Fann Wong
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Fann Wong (范文芳) (born January 27, 1971), birth name Fann Woon Fong, is a Singaporean Chinese actress, singer and model. She was born in Singapore. She has starred in numerous films and television series in Singapore and China but she is most known in the United States for her role as Jackie Chan's sister in Shanghai Knights.
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Acting Career
Fann Woon Fong created her stage name Fann Wong by combining her father's and mother's surnames (Fann and Wong, respectively). She started modelling at 16 and won early fame with her Oil of Ulan (now Olay) TVC, aired in Taiwan and Singapore.
In 1994, she was discovered by a Singapore TV producer who cast her in a drama series titled Dreams Come True. Fann soon starred in two more TV series, The Challenger and Chronicle of Life, which brought her critical accolades and popularity in Singapore.
Her role in Chronicle of Life won her the Best Actress Award and the Best Newcomer Award in Singapore's 1995 Star Awards, an impressive feat considering that she had only been in the Singapore TV industry for only a year. In 1996, her role in The Unbroken Cycle won her her first regional nomination at the Asian Television Awards. She continued to star in an impressive array of drama serials, including A Romance in Shanghai, Wild Orchids and Brave New World.
In late 1996, Fann released her first Mandarin pop album, Fanntasy, which contained a duet with Taiwanese singer Jeff Chang. Her foray into the Taiwanese music market proved successful in late 1997, when this album (retitled I Live Alone) was repackaged with two additional songs. The album won 4 IFPI platinum sales awards in Taiwan and launched Fann as a bona fide regional artiste.
In mid-1998, the simultaneous release of her definitive hit gongfu drama Return of the Condor Heroes, and her second album, Shopping, immensely increased her exposure and popularity in Taiwan and China. Famed Hongkong director Derek Yee caught Fann in her Shopping MTV on Channel V in Hongkong and cast her as the lead actress in her first big-screen film, the Hongkong art movie The Truth About Jane and Sam. This gritty wild-child role won her a Best New Performer nomination at the 19th Hongkong Film Awards in 2000.
In 1999, she released her third album, Missing You, which contained a duet with British boyband 911 (Private Number). She also sang Singapore's national millennium song, Moments of Magic. In 2000, she was also the first Singapore artiste to stage a solo concert ("My Story" - Fann Wong In Concert) at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. That same year, she released her fourth Mandarin album, No Problem.
Over the next several years Fann began to focus on acting for TV and film, with varied work such as a feminist Hongkong film titled When I Fall in Love...With Both, a romantic Singapore TV series Looking for Stars, and an action-packed Taiwanese period series titled Madam White Snake. During this time she also began hosting travelogue shows, including Travel Hunt: Japan and Fann Adventure, filmed in South Africa and Malaysia.
In 2002, she scored a coup when she became the first Singaporean actress to score a major role in a Hollywood production, Shanghai Knights, directed by David Dobkin. When she appeared in her first Hollywood role Chon Lin alongside international stars Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson in early 2003, she received accolades in the Asian and Western media, and was subsequently nominated under the Best Fight Sequence category in the 2003 MTV Movie Awards. In 2004, she won the Singapore Street Festival's Best International Artiste Award.
In 2004, Fann continued work on China gongfu dramas such as Moon Fairy and My Fair Lady which gradually consolidated her presence as the top Singaporean actress in China. Amidst this, she still had time to shoot a Singapore serial on the SARS virus, Always On My Mind, which won her a Best Actress nomination in the 2004 Star Awards.
In mid-2004, Fann snagged her second English-language lead role in the German-Singapore telemovie, House of Harmony, opposite German-based English actor Philippe Brenninkmeyer and Hongkong actress Maggie Q. She also took on a lead role in a Taiwanese romance film, Longan Porridge, to be released in late 2005. In April 2005, Fann was invited to the Cannes MIPTV Media Market where she promoted House of Harmony and discussed possible collaborations with European industry professionals.
Fan base
Fann is considered a well-respected industry professional in her home country Singapore, where she is billed the top Singaporean actress. She has a sizeable fan base in her home country, as well as in Taiwan, China, and most of Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, where she performed at a concert in 2004.
Shanghai Knights exposed Fann to a global audience. The upcoming House of Harmony, which will be telecast on European and US TV networks, will be Fann's next shot at pitching herself to an international viewership.
Filmography
- 2005 : Longan Porridge (龙眼粥)
- 2003 : Shanghai Knights
- 2000 : When I Fall In Love... With Both (月亮的秘密)
- 1999 : The Truth About Jane and Sam (真心话)
Drama
- 2006 : Fu Lu Shou San Xing Bao Xi (福禄寿三星报喜)
- 2005 : Beautiful Illusions (镜中人)
- 2005 : House of Harmony
- 2004 : My Fair Lady (我爱钟无艳)
- 2003 : Always on My Mind (无炎的爱)
- 2003 : Moon Fairy (奔月)
- 2002 : Brotherhood (有情有义)
- 2001 : The Hotel (大酒店)
- 2001 : Madam White Snake (青蛇与白蛇)
- 2001 : Heroes In Black (我来也)
- 2000 : Looking For Stars (星锁)
- 2000 : The Legendary Swordsman (笑傲江湖)
- 1999 : Out to Win (步步为赢)
- 1998 : Myths & Legends of Singapore: Lady of the Hill (石叻坡传说之红山林姑娘)
- 1998 : Return of the Condor Heroes (神雕侠侣)
- 1997 : The Accidental Hero (流氓英雄)
- 1997 : The Matchmaker's Match (四点金)
- 1996 : Brave New World (新阿郎)
- 1996 : Wild Orchids (再见萤光兰)
- 1996 : A Romance in Shanghai (新上海假期)
- 1996 : The Unbroken Cycle (解连环)
- 1995 : The Golden Pillow (金枕头)
- 1995 : Somewhere in Time (再世情缘)
- 1995 : Sparks of Life (生命火花)
- 1995 : Morning Express (阳光列车)
- 1995 : Fatal Memory (血案迷情)
- 1995 : Chronicle of Life (缘尽今生)
- 1994 : The Challenger (勇者无惧)
- 1994 : Dreams Come True (美梦成真)
Albums
- 2000 : No Problem (没有问题)
- 1999 : Missing You (想你)
- 1998 : Shopping (逛街)
- 1997 : I Live Alone (一个人生活)
- 1996 : Fanntasy
Soundtracks
- 2003 : Shanghai Knights
- 2001 : Madam White Snake (青蛇与白蛇)
- 2000 : The Legendary Swordsman (笑傲江湖)
- 1999 : The Truth About Jane and Sam (真心话)
- 1998 : Return of the Condor Heroes (神雕侠侣)
- 1996 : GEMS
- 1995 : The Golden Pillow (金枕头)
Other media
- 2000 to 2002: Morning Express (阳光列车) Compilations
- 2000 : Moments of Magic (Millennium Song) AVCD
- 1999 : Private Number single (Fann Wong featuring 911)
- 1999 : Missing You (想你) Karaoke VCD
Books
- 2004 : Girl, Illustrated (self-illustrated comic book)
- 2000 : In +he Mood (Hongkong Pictorial)
Prominent awards/nominations
- 2004: Singapore Street Festival: Best International Artiste Award
- 2003: Singapore Fashion Week: Celebrity Style Award
- 2003: MTV Movie Awards: Best Fight Nomination (Shanghai Knights)
- 2000: Singapore Star Awards: Special Achievement Award
- 2000: Singapore Star Awards: Most Popular MediaCorp Artiste in Malaysia
- 2000: Hongkong Film Awards: Best New Performer Nomination (The Truth About Jane and Sam)
- 1998: Singapore Star Awards: Most Popular MediaCorp Artiste in Taiwan
- 1996: Asian Television Awards: Best Actress Nomination (The Unbroken Cycle)
- 1996: Singapore Hit Awards: Media Recommendation Award (Local Singer)
- 1995: Singapore Star Awards: Best Actress (Chronicle of Life)
- 1995: Singapore Star Awards: Best Newcomer
- 1995-2004: Singapore Star Awards: Top 10 Most Popular Artistes
External links
- Template:Imdb name
- Fannatic Fann Club - Official Fan Club (http://www.fannaticfannclub.com/)
- Fann Matters (http://www.fanwenfang.net/)