Zhao Liying wishes you a happy new year Zhao Liying wishes you a happy new year
Happy Lantern Festival!

Happy Lantern Festival!
With her new comedy Hi Mom 你好,李焕英, comedian-turned-director Jia Ling broke through the reign of male directors during the biggest box office period in China and now the world – the Chinese New Year vacation period. Not only is she even the first female director to even have a film open in the competitive period, Jia Ling currently projected to overtake Detective Chinatown 3‘s Chen Sicheng to become the period’s top grossing director this year with a current estimate of 3.5 billion RMB in lifetime box office. With a cumulating box office of 1.8 billion RMB as of the end ofFeb. 15, she broke records set previously by Rene Liu’s Us and Them (1.3 billion RMB ) to become the female director with the highest box office in China.
The film written, directed, and starring Jia Ling is also the first non-animated film opening in the period to have a woman as the top-billing actor, the first to be told from a female perspective, and the first to star two women (the other one being her long-time collaborator and co-star Zhang Xiaofei). Congrats, Jia Ling and Zhang Xiaofei!
Photoshoots that caught our eyes this week. What caught yours?
Continue readingLiu Yifei is finally back in China after almost a year, and that means she can finally have good photoshoots again (unlike the previous LV photoshoot that doesn’t showcase any of her fortes). First up is this stunning cover shoot by Chen Man that showcases Liu Yifei as more modern and chic than ever.
Posters, photoshoots, and stills that caught our eye this week. What caught yours?
Award-winning actress Jessie Li ( Chun Xia) take the gloves off in this rather old Milk X photoshoot. More photos from other artists from this great overall issue here.
Photos that caught our eyes this week. What caught yours?
Zhang Ziyi’s debut drama Monarch Industry might finally be streaming with the release of a trailer and poster. Newly titled Ode of Shangyang 上阳赋. The trailer has a lot of scenes that remind me of her in previous films, most notably the famous Beauty Dance in House of Flying Daggers. Previous Zhang Yimou leads (Ni Ni, Zhou Dongyu, and Zhang Huiwen) have never really found major success in dramas, and it’ll be interesting to see how this one fares. Her costumes certainly suit her.
Other than Ding Yuxi’s doleful eyes that is perhaps a reference to Neverland’s childhood innocence, have no idea what this photoshoot has to do with Peter Pan, but that’s what they said it was. Anyways, this is a pretty photoshoot from the rising actor. He recently finished filming rom-com Moonlight with Yu Shuxin.
Continue readingLiu Shishi and Ni Ni show that they can slip in a dress and wear the pants in this beautiful photoshoot to promote My Best Friend’s Story. I need more dramas starring two female leads if only for the photoshoots.