At the recent premier screening of The Dream Boyz, Pamper.My had the privilege of getting up close and personal with the cast of The Dream Boyz to find out more about what goes on behind the scene of this much-anticipated local production.
How do you guys expect the audience to react to the characters from The Dream Boyz?
Sam: My character is a stuttering boy who is very timid in nature. But despite this, he managed to overcome his fear and insecurity and fight for what he believes in. Therefore, I hope that my character will inspire the audience to do the same, to fight for what they believe in and ultimately realize their dreams.
Fuying: My character comes from a privileged yet extremely strict family background. I believe some of the audience can relate to the feeling of having very strict parents, hence you’re always being pulled away from your friends.
Alvin: I hope that the audience would be touched by all the shared childhood memories that are featured in the film, and I hope they will like it and share it with their friends and family.
Teddy: I hope the audience will see themselves in my character. I hope it will take them back to those rebellious high school years, years that are filled with creativity and determination. Because being young means that you are not afraid to fail as you keep pursuing your dreams. I hope they can recapture that feeling of being so persistent and so near to achieving their dreams.
Eric: My character is just like any other young boys who are filled with curiosity and is eager to explore, that makes him highly relatable to the audience. The same goes for the other characters. Hopefully everyone will love The Dream Boyz and we will hit box-office, so that we can make a sequel.
Wang Qie: My character is a very unlucky plain Jane who keeps facing one obstacle after another, yet she is strong and remains unfazed in the face of these challenges. Therefore I hope like her, the audience will keep on believing in miracles, and to never give up and keep hoping for the best.
How did you guys prepare for your roles in The Dream Boyz? Were there any special fitness routines?
Sam: The director very specifically warned us that anyone could easily add on 20 kilos on camera. Therefore, we need to make sure that we are in even better shape. I cut down on carbs and went on a veggie diet. Plus to portray a person who stutters, I watch a lot of videos and observe how people with such problem speak in order to deliver a more realistic performance. In fact, I got carried away and started to stutter even in real life!
Fuying: I remember that we started filming right after Chinese New Year, so naturally I gained some weight from all the eating. Because of that I had to start losing weight, and I did so by cutting down on carbs and jogging. I also had to improve my Chinese speaking skill by watching a lot of Chinese shows and reading Chinese newspapers.
Alvin: I also had to cut down on carbs. Initially we were mostly really fat and chubby, so the director required us to slim down as fast as possible. So we had to request the film crew to prepare healthy food for us. For my role, the director instructed me to act mostly with my eyes, and I did not have that many lines therefore I mostly had to rely on my eyes to convey the necessary emotions.
Teddy: I lost 10 kilos so that I could better portray my character that is very tanned and scrawny. As a method actor, I always make sure that I become my characters. Plus in the beginning we were basically strangers, so we put a lot of effort into getting to know each other in order to develop the chemistry and a similar bond that you see in the film.
Eric: I can’t read Chinese, so I had to put a lot of effort into learning that. I went to the gym a lot as well in order to lose my muscles as a high school boy should not have such large abs. There were also many sexually awkward scenes, so I had to ‘study’ a lot of Japanese movies to imitate their facial expressions.
Wang Qie: I did not have to do any special preparation, as the director told me to just be myself and portray my character in the most natural way possible. I guess the only preparation I had to do was to mentally prepare myself to mingle with SEVEN guys at once! It’s rather challenging as I had to literally transform myself into one of the boys. Thankfully I’m now able to resume being a girly girl.
How was it like going back to high school and putting those white school uniforms back on?
Wang Qie: Thankfully high school wasn’t that long ago for me. I guess it wasn’t hard as I was quite similar to the character I play.
Eric: It’s been more than 10 years since I’ve graduated from high school. But I enjoyed playing this character as I got the chance to do all the absurd things that I didn’t get to do when I was actually in high school.
Teddy: Similar to Eric, it is safe to say that high school is a distant memory for me as well. So being an ‘older’ boy, I always have to make sure that my eyes and facial emotions won’t give out my actual age. I was also a goody two-shoes in high school, so I really enjoyed playing such a mischievous role in this movie.
Alvin: It has been 7 to eight year since I graduated high school. I used to be the class’s monitor, while in the movie I play a prefect. It’s kind of hard for me to portray the role after so many years, because after you’ve stepped into the society and mindset changed. So you need some time to recapture the personality and body language.
Fuying: I’m the youngest amongst them, so it wasn’t so hard for me as well. And I was quite similar to my character in a sense that I’m the one who always get called to save the day whenever my friends caused troubles. I was also actively pursuing my dream of becoming a singer in high school, much like my character who pursued his acting dream.
Sam: It has been around 7 to 8 year as well for me. In the film we had to play the roles of students who actively took part in extracurricular activities that is the drama club. Unlike my old self who wasn’t as interested in extracurricular activities.
Last but not least, would you guys like to say something to the fans?
All: Do not miss the chance to relive your high school life with The Dream Boyz!!! Coming to a cinema near you on the 12th of February 2015!
