(This is part of the series on behind-the-scenes while covering celebrities.)
(Dateline Taipei part 7)
When interviewing celebrities, you sometimes never know whether it will happen until the last minute.
Like this interview with Ariel Lin.
Before I arrived in Taipei, I was already making arrangements with her manager through email with the help of a common friend. No reply. So I asked another friend if she can follow up. The manager told her that I can email her. But I already did!
Anyway, with these things, I have learned to shrug my shoulders and just go with the flow. If it happens, it happens.
I had doubts though if she will accept an interview considering the hoohah over her recent break-up. Talking to a journalist is not just a good idea at the moment, although it’s the best idea as far as we in the media are concerned. But you never know…
On arrival in Taipei, I had other schedules to follow and it was actually an after-thought to call her agent myself after another follow-up email went unanswered. Good thing the agent speaks English and she told me she’d check the schedule and get back to me.
I rolled my eyes. Yeah, don’t call me, I’ll call you. I’ve heard that line many times before.
To my surprise, Ms Chou did call me back a few minutes later and asked if that Thursday night was OK. That was two days away. I said, sure (because in situations like this, you don’t really have the option to say–can we have it another time, in the morning, maybe?). She then asked me to send guide questions that I had to translate to Mandarin. (Thank you @marylngoh for coming to my rescue!)
Thursday came. My day was packed. I had the premiere of Van Ness Wu’s Road Less Traveled to go to that night too. Was it going to be a choice between Van and Ariel? I haven’t heard from Ms Chou. Meantime, my name was on the list at the premiere night already.
After my last appointment before the premiere night, I called Ms Chou to ask if it was a go. She said it was a go but she was driving and she’d message me the time and address. I was too busy trying to figure out how to get to Ximending for the premiere to really roll my eyes. But Ms Chou keeps her word (unlike some managers I have dealt with–cough, Qiu Ze’s Garfield, cough) and not only messaged me the time and address, she did too in Chinese.
So… goodbye Van Ness, although I did try to stick at the premiere (which took a long time starting, as usual) and saw Elva Hsiao arrive. But it was time for my appointment with Miss Lin at the other side of town so off I went again. Chasing stars? Literally.
The interview was done in Ms Chou’s office. I was on time and was surprised to see that Ariel was already there as I was ushered inside and was met by a white furry ball.
She was leafing through a magazine and she turned around and said “hi”.
“Your dog?” I asked as the white furry ball proceeded to greet me.
“No,” she laughed. “Her name is… Barbara.”
A tall woman came over and led me to another room. She turned out to be Ms Chou, who looked familiar to me as if I have seen her somewhere before. But of course it was the first time we were meeting.
Ariel has just come from the Christmas tree lighting at Shinkong Mitsukoshi in Xinyi and was wearing a top that I have seen her wear in In Time With You. We sat across a chunky wooden table in a room with white and baby blue walls. Barbara continued to snuggle at my feet and when I ignored her as we started the interview, started whining, prompting Ms Chou to say: “She likes you.”
I have to say this… I was never a fan of Ariel but I like celebrities who surprise me. Although my friend @marylngoh said before that I end up liking all the celebrities I interview and find them all nice. Of course, they have to be nice. It’s manners. It’s good PR. But I would have other impressions too. And Ariel was not only nice, she was warm, attentive and considerate. She wanted to answer my questions in Mandarin at first, going by the guide questions I sent earlier, but I told her that would be a problem because then I wouldn’t be able to make follow-up questions. So she spoke English and she was impressive.
She was willing to answer questions about the break-up but Ms Chou gave a subtle reminder on whether I wanted to finish my prepared questions first. I got the signal, we all had a good laugh, and I still managed to ask oblique questions. Not my best interview, what with a manager sitting in and doing her job. All in a day’s work for all of us I guess.
I just finished writing the story, coming out in Taiwan on The China Post either this week or next week. Highlights? She talks about plans for her 10th anniversary and her next project, her thoughts on being an idol, on happiness and love.
“Don’t worry, it’s a happy ending,” she assures me.
Whether she’s talking about In Time With You or herself… read the story.
(Please DO NOT lift content of this entry in part or in full and post them in other websites without the owner’s permission.)
Copyright © 2011. theasianpopculturist. All rights reserved.
orange jasmine purple yam 
Nice! You just made me so happy. Reading this was just like meeting Ariel in person. Thank you! :))))
Thank you for giving me a glimpse on what transpired prior & during your interview with Ariel. I’m very open in saying that I’m a fan of Ariel Lin and I’ve always wondered how she is in person. Because more often than not, I would just observe her during interviews and TV guesting. I don’t know why, but I just simply admire this lady. At first, of course what made me like her is her acting skills but soon after, I found myself admiring her as a person. I really admire her for taking on the responsibility for her family, working hard to pay off her family’s debts. Finishing college, even though she was already having a successful career in the entertainment industry. Just one of the few reasons I’ve loved Ariel as a person, not just the actress.
I’m glad she talked to you in English. I think that’s beneficial to her too, since she’s currently preparing for her English exams, if I’m not mistaken. I like that she’s serious in learning English. Now, aside from Korean, she can speak English as well. I think that will be advantageous to her career in the future.
Pardon my ignorance, how can I access your article for The China Post when it comes out? Or will you post it here. hehehe!!! Am I asking stupid questions?
Looking forward to your article. I know Ariel will be celebrating her 10th anniversary this coming January 8, 2012. And I just wish Lin Yi Chen good health, more success and most of all, happiness.
Thanks again, yupkigirl! 🙂
P.S. Barbara must have really liked you. Lol! Cute name, wonder if the dog has a Chinese name too.
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haha yes I will post it here.
I don’t know if it’s coming out tomorrow or next Friday. I wish I knew lols!
I think what struck me most about her was her being level-headed and clear-minded… unlike You Qing hahaha! I told a friend this: Ariel may not be my fave celeb but I feel that as a person, she’s one I’d normally admire. she reads books, watches plays (and acts in them too) and loves to go to art exhibits. she’s not the regular shallow celebrity. now I sound like a fan hahaha!
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Thank you in advance. 🙂
I’m so happy that I’ll be reading an article from a reliable source. At times, it’s a bit frustrating reading some articles, wondering if it’s really true or not. Whether Ariel really said that or not. And I’m glad you’re not an Ariel fan, so I can know her for who she really is, biases aside.
You’re right, she’s really level-headed. I love that she’s not caught up in all the fame. And I admire her thirst for knowledge & how she can improve herself. As her co-stars said, she usually read books during filming breaks. She’s a very serious lady as Bo-lin describes her and even Joe said, she’s so mature for her age. Maybe that’s why it took some time before she got close to them. Lol! It’s really ironic how Ariel is always paired with guys that are free spirited, likes to joke around & a bit “childish”, like Bo-lin & Joe. Total opposites of Ariel. And she’s quite intelligent, I remember watching her in a game show, I think it’s Taiwan’s version of “Are you smarter than a 5th grader”, and she reached the final level. Although she didn’t win the million, she confidently answered most of the questions. Just one of the few reasons why I’m a fan.
hahaha! yes, I believe she’s clear-minded compared to You Qing when it comes to love. Well, ITWY will be airing it’s final episode this Sunday. Finally…. Da ren & You Qing will be together. It’s really bittersweet, although I’m excited to see DR & YQ together, I’m gonna miss Ariel & Bo-lin’s chemistry on screen. Love their chemistry. And I’ll miss seeing Ariel acting in a drama, since she’ll be taking a temporary break from dramas.
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hey, she has a movie with Bo-lin!
too bad Bo-lin wasn’t in town coz I would have wanted to interview that dude. I’ve long admired him since I watched Blue Gate Crossing, I think his and Gui Lun-mei’s first movie. They’re two of the best performers of their generation.
I just realized there were a lot of quotes I chucked from the article I wrote for The China Post. but I may use them for the AsiaNews magazine.
well… Ariel did say that only 30% of those that come out especially in the tabloids is true — she was speaking here generally, not only about her own “scandals”. I can just imagine the frustration from their side but well… scandals sell you know 🙂
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Oh yes, I know! hehehe!!! It’s a rom-com movie, entitled Lovesick.
In fact, I’ve already watched it online after the Viki team finished subbing it. It’s a good watch, while waiting for Da ren & You Qing to finally get together in ITWY. LOL!!! 🙂 It’s a cute movie, nothing spectacular, but Ariel & Bo-lin’s chemistry is already evident. They finished filming the movie first before doing ITWY so that they could have some foundation for their roles as best friends in the drama. Lovesick was a form of therapy for me, after watching the heart wrenching scenes in ITWY. Especially episode 11, which was the most painful episode. Good thing there’s Lovesick. Bo-lin & Ariel’s wedding scene in the movie was beautiful & touching. Anyways, I think Lovesick was already shown in Mainland China last October and will be shown in Taiwan this December, after the finale of ITWY. Hmmm, nice marketing strategy for the movie! No need to promote much, since Ariel & Bo-lin’s amazing chemistry in the drama can be beneficial to their movie. 🙂
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weeeehhhh didn’t know that Viki has Lovesick already!!!
thanks for the info!
on my way to watch it :))))
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hehehe!!! you’re welcome!
I think Viki’s ITWY subbing team was in desperate need of OTP moments from the drama. Since it wasn’t happening in the recent episodes, might as well sub the movie to get some cute OTP moments. Lol! And they also subbed Ariel & Bo-lin’s recent TV show interview to promote Lovesick. I must say, the Viki team subbing ITWY has been doing a great job. completing the subs within a day after the episode aired. :))))
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I’m about to post the article that came out today!
Just got the PDF.
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