The day the Earth Stood Still reveals the importance of writers. And words.

Yes, the film sucks.

Or well, at least far from what every one would have expected.

But why?

Remember months ago that all script writers had a dispute with the way Hollywood remunerated them? During the months-long negotiation period, more and more writers for movies and TV episodes joined forces by declining to write - Yes, they all stood still.

And I strongly believe The Day the Earth stood still is a victim out of such issue.

Indeed the storyline does create big room for interesting twists. Yet, disappointingly, it just turns out straight like a ruler.

A big batch of scientists were "hijacked" within a short while to supposedly save the planet from being collided. Yet only 1 question was raised from the experts, and it was a typical FAQ in some Sci-fi movies we've seen.

The main actress, Jennifer Connelly, is a very specialized scientist with a discipline on Extra Terrestrials, yet her role in the movie is nothing more than a housewife.

While I must say the computer animation does provide us with some stunning eye-opening moments, yet sadly they still can't hide the emptiness of the whole film nor to shift, sustain a story with a nice start, let alone granting every viewer an ending that feels complete.

Because a good movie is more than stunning visual effects.

It takes a good story teller to take it to great heights.

And so happened, the majority of them are writers.

While the mass belittle the value of existence of writers in this era of visuals, it's time for each of us to wake up, to give a big bow to all the great ones remained, on Earth.

Before we could see great movies that marry visuals and words in harmony, I'm afraid we have to bear dozens of hollow ones that look nice on screen which would trigger dirty words from viewers' mouths.

Feel the power of words?

Curry Rice has more than curry and rice. It contains the whole Universe.

I'm not drunk.

Nor after taking some super-spicy wasabi.

All I want is to share with you a true story.

It's about a Japanese chef in Hong Kong resuscitating his business through transformation. And he made it, by now selling HK$15 Curry Rice to students at a very local mall.

Success story like this sounds cliche?

What stops me was not the story itself, but a note. To be exact, it's the dogma found on his kitchen's door.

For your information, this Japanese speaks Mandarin, so the dogma was written in Chinese, to remind his staff, and his own self.

I'll try my best to get you its closest counterpart, in English.


[The Dogma at Ginza Nichome Curry]

1. Our state of mind should be constantly kept like the Sun, which enables us to serve clients with Love & Peace;
2. It takes a clean restaurant to nurture a clear spiritual mind;
3. Treat every plate of curry rice seriously, because every single plate is able to make the whole company dead-or-alive;
4. Have the guts to apologize;
5. Chaotic taste means chaotic mind; Chaotic mind means chaotic family; Chaotic family means chaotic society; Chaotic society means chaotic country; Chaotic country means chaotic universe.
6. "Want some Japanese pickles?"

This "little" dogma not only explains the success of this Japanese entrepreneurial chef, but also thousands of successful cases in Japanese history.

For virtually nothing is "little" enough to be taken lightly.

I'm sure the majority of Japanese population would find "Butterfly Effect" a concept so natural because, to me, they are all born fans of "Oneness".

What to do next facing the recent global financial tsunami? Feel good.

This is not a sarcastic article.

Because according to the principle of oneness, being mean on others means being mean on our own selves.

Indeed, this is an article loaded with compassion, sympathy and unconditional love.

It wants everyone to have whatever he or she's been wishing for.

If you're a big fan of Esther Hicks and Jerry Hicks, the blessed couple who are the most authorized gurus in the field of manifestation, you surely have had read most of their best-selling books.

And there's only one big thing to learn - To feel good constantly.

For whatever wishes of ours to come true regarding wealth, health, joy and love.

I'm not trying to be lazy on this particular blog. I only believe it's always more convincing for the authors to teach the readers instead of by someone standing in between.

http://www.abraham-hicks.com/lawofattractionsource/index.php

Get there now.

Bookmark it. And get there often.

Be inspired by The words, The videos and The quotes.

They'll all help you attract and manifest whatever you've been dreaming of.

Maybe at a speed that stuns you.

As long as you believe, and allow.

Remember, the lost souls feel happy when the circumstances get favorable.

Ever thought of, the circumstances get favorable when you feel good?

Batman-The Dark Knight. Taking Superheroes Movies to New Heights.

First of all, I'm not a big fan of Superheroes, let alone Batman.

But The Dark Knight is not a Superhero movie, it's a superb suspense movie so happened featuring a Superhero, Batman.

Thanks to Christopher Nolan, the director and co-writer behind.

(Well, of course not for the "cursed effects" incurred on all the male actors in the movie).

For his reversing the tried and tested success formula for Superhero movies.

It makes Batman human.

Even this Superhero couldn't overcome the political pressure with those eye-opening gadgets.

Nor to be able to live happily ever after with his loved one.

He can't even stop the crime set by one evil.

And even he could, he was being misperceived as the evil.

Well, do you still fancy to be a Superhero?

Yet one virtue Batman possesses that we humans don't. His unconditional forgiveness.

There are times that he could send Joker to death, yet he chose not to.

And the "Which ship to blow?" scene also reveals to us that men are not born evil.

Batman plays God.

By being compassionate.

Can you?

Why Konami should hire me as the spokesperson for Winning Eleven.

I was born into a family of 2 football freaks - One is my daddy, and the other is my elder brother.

When I was a very small kid, I often had big fights with my bro, solely because 2 TV shows clashed. My bro's favorite - "British Soccer highlights" was shown on channel A while my pick - "Masked Rider" (any Japs would know who he is) was on channel B, at the exact time before dinner during weekdays. If Law of Majority applied, you could easily tell who'd be the winner.

So you can imagine the "attraction" of football to me.

Time flies. I joined BBDO at my 30th. Everyday around 6pm, workplace got empty and occasional yelling was heard.

It was from the studio. You'd see a big crowd spectating 2 pals playing a video soccer game. But my first feeling was - "How boring! 2 people sitting in front of the TV for 20 mins with only a few goals in total. What a FXXKing waste of time!!"

However, peer group pressure seemed to be having kinda influence on me, a very very human being who didn't want to be left out.

I sat down and played.

But the game was extremely hard to pick-up, not only because it used all buttons (8 + 2 joysticks) of the controller, but it's interacting with a football-hater who was ignorant of all Dos of a typical football game.

Again, you could imagine the "normal" result of each game.

Yet, a Leo never gives up, for his mega-sized ego.

Hours of practice followed each lost match. As time passed, I began to grasp the tricks of the game. And the more tricks I learned, the more I appreciated the real football games for I could tell a good player from the bad ones.

Yes, I learn how to watch a real football game, from a video football game.

Because it's more than a game. It's a simulator. Not only simulating skin-deep things like the faces of players nor the ways they move. It's far more than that. The game is so human (Thanks to the powerful AI built-in!) that no 2 matches are the same. Be addicted to it and you'll know what I mean. It's something too grand to describe.

Heard from unverified source that coaches in real world do use the "spectator mode" of this game to test new formations.

It's one of the best-selling video game series in history.

It's developed by the Japanese game giant, Konami.

It's Winning Eleven.

Just when you think you've mastered all the controls, you'll always find more new tricks, either by chance or accident. Even at the off-line mode (which renders online updates impossible).

It's close to human (and maybe more than that).

It's a game ahead of our time.

It's phenomenal.

It's a godsend.

Wall•E. The cartoon that alarms adults to rethink life.

Ruination of environment.

Obesity.

Over-advertising.

Over-consumption.

Over-automation.

Lack of human touch.

Irresponsible waste disposal.

Don't think these are topics to be discussed in some kind of worldwide summit, rather, they are topics brought up in Pixar's latest animation blockbuster - Wall•E. A seemingly entertaining cartoon that draws our attention to big issues which gonna affect the human race in the not-so-distant future.

Mind you. The issues mentioned above are highly similar, if not identical, to the ones that remained unsolved, in all the lost civilizations before our time.

Now. The only moment that matters.

From the recent blockbuster " Kung Fu Panda ", there's a line worth revisiting. A line from Master Wu Gwai.

" Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Now is a gift, that's why it's called Present. "

For booklovers who've read Spencer Johnson's The Present, this pun should sound pretty familiar.

And what I gonna share with you is some kind of How To, for you to practise at every moment of Now that makes you feel good and gets you connected with your Being. From a book I'm currently reading - Practising the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle.

Make this a habit. From time to time, ask yourself one powerful question? "Am I at ease at this moment?" or "What's going on inside me at this moment?"

But don't answer it immediately. All you need is to observe, from within.

- Your current thoughts,
- Your feelings about such thoughts,
- Any body tension rooted from such feelings?

The essence of such constant diagnosis is to detect the What, if any, that makes you resist the moment of Now, and in turn your whole Life, since Life is composed of hundreds of trillions of Now moments.

We have to find out the root causes that deter one from achieving his /her dream life. Once the What is found, we can then get to the How to rectify it.

So let's be patient and be in the Now. And see What you've got.

I just tell what most Ad Agency creatives forbidden to. The truth.

This is an interview of me, featured in the most authoritative financial post in Hong Kong - Hong Kong Economics Journal, on July 22, 2008.

For those who can't read Chinese, below is the highlight.

That Creativity of Ads are for Marketing results, but never purely for the sake of winning awards.

Because the industry worldwide has got extremely sick that most practitioners make "Scam Ads" (fake ads) to win awards for their own sake and do shit and brainless stuff for real clients.

A phenomenon I coin as AD - Adverse Dichotomy.

Life is short. Have a Not-To-Do list.

Can't wait to share with you some jaw-dropping wisdom from the book I'm currently reading - THE 4-HOUR WORK WEEK by Timothy Ferris, published by Vermilion.

Being busy is a form a laziness.

Being overwhelmed is as unproductive as doing nothing.

Checking emails all day and to reply each promptly won't get you anywhere.

And fine-tuning every PowerPoint slide to perfection won't make you a bestselling author.

Cliche as it might sound, 80% of the results come from 20% of the effort and time.

If you aim to be productive, learn to be selective.

Focus on the important few and ignore the rest.

Make your own Not-To-Do list and stick to it.

There should never be more than 2 mission-critical items to complete each day.

Don't ever arrive at the office or get in front of your computer without a list of priorities.

9-5 is a yesterday's norm. "Being busy" 8 hours a day would only hypnotize you to feel comfortable with such never-ending rat-race.

Maximize income from minimal time and effort is our primary goal.

Let's not forget Parkinson's Law from now on. It states that shorter deadlines do create work quality on par, if not better.

Everyone should have similar experience. If we have 1 month to prepare a presentation, at least 3 weeks and a half are spent on "conceptualizing". When we have only 12 hours to prepare one, chances are it turns out to be far more impressive because of our greater focus, for we know for sure there would be no time for us to fuck around.

To focus, we should never Multi-task. Multi-tasking doesn't make an able man, it only shows he's inability to prioritize. 2 tasks at most per day. Concentrate without distraction.

Try. It'll be difficult, because it's against your habit, your bad habits.

Yet just try. I'll come back with more on my next post.

What we should learn from the Westerners. Compliment.

When I left home and got into the elevator this morning, a Gweipor entered. She's an elegant senior British lady whom I'd never met.

She got out on my floor, which she thought was the G/F.

I told her not to rush.

And she started to praise my tee (A black Galliano with pattern mimicking the Royal Army outfit), from the bottom of her heart.

I said the tee was indeed not too accepted nor appreciated by the mass.

As the dialog went on, she was not a resident of my building, only there to take care of her friend's flat who's currently out of town.

When we parted, we shook hands and I wished her a super day.

This might sound trivial. Yet sometimes it's the trivial thing that matters. It makes each of us feel good - The healthiest state of mind that every book on spirituality emphasizes.

I'm not trying to be biased. Have you ever seen such happened among us Chinese? If so, be generous to let me know.

Update at 16:51 the same day - I got a 2nd compliment regarding my Galliano tee. Again, it's from a She, and another European. According to all spiritual maestros, there's no such thing as coincidence.

God and Angels not only work 24/7. They work in the speed of light.

Miracles happen every day, and every second.

If you've read my previous post, my partner's bro was still in the Intensive Care Unit.

And I swear to God, it was only less than a minute after publishing my last post, the good news came. My partner was telling our IT Director on mobile, that his bro had been moved to the standard ward, which implied the critical moments were over.

Big thanks to all who responded to my last post (And I'm not sure how many could it be considering a less than 1 minute duration). That definitely includes Tomaz Mok - The most experienced advertising practitioner in Greater China, or probably the whole of Asia, with the youngest-looking face.

Kind-hearted people look young, as I always believe.

Wanna look younger? Simply be kind. To everyone around you, including the "strangers".

Ask and It Is given. Pray and you shall receive.

No matter how tough the reality seems.


*A side story: While his bro was receiving the brain surgery to have the blood clogs removed, a "sign" showed up at my partner's home. That a bird flew and hit the window of his bedroom and died.

Collective Prayer Wanted.

The boy in need of such is now in an Intensive Care Unit of a hospital in Hong Kong.

He's the young bro of my business partner - a late 20's who had a serious bike accident last Saturday night.

Without wearing a helmet, his skull was fractured.

Since blood clogs were X-rayed, a brain surgery was taken already to have them removed.

The brain surgeon regarded it as a miracle for there were hours of delay, before the operation.

Thank God, he's already passed the most critical situation, and throughout those frightening hours, he was conscious and able to recognize his whole family, with occasional verbal requests, in a very brief voice.

If condition gets stable, his skull will be put together in one piece again.

What he needs most now is blessings, from the bottom of your heart.

Regardless of where you are, which religion you follow, or whether you have one.

Because we are all One.

If only you could remember.

Life is more than having Calvin Klein models' 6-pack abs

That's a favourite joke with my Personal Trainer.

And he's human enough to nod in agreement.

Because if you really want to have 6-pack like those Men'sHealth models, you can only eat carb-free food everyday after 4pm, which means no rice, no pasta, no potatoes, and not even bread.

On top of eating right, you have to drink clean as well. That is to stay away from alcohol and sugary drinks all day.

Needless to say, an array of varied ab crunches that brings you constant pain, plus extra-long sessions of cardiovascular exercises which help you burn fat that covers the abs.

It's a marathon process that demands very strict self-discipline.

No more eating out or drinking out.

Only working out.

No more social life. Or no life at all for faster results.

Worth it?

Maybe. If you've ever heard of "There's no short cut to anywhere worth going".

On top of looking sexy, the 6-pack abs can serve as the most reliable predictors of wellness.

Studies show that a man with a waistline of over 40 inches signals significant risk of heart disease and diabetes, 33% more cancer-prone, and more likely to have obstructive sleep apnoea.

Last but not least, 6-pack abs can improve your sex life.

So, what's your stance now, gentleman?

You still buy (even unwillingly) that "Life is more than having 6-pack abs." or "6-pack abs make you feel larger than life." ?



-Facts and figures from "Men'sHealth BEST ABS", published by Rodale.

Most know O&M=Ogilvy & Mather. Many can tell DDB=Doyle Dane Bernbach. And BBDO? None.

Shocked?

No need. Because I only knew it 2 days ago. (And I'm pretty sure most ad practitioners today can't can't this right either.)

It's Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn.

Yet I used to be a Creative Director at BBDO, for around 4 years. The years of Triumph, to me and and my ex-partners.

-The campaign we made for a telecom client, SUNDAY, was a shock to the industry and the whole city;

- Every time when a SUNDAY ad was on air, it's for sure a talk of the town;

- People either hated it or loved it, never in between (Every time before an ad was run, a heated debate was sure to happen in the TV censorship bureau. So you can imagine how far we went.) ;

- One SUNDAY ad http://archive.adkungfu.com/longxi/sc/web/adsearch_details.php?id=899&JIANGXIANG=0 even initiated Epilepsy of a viewer at home (if the newspaper didn't exaggerate to boost sale);

- The BBDO by then was purely driven by creative;

- And it was the dream agency that every ambitious creative would die for.

Enough bragging. Yet our achievements are nothing compared to that of Bruce Barton, the second B of BBDO.

- Bruce Barton was so famous in his time in 1938 that every day there was a story on Barton - "Barton says, Barton suggests, Barton shakes hands, Barton laughs, Barton sneezes. Basically, it's Barton everywhere.";

- He was a visionary who predicted television before it was invented, a revolutionary who supported minority groups including Jews and blacks and women, an optimist who dreamed of prosperity during the Great Depression, a national leader who led America into a new modern era, and the original motivational speaker who created the genre;

- On top of being the first in the world to promote a presidential candidate, Calvin Coolidge, Barton himself was named as a possible candidate for the US presidency in 1932;

- It may sound weird to us nowadays, Barton was the one who truly believed business would save the world when the whole world believed business was corrupt;

- It's Barton who created the idea of TV sponsorship programmes;

- When everybody was selling burgers as burgers, Barton was the one who looked beyond the obvious. When he was handed the US Steel account, he could have written a relatively good ad with a line that read, "US Steel is the best in the business." Instead, he put, " Andrew Carnegie came to a land of wooden towns... and left a nation of steel." And this ad is now listed in The 100 Greatest Advertisements of All Time.

Genius.

And definitely more than a talent in advertising.

So, if you're asked to rank again 3 big names in advertising history in terms of greatness, what's your order?

For your information, my previous rank was 1) Bill Bernbach, 2) David Ogilvy. [And there was no third candidate on the list.]

Isn't it time to update yours?



-My big salutation to Bruce Barton (1886 - 1967). [And I was born in 1968...for Barton's incomplete mission?];

- Thanks to adkungfu.com for keeping my past works which I don't';

- If you want to know more about Bruce Barton, please read "The Seven Lost Secrets of Success" by Joe Vitale, published by Wiley.

Shyamalan, or not Shyamalan? That's the question.

Being the "Love Him or Hate Him" director is already a success.

To me, Shyamalan is a gifted story teller, esp. on teasing audience.

Every time I'm so drawn into the process, the controversial ending never bothers me.

Even when the mass think some endings suck, I really believe that's his intention -

To make some fun. With the audience.

Don't you feel the same in your home town? Every time when there's a Night's movie on, the disappointed audience are those who expect ending similar to the one of Sixth Sense. A big & witty twist without too big a logic loophole. But if every time the ending of Night's film is that expected, I don't think I'd appreciate him this much. And the mass would label him a man running out of ideas, or one who tries to replicate his own success ending up repeating himself.

If you buy in this, Lady in the water is not bad at all. At least he has heightened your curiosity for more than an hour.

And it's no easy task.