Things went a bit off course towards the end of my time in China, and my hope of finding a good, well-paid professional job didn’t work out, largely because of my weak Chinese. Another option was to just hang around, doing a bit of this and a bit of that, ducking and weaving, which a lot of foreigners do – and some of them do quite well out of it. Most are just eternal students, though. There were quite a few options open to me if I’d done this, but what made me decide not to take this course of action was that a number of potential employers, Chinese, tried to pull a fast one at the contract-signing stage. So, I decided to come back to Singapore, a decision that seems to be paying off. The lure of China is drawing lots of expats to live there to see what turns up. If you have good Chinese, or are able to live while you learn it, it’s definitely a good option! India maybe isn’t getting the same numbers of young Westerners going there, but it’s still happening. There was a great article recently in Wired about how Westerners as in demand in Bollywood, because they can take roles that Indians feel unable to, for cultural reasons. Right now is probably a really good time for people hoping to break into the film industry, and are willing to travel. There are a good few opportunities for Westerners in China, as well – a recent advert in That’s Beijing read:
Actors (still) wanted Looking for foreign actors and extras to film a 30 part TV series in Shanghai starting in May. The play is about Chinese building railroads in America 100 years ago. Since a large number of foreigners will be needed, please tell your friends, white people aged 6 – 70, no restrictions on gender or experience, professional actors or people with acting experience particularly welcome. Please send photo and contact details to zhengfeng007@126.com.
I wonder what term will be dreamed up for the Chinese film industry once it starts growing – as it surely will! In any case, based on people I’ve met there, Beijing is awash with film students, media types, and experimental amateurs, all playing with media and looking for inspiration in the middle kingdom. Even here in Singapore, a flyer pasted to a street lamp is advertising for actors – of any race, including caucasians! Maybe I should check it out, after I’ve got my PR – you never know, it could lead to a whole new, unexpected career…
