The Grandmaster, critical hit Saving Mr. Wu, starring Andy Lau, and Who Am I 2015.

Executive produced by Jackie Chan, the latter is a homage to action comedies directed by rising talent Song Yinxi.

SOURCE: SCREENDAILY.COM

Kung Fu Yoga: September Set Visit

Barbara Stillwater visited the set of Kung Fu Yoga in September. Warning possible spoilers

This September, I had the good fortune to see Jackie Chan while visiting the set (actually, it was one of many sets, with filming also to take place in India and China’s Xinjiang region) of his upcoming action movie, Kung Fu Yoga, which is set to be released next year. As an American expat living in China, this was a unique opportunity and I was thrilled!

Shooting took place in the penthouse of a high-end hotel in one of China’s major cities. The filming location needed to be kept a secret, so I was asked by the person who had invited me, an insider in the Chinese entertainment industry, not to disclose the exact location of the shooting.

The film set was well hidden behind the facade of a wellness center. At the entrance, there was a reception desk staffed with nurses. I asked my friend whether the nurses were fake or real (my logic was that they were there to deflect attention from what was going on in the rooms behind them). I was told the nurses were actually real — on standby in case someone got injured on the set. I was given an ID card similar to the ones Chan’s staff were wearing, and was permitted to set foot on the set.

The penthouse was a duplex, and on the first floor there was living room furniture, Tang Dynasty-style woodcuts and books in shelves. There was catering on a dining room table for the staff in the kitchen area. The general atmosphere was like that of a casual Friday night party in a private home.

Upstairs were props used in different movies, e.g. a wooden Buddha and the scroll painting from Chan’s 2005 movie The Myth, a film that combines martial arts, adventure, fantasy and romance. The scroll painting features The Myth‘s Korean princess Ok-Soo who generally cuts an unhappy figure in the movie and only smiles for the person painting her portrait when she catches sight of the Qin-Dynasty Chinese general Meng Yi (played by Chan), whom she loves. Also, there were framed photos of Chan in different movies on a shelf. Chan’s two bicycles were strapped to the banisters of the stairs connecting the two stories of the duplex.

The shooting took place downstairs. There was equipment everywhere, film cameras, a big microphone, monitors for the A and B cameras, dollies, straps and hoists used for stunts, etc. Dozens of people were present, cameramen, makeup artists/assistants and 替身 (body doubles), who were either lounging or hovering about the set like butterflies. There was a Bollywood star on the set as well who cut a queenly figure. She spoke British English and was wearing a white bathrobe. Yet there was no sign of Chan when I first arrived.

I was very careful not to get in anyone’s way or trip over the wires; the only faux pas I committed was upsetting some books when I first entered. What struck me was that you had to stand a lot, keep quiet during filming, and there was absolutely no photo-taking on the set, with signs saying it was not permitted.

Chan’s staff slept very little, I heard, but I suppose the same could be said of those working in the film industry in general as shooting a movie is an exhausting endeavor. It seemed the crew were only filming tiny segments and made slow progress, at least on the day I visited the set.

The first time I laid eyes on Chan, he made an imposing appearance, sweeping in right past me around lunch time in a white jogging outfit and black sunglasses. What surprised me was that he was not larger than life, but looked exactly as he did in his movies (I imagined stars to appear different in real life than on the screen, stripped of makeup and costume).

The director of Kung Fu Yoga is Stanley Tong (who also directed The Myth), and I had the pleasure of shaking his hand when I first arrived. Tong and Chan spoke both Mandarin and Cantonese on the set, casually switching between the two. Numerous times, I would hear the director and vice director shout “rolling,” “action” and “ka” (卡, Chinese for “cut”). One of the doubles had to test the wooden dummy on which Chan would perform his stunts, appearing like an acrobat in a circus.

Then it was Chan’s turn. I stood only several meters away from Chan as he did his takes and was amazed at what he was still physically capable of at the age of sixty plus: Chan repeatedly punched the dummy, upon which his assistants had applied powder, and did handstands as well. Chan is still known for doing his own stunts in movies.

The first scene involved Chan entering with a small carton of milk in his hand, looking around mischievously and then proceeding to the dummy. After he was done with his very short kung fu sessions, an assistant came to hand him a towel with a “Jackie Chan” logo on it to wipe away perspiration (Chan has his very own clothing line with the same logo featured on T-shirts). Also, another assistant occasionally handed him a brush or applied a tiny bit of makeup on his cheek using a cotton swab.

What struck me was the fawning attitude of some of his assistants, only natural as he was first, their boss, and second, a big shot, if not a legend, in the entertainment industry. Chan seemed totally focused on his work; he appeared very serious for someone who could cut the clownish Houdini on screen, always narrowly escaping trouble due to his bag of kung fu tricks and rubber-like body. He truly is a contemporary trickster hero!

After a long hiatus on Facebook, I posted on September 7:

“Long time no post; still alive and kicking! I am having a good time in China; was invited to visit the set of Jackie Chan’s upcoming movie Kung Fu Yoga yesterday. Spent several hours watching Jackie Chan punch and do handstands, and saw Stanley Tong busy at work as well. Alas, no photo-taking allowed on the set.”

A Chinese American friend of mine in the Washington D.C. area commented, “Super cool! I hope he is not playing the clown in this one.” I replied, “We’ll see. I was impressed by his super serious work attitude, though. Didn’t smile once the cameras weren’t rolling.”

A Chinese co-worker of mine here in Beijing asked whether Chan looks in real life like he does in the movies. I said yes, and she replied that usually, people look heavier on TV. When she asked me whether he is as famous in the West as he is in China, I again said yes, and added that he is mainly known for kung fu in the United States. In China, Chan is a big star on many fronts, and in Beijing, Chan beams back at you from many ads, e.g. for the camera brand Canon. I even discovered a Wechat sticker featuring Chan giving a thumbs-up.

It was my impression that Chan’s assistants are a hard-working lot and lead a nomadic existence, sometimes going for long periods of time without seeing their families. Most of their time appears to be spent on their feet or on the road, roaming around the parallel universe of the movie world.

Yet Chan rewards those who work for him for their endeavors. He is good to his staff, commemorates their birthdays, poses for photos with them and gives them copies of his biography, which he autographs individually. I heard he hand-feeds his assistants grapes as well…

Maybe I’ll have the good fortune of catching a glimpse of that another time.

SOURCE: ASIANFORTUNENEWS.COM

Interview with Sonu Sood

Nice interview with Sonu Sood. A few details about Kung Fu Yoga are revealed with lots of gushing about Jackie. Confirmation that filming will take place in India in December.

Bollywood actor Sonu Sood describes Jackie Chan, one of the world’s most recognised faces and a martial arts superstar, as an “absolute legend”.

He should know.

The two filmed in Dubai for more than 30 days for the Indo-Chinese production Kung Fu Yoga.

“He’s a great guy and he’s one of the most humble actors I have come across. And I have worked with actors like Mr [Amitabh] Bachchan, Shah Rukh [Khan], Salman [Khan], and they are all nice. But Jackie Chan is that guy who would pick up glasses and bottles lying on the road or that guy who would help in picking up tents once the filming production is over. He doesn’t act like a star,” said Sood in an interview with tabloid! on Sunday.

We are at his suite at the Shangri-La hotel on Shaikh Zayed Road and just like the row of bags packed and stacked near the door, Sood’s carrying truckloads of fond memories with him as he wraps up his 37-day filming schedule in Dubai with Chan. Words such as “inspiration”, “humility” and “warmest person” spill out when Sood speaks about the Rush Hour star.

“I have learnt a lot from him. If he’s hosting a dinner, he will make sure that he goes up to everyone and inquire if they are having a good time or not. He has this quality where he will take over the whole space. When we go out for movie or dinner, everybody may be doing their own thing, but he comes in and connects the dots, makes links by chatting with everyone. He makes sure that everyone finishes their food and the conversation just happens,” said Sood. There were even times when an amiable Chan, one of the world’s top-paid actors, would even eat off his colleague’s plate and make them feel at ease.

The Indian actor, who has featured in hits such as Dabangg and Happy New Year, plans to return the goodwill when Chan visits India to film the remaining portions of Kung Fu Yoga by acting as his guide.

The Indo-Chinese venture, which is the result of a landmark co-production treaty between China and India in September 2014, is directed by Stanley Tong of Police Story fame. After calling it a wrap in Dubai on October 30, the Kung Fu Yoga crew will head to Beijing in December, followed by a shooting stint in Jodhpur in India’s northwestern state of Rajasthan.

“He has asked me to take care of him when he comes to India and I have promised that I will give him the most memorable experience of his life … It just takes you five minutes to see how sincere he is,” said Sood. He describes acting in a Chan film as a “dream come true”.

“I am a huge fan of Jackie Chan and I have seen the Police Story series so many times. I still remember buying those video cassettes and those DVDS. Imagine now I am working with an actor who was in it and a director who made Police Story. For me, life has come full circle. This guy from Punjab has fulfilled his dream,” said Sood.

His dream may have come true, but getting to this point has been difficult and paved with hard work. For instance, the picture of Sood on a horse in a desert wearing an ornate Indian tunic doing the rounds as a part of Kung Fu Yoga filming in Dubai may look jubilant, but it was a tough one to pull off.

“For that scene, I was sitting on a horse the whole day. It was difficult and your muscles get bruised, but when you are in front of a camera and it begins to roll, you just forget the pain, the heat and the stress. You are just in your character. And when you are surrounded by great people, you just learn to enjoy your work thoroughly,” said Sood.

Though he isn’t keen to reveal details of his role, Sood claims that he has a significant role to play in Kung Fu Yoga. He’s not a villain, but a worthy opponent to Chan in this film.

Actors such as Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan and Aamir Khan were earlier rumoured to have been roped in for this project. “There were many names — many of whom were superstars — who were considered for the role. When I asked the director and the team why they chose me, they said the director saw my profile, my pictures and how fit I was, that he became convinced that I was right for the part. They felt that I looked convincing as a guy who could hit Jackie and still bring about humour and present a larger-than-life image,” said Sood.

The high-octane car chase scenes filmed recently in Downtown Dubai sum up the spirit of the film. “We had fifty or sixty cars like Lamborghini, Bugatti, Maserati and Infiniti chasing each other at high speed. You name the car, it was there. I was driving a Hummer that rams into these cars. With the help of some superb action coordinators, we did it. This can only happen in Dubai, a dream city to work in,” said Sood.

He says Kung Fu Yoga has a slick, larger-than-life heroes and adrenalin-charged stunt scenes. But what made it all extra special was that Sood was returning to Dubai for work.

“Come to think of it, some of the most special films in my career were City Of Life and Happy New Year. For both these films, I stayed over a month in Dubai and just when I was thinking that I need one more film like that, that’s when Kung Fu Yoga happened.”

SOURCE: GULFNEWS.COM

Kung Fu Yoga: Bugatti Veyron

One of the many super cars to be seen in Kung Fu Yoga are several different models of Bugatti Veyron. This movie promises to be a treat for every fan of super cars - there is something for everyone.

Kung Fu Yoga: New Investment Deal

After news about Viacom18's disinvestment spread, Taihe Entertainment and Sparkle Roll Television released a statement today that all is well with the production of Kung Fu Yoga. Filming has not been interrupted and the film will be released as expected next year. They said that the film has attracted the attention of many investors, and during the process of negotiation, some declined to invest. The film is still a joint Indo-Chinese venture and a new India investment partnership deal is expected to be signed shortly. In the meantime filming continues with Chinese funding.

A few behind-the-scenes photos were also released:

SOURCE: MTIME.COM