ARTICLE

From Ah Boy to Ah Kheong.

By Flora / 05 Sep 2016 (Monday)

<'Meet The Cast' Details below!>

You may be very familiar with Tosh Zhang’s role as ‘Sergeant Ong’ in the famed Ah Boys To Men movie series, or his swag, hip hop image on his YouTube channel; but in My Love Sinema, the upcoming local film, be prepared for a different Tosh like you’ve never seen before.

He is the opposite of the the bold sergeant Ong, or the confident swagger in his videos. His character, Kheong, aka Ah Qiang. is a timid and innocent dork who aims to pursue his passion to be a film projectionist. In the process, he falls in love with a young Chinese teacher Wei, played by Cheryl Wee.

(Watch the trailer of 'My Love Sinema'!)

During the media conference held at Bar Naked, Zhang admitted that it was tough fitting into his character Kheong initially. “When I acted as Sergeant Ong, it was easier because he is rather similar to me, but Ah Qiang and I are totally different people. They way he talks, his expressions and even what he likes are all very different from me.”

“Our teacher Yeo Yann Yann will slap my hand whenever I slip out of character. I remembered her telling me: “You have to shed the ‘Tosh image’ away. For this character, I don’t want to see any part of Tosh Zhang.” So for the first few weeks, I was very conscious about my behaviour - how I walk, talk, sit and practically when I do anything!”

He added: “Personally, I am a very modern and street kind of guy, so it was extremely difficult to take him on. I tried my best to create Ah Qiang from scratch and make him one that you can relate to, as well as knowing that he is from the 50s.”

Set the 1950s, the story is inspired by the Italian classic 'Cinema Paradiso', and is the brainchild of Irene Ang, who also sits as the executive producer of the movie together with Dawn Yip and Melvin Ang.

Wee makes her film debut with My Love Sinema, shared about breaking the ice through chatting about their favourite pastime: food. Both proclaiming to be a foodie, their topics are mostly about food - the recommendations, their favourite dishes and savouring the Malaysian cuisines together. (Ed note: the film was shot in Ipoh).

“It was my first time in Ipoh, so there were a lot (of food) I wanted to try. Tosh eats so much but he doesn’t gets fat, he is still so skinny,” exclaimed Wee.

It is safe to say that going back to the 1950s was an experience for the young actors, realising the ‘beauty of pre-technology’.

“While filming the dating scenes, I felt that relationships in those days were very deep and very sincere. In the 50s, you have to cycle for hours to fetch a girl home. And there are not many street lamps so it’s really dark, but you know that you are really protecting her,” said Zhang.

“It was very much harder for couples in the 50s to communicate and date, but they put in so much effort to make it work,” Wee added.

Directed by Tan Ai Leng, 'My Love Sinema' opens InCinemas 8 September 2016!

<#MLSPropUp> Pop-up Exhibition
Get to see the actual props used in the movie, together with movie posters and stills! Stand to win special ‘My Love Sinema’ movie premiums when you hashtag #MLSPropUp and #MyLoveSinema within your posts on Facebook and Twitter.

Exhibition 1:
Venue: Bar Naked, Lvl 2
Time: 5pm - 11pm
(A special drink is concocted just for the launch of the movie. Redeem the cocktail at $12 with each movie ticket)

Exhibition 2:
Date: 7 - 16 Sep
Venue: Shaw Theatres Waterway Point

Exhibition 3:
Date: 7 - 16 Sep
Venue: Shaw Theatres Lido

Artiste Appearances
This is your chance to snap photos with the lead cast members of ‘My Love Sinema’, including Tosh Zhang, Cheryl Wee, Jeff Wang and producer Irene Ang! They will also be serving popcorn to movie-goers at respective cinemas!

Cinema Appearance 1:
Date: 10 Sep (Sat)
Time: 2pm - 2.45pm
Venue: Filmgarde Bugis+
Artistes: Cheryl Wee, Tosh Zhang, Irene Ang, Jeff Wang

Cinema Appearance 2:
Date: 11 Sep (Sun)
Time: 2pm - 2.45pm
Venue: Shaw Nex
Artistes: Cheryl Wee, Tosh Zhang, Irene Ang

Mall Roadshow 1:
Date: 10 Sep (Sat)
Time: 5pm
Venue: Bugis Junction, Bugis Square
Artistes: Tosh Zhang, Cheryl Wee, Irene Ang, Jeff Wang

Mall Roadshow 2:
Date: 12 Sep (Mon)
Time: 5pm
Venue: Waterway Point, Village Square
Artistes: Tosh Zhang and Bao Shang Ze

My Love Sinema Local Tosh Zhang Cheryl Wee Jeff Wang Irene Ang

Get Showtimes

From Ah Boy to Ah Kheong.

<'Meet The Cast' Details below!>