Those that have no idea her could also be misled by her cool look and assume she is an heiress on a pedestal. However the first time I met Josie Ho at a Cannes Movie Pageant celebration, we bonded instantly and I realised she is a forthright and dependable individual.
This picture shoot was rescheduled a number of occasions as a result of Covid-19 pandemic and her on line casino magnate father’s demise on the finish of Might. Although I believed it could by no means materialise, she did the shoot and interview like a real skilled as soon as she had time to grieve.
One evening at round 3am, she despatched me a textual content and cheekily recommended that maybe for this style shoot, the styling workforce can depart from her cool, edgy picture and provides her a softer, extra female look.
It could be tough to think about, however beneath her rocker look lies a fragile, beating coronary heart.
Father’s Day this 12 months is the primary her household spent with out their patriarch, Stanley Ho. Josie posted her wedding ceremony images on social media in a tribute to her father. The images are from her 2003 marriage in Australia to actor and producer Conroy Chan, the place her father walked her down the aisle.
She shared particulars of the day, together with her phrases revealing the sense of loss her father’s demise left her.
Josie is the youngest daughter Stanley Ho had along with his second spouse Lucina Lam. He had 17 kids along with his 4 wives. The “playing king”, as he was typically known as, showered additional consideration on Josie in his lifetime, saying she reminded him of his youthful self.
She is the one member of the Ho clan working in leisure.
In her interview with Icon, she says of her father: “It is simply his ardour for all times and the way he chooses to work very exhausting and play exhausting as properly. So, I select to work in a high-pressure trade; on the similar time, I get pleasure from being ‘within the second’.”
The 45-year-old says her perspective in the direction of work has been deeply influenced by her father – to not be afraid of falling and to choose herself up when she falls and begin anew. She has held on to this perception in her years in leisure – that even when falling, fall with a smile.
However her persona as a toddler is a far cry from who she is now.
I am very fortunate. Each time my profession is at a low, I am going to meet somebody who comes and offers me steerage and friendship and encourages me to go ahead and struggle for the profession I really like. My life’s biggest accomplishment is having so many mentors I respect.
ACTRESS-SINGER JOSIE HO
She says: “I used to be a really introverted and shy child, I preferred being in my very own shell and did not actually step out of my consolation zone.”
Her curiosity in leisure was sparked by her older sister Pansy, who had a bunch of Asian celebrity buddies. Now one of many richest businesswomen in Asia and the group govt chairman and managing director of Shun Tak Holdings, Pansy had labored on the 1981 TVB drama Break By way of with the late Danny Chan Pakkeung. She was additionally near late actor-singers Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung.
Josie typically adopted her sister on outings and was out and in of movie units and the backstage space of concert events in her teenage years. She knew then that she wished to work in leisure and infrequently requested questions in regards to the trade, with movie star buddies giving her recommendation.
EVERY FAILURE WAS A LEARNING OPPORTUNITY
Josie didn’t have a clean profession. She signed on to Rock Data as a singer at 18 in 1993, however had a tough time going mainstream and was even mocked by the general public, who thought she was not suited to be a singer. She later left the label.
She says: “I feel there have been two main turning factors in my music profession. One was having my contract with my label terminated, and the opposite was once I determined to independently do rock music.”
When one door closes, one other opens.
She says: “Mainstream labels felt that my music was too eccentric, so that they gave up on me. I had no different selection then, so I modified focus and went into appearing. That is how I began starring in motion pictures.”
As a beginner, she was primarily relegated to supporting roles however, to her, these had been treasured studying experiences.
“Although I used to be with no music label then, I nonetheless continued my singing classes with my mentor, who gave me good recommendation about discovering the distinctive high quality in my very own voice, as an alternative of imitating how others sing. That’s most likely a very powerful lesson I’ve learnt as a singer,” she says.
She received to know the indie band LMF. “We started enjoying collectively and everybody frolicked with everybody – we’re like a household now. LMF later inspired me to begin my very own rock band, Josie & The Uni Boys.”
The band, fashioned in 2010, is made up of Josie, Kevin Lee, Dee Lam, Don Cruz and Chan Siu-kei. They’ve launched eight albums in 10 years.
She says: “I am very fortunate. Each time my profession is at a low, I am going to meet somebody who comes and offers me steerage and friendship and encourages me to go ahead and struggle for the profession I really like. My life’s biggest accomplishment is having so many mentors I respect.”
NEW MOVIE PROJECTS
Whereas Covid-19 has led studios worldwide to postpone manufacturing and delay new releases, Josie has introduced a number of large initiatives.
In August, leisure commerce journal The Hollywood Reporter ran a narrative about 852 Movies, the manufacturing agency based in 2009 by Josie and her husband, collaborating with French director and producer Luc Besson. In 2011, he produced The Woman – a biographical movie starring Michelle Yeoh as Myanmarese chief Aung San Suu Kyi. Josie received to know Besson due to their mutual acquaintance, Yeoh.
852 Movies will work with Besson on two motion options and each will star Josie because the main girl. The primary is slated to begin taking pictures on the finish of subsequent 12 months.
She can also be working with English director Tony Kaye on a music-themed film about her relationship with Hong Kong.
There may be additionally a film venture with American screenwriter Bruce Wagner (Maps To The Stars, 2014) titled Marvel Universe (no connection to the comics) on the finish of this 12 months.
Proper earlier than the pandemic hit, Josie completed work on two movies – Rajah and Behavior – that are in post-production. She instructed Icon that she invited Golden Globe-winning Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tudors, 2007 to 2010) to movie Rajah together with her in Sarawak, Malaysia.
The movie is govt produced by her husband and the story is predicated on Sir James Brooke, a British adventurer and the primary White Rajah of Sarawak from 1841 till his demise in 1868, and his exploitation of the locals in Sarawak.
“That is my first time taking over an element in a film set in colonial occasions. Whereas the story is about within the 1840s, the problems of racism, social justice, violence and environmental injury introduced up within the movie are nonetheless related at present.”
Earlier this 12 months, streaming service Netflix launched 106 Singaporean movies and collection to its catalogue. In The Room (2015), an erotic drama directed by Eric Khoo and starring Josie, was among the many titles. The story is about in a visitor room in a resort between the 1940s and 1990s and the love and relationships that change alongside it.
Recalling her experiences, she says: “I learnt rather a lot from Eric and producer Shi Nan-sun. Earlier than the shoot, the workforce had 4 days of rehearsals. That is nearly unbelievable for a Hong Kong producer – to get all of the artists to return and simply participate in rehearsals – it is a luxurious.
“However after these rehearsals, filming did go extra easily and each actor had a greater understanding of the subtleties of each scene. The experiencehelped me rather a lot and might be helpful in my future making motion pictures, be it appearing or producing.”
Josie, at 45, has had 27 years of expertise in present enterprise, however retains the curiosity and humble perspective of a rookie. She is repeatedly studying in hopes that at some point, she’s going to obtain a seminal breakthrough.
•Translated by Jan Lee
•This text first appeared in Icon Singapore journal. Go to www.iconsingapore.com and comply with @IconSingapore on Instagram and Icon Journal Singapore on Fb. The October difficulty is out at chosen bookshops. The digital version is on the market at subscribe.sphmagazines.com.sg/icon