©2004 Fann Wong Singapore

2004   July 23, 2004 Fann goes back in time BOTH are ex-models blessed with lanky limbs and large limpid eyes. But the genetically-blessed Fann Wong and Maggie Q will not be playing sisters in their first project together. Instead, Fann will play the Hong Kong-based actress' mother in the first television co-production between Singapore and Germany. Called House Of Harmony, the two-part mini-series is set in Los Angeles and Singapore in the 1920s and 1950s and will be shot in Singapore from this Sunday till September. 'I'm very glad to have such a beautiful daughter,' said Fann cheerfully at the press conference yesterday. The two will have only one scene together, in which the youthful-looking Fann will age appropriately with the help of make-up. The 33-year-old actress admitted she is a little worried about looking like an old crone. 'We've been trying out the ageing make-up, but I think it makes me look like I'm in my 80s. Women in their 40s look quite young nowadays. It's a little frustrating, but we'll see how it goes.' As for the 25-year-old Q, she's struggling with some wardrobe problems of her own. 'I have to wear a lot of cheongsams for this role. I mean, I love cheongsams, but anything you have to wear for 14 hours a day gets uncomfortable. The collar is so hot, and I can't turn my head.' The tearjerker plot will see Fann and Q being romanced by German actors Philippe Brenninkmeyer and Daniel Morgenroth respectively. Fann plays the daughter of a wealthy Chinese sinseh, whom Brenninkmeyer eventually abandons along with their unborn child. Q's character then sets out to search for her father, while trying not to make the same mistakes as her long-suffering mother. While she has already had an onscreen inter-racial romance - with Owen Wilson in Shanghai Knights - Fann said: 'I'm quite nervous about the love scene between me and Philippe. It looks quite explicit on the page.' Added Q, who is of Vietnamese and American descent: 'In terms of having a mixed parentage and being very influenced by her mother, my character is quite similar to my own experiences. 'I'm very excited to be a part of this project, which will help bring Asia to an international audience. I think the show will present a romanticised view of Singapore that a Western audience will find very attractive.' The $7-million production is undertaken by German company FFP Media Gmb and Singapore's Oak3 Films, and is set to be screened on primetime German television next year. Its distribution rights in Singapore as well as Asia, Canada, North America and Europe, are being negotiated. The two companies were brought together by the Media Development Authority of Singapore. After this project, Fann will fly to Taiwan for a currently undisclosed project, while Q will make her first foray into Bollywood with a three-month shoot in India. 'I play a reporter, but there'll be no singing and dancing, thank God,' she said. Source: The Straits Times