©2004 Fann Wong Singapore

2004   July 23, 2004 Singapore and Germany to produce first multi-million dollar TV mini-series The press conference and opening ceremony for the filming for House of Harmony SINGAPORE : Local film and television star, Fann Wong, has been cast alongside Hong Kong star Maggie Q in the first ever television mini-series to be shot almost entirely in Singapore. Called "House of Harmony" - the $7 million, two-part romance drama is an adaptation of a novel by American writer Barbara Wood. House of Harmony is a romantic tale of love lost and found in the 1920s and 1950s. The two heroines - Fann Wong and Maggie Q - triumph over tradition and racial prejudice to be with the men they love played by German actors Daniel Morgenroth and Philippe Brenninkmeyer. With an almost entirely Singaporean supporting cast - the mini-series is a chance for them to shine on the international stage. Fann said: "This is a great opportunity for all our local actors because it will showcase to the world, to Europe, to America, to all over in Asia that we actually have very very good pool of talents here in Singapore." Dubbed in English, Mandarin and German, the international cast has been given free reign to speak in any language they're comfortable with. Michael Smeaton, CEO, FFP Media GmbH, said: "For me right now, it might be interesting to find out whether the Mandarin audience will accept a German actor speaking Mandarin." Maggie Q said: "I think it's nice because we do have a bit of Chinese cast and a German cast and then the in-between which is me and this production is giving us all the freedom to be able to express ourselves in the way we are most comfortable." The series will be shot in over 39 locations all around Singapore but Tang Dynasty will serve as the main studio set, transformed, with a budget close to a million dollars. The mini-series - a collaboration among Singapore's Oak3films, Germany's FFP Media and the Media Development Authority, is Singapore's inaugural multi-million co-production with Germany. Dr Christopher Chia, CEO, Media Development Authority, said: "We spent quite a bit of our efforts to match local production capability and foreign production capability because when that happens, both sides then get funding and with that funding actually allows local production to reach out much more than if they do it themselves." Filming begins this Sunday and should be wrapped by September. It will involve some 100 crew and 700 extras. Source: CNA