Silver screen shuttlers
Three of Malaysia’s Olympic medal-winning shuttlers will be guest starring in local movie Goodbye Mr Loser.
THE spotlight is back on Malaysia’s Olympic shuttlers, who will be appearing on cinema screens soon.
Chan Peng Soon, Goh Liu Ying and Goh V Shem, who won silver medals in the recent Rio De Janeiro Olympics, will be guest starring in local movie producer Asia Tropical Films’ latest movie Goodbye Mr Loser.
Earlier this month, mixed doubles pair Chan and Liu Ying shot some of their scenes together with Mediacorp artiste Ian Fang at Wangsa Maju Flats. The pair plays a young bickering couple, and their scene involved Chan standing at the door of an apartment with his badminton bag slung from his shoulders while Liu Ying screamed at him repeatedly.
After the mixed doubles pair completed their scenes in the afternoon, it was men’s doubles shuttler V Shem’s turn to film his scenes that same evening at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur. Although there was a training session scheduled the following day, V Shem did his best to fulfill the director’s requests, giving his all with no complaints.
In the movie, V Shem plays Fang’s cousin brother, and enters the scene driving a luxury car. The shuttler generously allowed the filmmakers to use his silver medal as a prop, so viewers will get to see an actual Olympic Games medal in the movie!
Goodbye Mr Loser director Adrian Teh, 32, said he wanted to cast the shuttlers even before they became Olympic stars, so he approached them with some ideas the day after they returned from Rio.
“After they brought us Olympic glory, I knew Malaysians would be very happy to see more of them, so I got them some roles in this movie,” said Teh, 32, who is an avid badminton player himself.
Teh was full of praise for the shuttlers, who donated their movie fees to charity. “As newcomers to moviemaking, they are very natural in front of the camera. They even managed to deliver some humorous elements.”
After wrapping his scenes, V Shem said, “This shoot is a rare opportunity. Making a movie is really isn’t easy!”
When asked whether he would take up similar offers in the future, the 27-year-old shuttler said he was aware of his priorities and preferred to focus on training for upcoming competitions.
Chan, 28, said: “I’m game for the new experience as long as it does not interfere with our badminton training.”
Meanwhile, Liu Ying, 27, who had expressed interest at trying her hand at acting in past interviews, was glad to have landed the role.
“It was actually quite an easy-going collaboration. If time permits, I feel it is something I can try to do more of,” said Liu Ying, who has had some training in modeling.
Goodbye Mr Loser also stars Taiwanese celebrity Phoebe Huang along with local artistes Hoon Mei Sim, Anjoe Koh, Jack Yap, Lex Pun, and Tan Li Yang. It is slated for release next Chinese New Year.