Babes apt to turn up in Stephff's cartoons from now on
STEPHANE PERAY - who gets Nation readers around the world chuckling with his editorial cartoons - has greeted a lot of fans at his Yenakat Gallery, but he was truly thrilled on Tuesday when former Miss Universe Natalie Glebova dropped in.
One might jump to the conclusion that she was there to involve him in one of her charity fund-raisers, but no – she’s just another fan. A mutual friend had introduced them a few months ago and Natalie revealed her enthusiasm for his art. That’s odd, Stephff thought, recalling that he once poked fun of her in a cartoon shortly after she was crowned Miss Universe.
The Frenchman guessed the Russian-Canadian must be a forgiving soul and offered her the original. And that’s why Natalie went to his gallery – to pick it up. (Stephff doesn’t “deliver”, as the dozens of fans who “win” works of art in his Facebook give-aways learn. They have to pick up the drawings in person – that’s part of the deal.) For her trouble, Natalie was also rewarded with one of Stephff’s wonderfully ornate doodles.
Natalie was soon on Facebook too. “Proud owner of this awesome abstract painting from art of Stephff. Thank you! It’s called ‘Happy Time-Space Clock’,” she posted alongside a photo of her and Stephff with the piece. For his part, Stephff is never happier than when he’s giving away his art to people who genuinely appreciate it. He left a comment on Natalie’s post: “Thank you again for your kind visit, Natalie. It’s not every day my humble atelier/gallerie gets the visit of a celebrity ... And you made my wife very happy!”
Feels like a deal
We knew film director Banjong Pisunthanakun was trying to cook something up with Hong Kong actor-director Stephen Chow (“Shaolin Soccer”, “King of Comedy”), but there was nothing concrete until pictures of them together appeared on the social networks on Wednesday. They show Chow, Banjong and GTH producer Yongyoot Thongkongtoon beaming after agreeing that their collaboration could start soon.
GTH and Chow announced last year that they would co-produce an adaptation of a segment from the GTH horror blockbuster “Ha Phrang” (“Phobia 2”). He wants a Chinese-language version of “Khon Kong” that isn’t merely dubbed. But there was no further news until Banjong completed “Pee Mak” and wrote a fresh treatment for Chow. Chow loved it and has sent it off to the Chinese censors for approval. That’s going to take a while because Beijing’s movie projector is broken, but meanwhile discussions continue regarding the fine details.
The whole notion arose when Banjong met Chow, one of his cinema idols, three years ago and Chow said praised that “Khon Kong” segment. Banjong might direct the Chinese version too, and on the mainland itself, which would certainly pave the way for more Thai studios to tap the lucrative Chinese market. That’s assuming this one’s a hit, of course. Stand by for more photos of Banjong, Yongyoot and Chow all smiles.
