November 8, 2001

Missing out on the Best Supporting Award last year despite a credible performance, can actor San Yow hit the jackpot this time round?

By Angelene Wong

Star Award double-award nominee San Yow's looking a tad blurry-eyed.

But losing sleep over his nominations, he's not.

In fact the humble actor is not pinning his hopes too high when we spoke to him during his filming for upcoming drama serial Hao Er Hao Nu yesterday.

Tequila in Looking For Stars

Jian Yuanbao in My Genie

This despite a catcalling performance as the effeminate Tequila which garnered him the Best Supporting Actor nomination for the Star Awards this year. He has also been nominated for Best Comedy Performance for his role as lecherous Jian Yuanbao in sitcom My Genie.

"I'm very happy because I was nominated for one award (He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor but lost out to actor Chen Guohua) last year and this year, I have 2 so I'm happier than last year!" says San with a beam.

· San picks his winners

When asked about his chances of winning, the humble actor prefers not to count his chickens before they are hatched.

Says San laughingly, "Actually I am not very confident in both!"

Oh com'mon, surely his impressive performance as the colourful, effeminate hairdresser Tequila (ring a bell to a certain prominent hairstylist?) would make him a strong contender for Best Supporting Actor? Even veteran actor and Star Award nominee Huang Wenyong has his bet on him.

"It was quite an impressive role but it had a lot to do with the nature of the role. All along, there are few roles so niang niang qiang (effeminate) so viewers tend to sit up and take notice out of curiosity. This novelty is a big selling point."

Continuing on, he says, "My role in Looking For Stars offered me a lot of room to show off my acting skills. It's a strong role, no doubt.

(Pauses) "How shall I put it? Whether I win or not depends on the judging panel and the roles and experience of the other nominees."

Also vying for Best Supporting Actor includes Chen Shucheng (Beyond The Axis Of Truth), Nick Shen (Three Women And A Half), Rayson Tan (Three women And A Half) and Vincent Ng (Heroes In Black).

His bet? Veteran actor and host Chen Shucheng in sci-fi/mystery drama Beyond The Axis Of Truth.

"He (Shucheng) played a father who loves his daughter (played by Ivy Lee) very much. I think he acted very convincingly and grasped the emotional turmoil within the character very well. I followed his performance very intensively and I must say his acting was spot-on."

Nominated also for Best Comedy Performer for his role in madcap comedy My Genie, San is satisfied with his performance but it's a tough call as to who will win, he says.

After all, co-stars Huang Yiliang and Fiona Xie are both in the running as well.

A good comedian, says San, boils down to his comic timing and how well he uses his body and facial gestures for best effect. It is also to him, the most difficult genre to tackle.

"A good sitcom or comedy will not only depend on the actors' comic timing, the script and director are also very important," he says.

So off the record, who amongst the 3 of them makes for the best comedian in The Genie?

"It has to be Yiliang da ke (Brother Yiliang)," says San without hesitation.

"Maybe his life experience makes it easier for him to weave all that into his acting in a sitcom. He doesn't tell jokes but during our conversations, he will add in a quote or two suddenly or action to make us laugh. Fiona xiao mei mei (little girl) is often tickled pink during our filming!"

Worried at first that his roles in Looking For Stars and My Genie might be too similar (both characters are loud, brusque and funny), San differentiated them with slight nuances in their behaviour.

"With Tequila, it's more effeminate but for Genie, I added a touch of manliness by playing up his skirt-chaser nature. That's a big sign of being a man," he quips.

What would be a role he desires the most?

"It would be a bad egg. On the outside, he may seem like a good person but beneath that veneer, he's a baddie. But his dark edge must have been stemmed from life circumstances."

And which current role he wished he could have done?

Without missing a beat, he says, "Hanwei's role in Love Me, Love Me Not definitely. I practically 'salivated' when I saw his role! His role not only was a breakthrough for Hanwei in terms of physical appearance but it was no less meaty a role with lots of emotional scenes at the end."

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