The Oscars: More AAPI appearances than expected

Auli'i Carvalho wasn't fazed by one of the flags representing the moving ocean, brushed her hair as she was singing.

SIXTEEN-YEAR OLD Auli'i Cravalho showed how much a pro she is when a banner hit her in the head while singing 
"How Far I'll Go," which was nominated for Best Song for the Academy Awards.

Fortunately, the banner barely grazed her, slightly missing up her hair, but the Hawaiian/American, who provided the voice for Moana in the animated film of the same name, kept on smiling and singing as if nothing happened.

The song didn't win (the award went to "City of Stars" from La La Land) but the teenager's performance and natural good looks was a breath of fresh air in an auditorium full of movie industry big wigs, big names, silicon implants, nose jobs and face lifts. Considering the ovation she received from the audience and the fact it was the first time the world saw her live (not in animated form), that last night, a star was born. I wouldn't be surprised if she shows up onstage in a Lin-Manuel Miranda production.

I loved the "real" look she expressed as she was receiving a standing ovation. It was a combination look of relief and "I-told-you-I-could-do-it."

After Auli'i Cravalho's performance, she gave this look to someone in the audience.

The flag incident wasn't the only goof-up on the show watched by millions across the globe. The biggest mistake occurred at the end of the show.

While naming the winner of the Best Picture, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway mistakenly announced La La Land. Midway through the thank you speeches, it was announced that there was a mistake. The real winner was Moonlight. The La La Land crew was gracious in handing over their Oscars to the the Moonlight actors, director and producers.

It's a good thing that I wasn't playing the drinking game during the Oscars telecast last night. You know, every time an Asian appeared, drink a shot of scotch. With the number of Asian appearances, I might be so incapacitated that I wouldn't be able to write this post.

Newlyweds Patrick and Eulery were interviewed by emcee Jimmy Kimmel.

Besides Auli'i, there was a surprising number of AAPI folks representing during the show than expected. It was as if the camera people were told to zoom in on people of color in order to  beat back #OscarsSoWhite that's haunted the awards show the last two years: the wife of an awards winner; Patrick and Yulree, the anonymous honeymooning couple who were in a tour group that was surprised when they walked into the middle of the Oscar telecast, introduced to the star-filled audience and got to meet and shake hands with some of the biggest names in the movies.

Dwayne Johnson, looking dapper in his tux, introduced his Moana co-star, Auli'i Carvalho. 

RELATED:

• Hollywood has mainly a black and white view of America
• The Anna Awards are for overlooked AAPI artists

It was good to see Jackie Chan introduced and get some screen time and a round of applause for wining an honorary Oscar in an earlier, separate ceremony. 

Filipino/American Hailee Steinfeld looked stunning wearing a Ralph & Russo creation as she gave out the Oscars for best animated features with actor Gael Garcia Bernal. Zootopia beat out Moana.

John Cho was funny and charming, Hailee Steinfeld was beautiful, Riz Ahmed looked like James Bond and Dev Patel looked at ease on stage as the AAPI actors introduced or presented awards.

Illustrator Tyrus Wong was among the people honored in the Memoriam segment.

Emcee Jimmy Kimmel found Sunny Pawar, the young star of Lion, in the audience. Sunny is so adorable, he continues to capture the hearts of Hollywood.

Then there were the four anonymous Chinese fans in a clip explaining (in a Chinese dialect) why they like the movies (perhaps a nod to the emerging audience in China).

Anonymous Chinese fan.

John Legend performed "City of Stars," the Oscar-winning song from La La Land,  and wherever the singer performs, his wife, model Chrissy Teigen is not far away. The camera loves Teigen and often pans over to her as her husband sings.

Unfortunately, someone got a picture of her (see below) during the awarding of the Best Actor category near the end of the show -- which went to Casey Affleck's work in Manchester -- and posted it online. Uh ... perhaps Teigen's apparent slumber can best be explained by the fact that she was spotted making her way to the bar prior to the show. 

More likely, though, as any mother to an infant can understand; sometimes the exhausting work of being a mother catches up to you at the most unexpected time.

Chrissy Teigen, center, was found napping in the long, long awards show.

All in all, it was a fairly enjoyable show. The goof-ups added a bit of unrehearsed action that added to the entertainment.

At least we didn't have any crude anti-Asian jokes coming from Kimmel or any of the presenters although Kimmel was chided for making fun of Yulree's name. I think there was a pretty good blowback against those jokes that marred last year's Oscar telecast and it shows the value of speaking out and the power of social media.

Let's see: That would have been 13 shots of scotch, in case you're counting. Enough to put anyone over.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Earlier versions of this post misspelled Yulree's name.

###

.

Jackie Chan receives an Honorary Award at the 2016 Governors Awards

Action star Jackie Chan receives an Oscar.

REPRINTED FROM ASAM NEWS
AFTER STARRING in more than 200 movies and attracting a world wide fan base, the kung fu star Jackie Chan, with a comic flair and a tendency to break his own bones, has been awarded an honorary Oscar.

Tom Hanks, Michelle Yeoh and Chris Tucker presented the award to Jackie Chan at the 8th Annual Governor’s Award held in Los Angeles last Sunday.

Hanks made it a point to point out that action films and comedy have long been underrepresented at the Oscars, and Sunday’s award was a step to remedy that.

Michelle Yeoh, who co-starred with Chan in Police Story 3 then took the stage.

“The fact that I got to work with Jackie was amazing, a living legend,” she said. “Jackie, I love you, you are part of me, and congratulations, and I am so thrilled and honored to present to my good friend, Jackie Chan, with the honor Oscar, ladies and gentlemen give it up for Jackie Chan!”

Tucker, who co-starred with Chan in the commercially successful Rush Hour movies, introduced Chan to receive the Oscar.

“After 56 years in the film industry, making over 200 films, I’ve broken so many bones, finally this is mine,” Chan said in an emotional acceptance speech. “I want to thank you, Hong Kong, such an incredible city, my hometown, my hood, who make me. China, my country, I am proud to be Chinese.

"Thank you, Hollywood, for all of those years teaching me so many things, and also make me a little bit famous. I’m just honored to be here.”

###

TGIF FEATURE: Jackie Chan to receive an Oscar

Lionsgate

Jackie Chan in last year's "Dragon Blade."

JACKIE CHAN, the martial artist and bonafide movie star, will be getting an Oscar after scores of films in a career that spans five decades.

It will be an honorary Oscar for the Hong Kong-born actor and he will receive the golden statuette at the Governors Awards on Nov. 12 instead of the regular Oscar telecast in early 2017, but it is an Oscar, nevertheless.

The international film star will receive an honorary Academy Award for his body of work, which is extensive with more than 100 movies in Asia and the U.S., including Rush Hour, Police Story, Shanghai Noon, The Karate Kid remake and more. 

The 62-year-old master of stunts and martial arts has often written, directed and produced the titles that he's starred in, and also lent his voice to the animated Kung Fu Panda movies. Chan, a former stunt man, was known for doing all his extraordinary stunts in complicated fight scenes.

Chan will accept his award alongside fellow honorees film editor Anne Coates, casting director Lynn Stalmaster and documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman.

"The Honorary Award was created for artists like Jackie Chan, Anne Coates, Lynn Stalmaster and Frederick Wiseman -- true pioneers and legends in their crafts," Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs said in a statement. "The Board is proud to honor their extraordinary achievements, and we look forward to celebrating with them at the Governors Awards in November."

The Hong Kong-born Chan, 62, made his motion picture debut at eight years old, and segued into Hollywood films with 1996's Rumble in the Bronx. None of his films have been what you might call prestige films and Chan was doubly penalized for doing most of his work in a genre  not generally respected by "film makers" -- martial arts, or more derisively, "chopsocky," movies.

He believed he should have been nominated for his role as Mr. Miyagi in a remake of The Karate Kid, 10 years ago. When Chan didn't get nominated, he called out the Academy's selection process unfair. It has been 31 years since an Oscar was given to an Asian actor. The last Asian actor to win an Oscar was Haing S. Ngor, a Cambodian refugee who won the Academy Award in 1985 for his supporting role in The Killing Fields.
Chan is following in the footsteps of Robert Redford, who won an honorary Oscar in 2001, and Steve Martin, who got his in 2013. The 2015 honourees were Debbie Reynolds, Spike Lee and Gena Rowlands.

The Oscars' Honorary Award is given "to honor extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy." 

TGIF FEATURE: "The Rock," Jackie Chan tops list of highest paid iactors

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, left, and Jackie Chan have reason to smile since they top the highest paid actor list.

Reprinted from AsAm News
SIX OF THE highest paid actors in the world are of Asian and Pacific Islander descent, according to a list released by Forbes.

Of the seven, only one is American. Dwayne Johnson whose mother is Samoan and father is African/American, is the highest paid actor in the world. He earned $64.5 million in 2015 for his roles in Fast & Furious 7 and San Andreas. 

Johnson was born in Hayward, CA and has dual American and Canadian citizenship.

The prevalence of so many non-Americans on the list is perhaps an indication of the growing clout of international markets in the movie industry.

Right behind Johnson in earnings is martial arts megastar Jackie Chan. His 2015 films included Dragon Blade and Monkey King: Hero is Back. He also produced Who Am I 2015. The Hong Kong star earned $61 million.

Shah Rukh Khan from India ranked eighth among the highest paid actors in the world with a take of $33 million. He is known as the king of Bollywood and starred in the comedy Dilwale.

Rounding out the top 10 highest paid actors list is Indian/Canadian Akshay Kumar. He took in $31.5 million for his roles in Baby, Hey Bro, Gabbar is Back, Brothers and Singh is Bling.

Fan Bing Bing starred in four movies in 2015 and earned $17 million. That was enough to rank 5th among the top 10 highest paid actresses in the world. None of the Chinese actress’ movies were widely distributed in the United States.

Deepika Padukone is an Indian actress who placed 10th among the highest paid actresses in the world. She earned $10 million for her roles in My Choice, Piku, Tamasha and Bajirao Mastani. She’s set to appear in XXX: Return of Xander Cage in 2017 with Vin Diesel.

The listing of the highest paid actors and actresses in the world runs counter to the popular Hollywood belief that AAPI-led movies are not profitable, an excuse that rings hollow as the American motion picture industry tries to market to the rest of the world.

(Views from the Edge contributed to this report.) 

###