One of Mainland China's top actors and filmmakers, Jiang Wen, known for his internationally acclaimed arthouse works like The Sun Also Rises and In the Heat of the Sun, has announced plans to make his fourth film as a director and his first "commercial" film. Titled Let the Bullets Fly, the film is said to be a "comic western legend", with lots of gunfights, horseback action, and black humor.

Jiang Wen himself plays a bandit in this highly anticipated genre project unveiled at the Cannes Film Festival, and it was just confirmed that one of the most bankable actors in China, Ge You (If You Are the One, The Banquet), has agreed to star opposite Jiang in the role of a con artist. The two big shots previously collaborated on the historical epic The Emperor's Shadow in 1995. This time they will be joined by some as-yet-unnamed A-list co-stars, with rumors of Hong Kong superstar Chow Yun Fat as another main lead already floating in the media.

Based on Ma Shitu's short stories collection Ye Tan Shi Ji, Let the Bullets Fly is set in the vast deserts of western Sichuan Province during the Beiyang warlord era (around 1920s). Production will begin in July/August in Guangdong, Beijing, and Tianjin, with an eye to launch during the lucrative New Year's frame in late 2010.

Text / dian

Veteran Hong Kong actor Shek Kin passed away on June 3, 2009 at the age of 96. The legendary martial arts actor was well known locally for his iconic antagonist role in the long-running series of Wong Fei Hung films during the 1950s and 60s. To Western audiences, Shek is probably best known for playing the villain Han in the Bruce Lee classic Enter the Dragon.

Entering the film industry in 1940 with a bit role in Flower in a Sea of Blood, Shek Kin went on to appear in over 300 films in a career that spanned half a century. Usually playing villainous characters, Shek was one of the most famous bad guys of Hong Kong Cinema, so much so that his name became synonymous with villain. In 1976, Shek joined TVB and participated in numerous television productions including classics like The New Heaven Sword & The Dragon Sabre and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Shek retired in 1993 after appearing in his final film, Hong Kong Adam's Family.

Contrary to his onscreen image, Shek was known as kind-hearted person in his personal life and was greatly respected and admired in the entertainment industry. He received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 1993 Golden Bauhinia Awards, and the Professional Achievement Award at the 2003 Hong Kong Film Awards. In 2004, Shek was honored with a handprint plaque at Hong Kong's Avenue of Stars.

Best-selling J-pop group EXILE won the top prize again at the MTV Video Music Awards 2009 Japan which were held on May 30 at the Saitama Super Arena in Tokyo. For the second year in a row, EXILE took home VMA Japan's Video of the Year honors with their hit Ti Amo (Chapter 2) which also won Best Group Video. The group capped off their victorious night with a third award for Best Choreography.

Hip-hop artist KREVA beat out Kanye West, Ne-Yo, Usher, and Hata Motohiro to win Best Male Video for Akasatanahamayarawawon, while diva Amuro Namie scored a double win with her NEW LOOK taking Best Female Video and Sexy Girl taking Best R&B Video. Most of the other genre awards also stayed at home with Maximum the Hormone's Tsume Tsume Tsume winning Best Rock Video, TERIYAKI BOYZ's ZOCK ON! winning Best Hip Hop Video, HAN-KUN's HOTTER THAN HOT winning Best Reggae Video, Towa Tei's Mind Wall winning Best Dance Video, and Remioromen's Pandemic theme Yume no Tsubomi winning Best Video from a Film. Duo Kimaguren's LIFE picked up both Best New Artist Video and Best Karaoke Song, and Mr. Children's SUPERMARKET FANTASY was named Best Album of the Year. American artists also received some love as Best Collaboration Video went to Nelly and Fergie's Party People, and Best Pop Video to Katy Perry's I Kissed A Girl.

The award ceremony was hosted by actor and comedian Hitori Gekidan. Guest performers for the night included EXILE, Green Day, Katy Perry, Black Eyed Peas, Ciara, 9mm Parabellum Bullet, Remioromen, and BoA who sang her English single I Did It for Love with Sean Garrett. Korean hip-pop boy band Big Bang, who are making their major debut in Japan this month, also attended the show as presenters.

Text / Sanwei

Renowned Shaw Brothers director Ho Meng Hua passed away on May 19 in Hong Kong. He was 80 years old.

Born in Shanghai, Ho began his cinematic career in 1955 as director Yen Chuan's assistant. Making his directorial debut with An Appointment After Dark in 1958, Ho then joined Shaw Brothers and made close to 50 films for the studio.

Over the course of his career, Ho established himself as a versatile director, helming such varied works as the SFX extravaganza The Mighty Peking Man (1977), fantasy epic The Monkey Goes West, true crime film The Criminals (1976), horror movie Black Magic (1975), Huangmei opera The Adulteress (1963), swordplay film Swift Sword (1980), and the kung fu classic Shaolin Abbot (1979). His 1967 romance drama Susanna was awarded Best Film at the 14th Asia Film Festival as well as a special prize by the Monbusho of the Japanese government.

The prolific director entered semi-retirement in the 1980s following a cutback in production by Shaw Brothers. After making his last film Evil Black Magic in 1992, Ho moved to the United States with his family, but returned to Hong Kong a few years ago.

In recent years, filmmakers have begun to mine the Shaw Brothers catalog for remake ideas, with Warlords director Peter Chan looking to produce an updated version of Ho's 1975 costume actioner The Flying Guillotine, to be directed by Dante Lam (The Beast Stalker).

Text / dian

Some of Korea's biggest stars are participating in a joint Korea-Japan Telecinema project consisting of at least seven feature-length mini-dramas that will be released theatrically and on television in both countries. Top Korean directors and Japanese screenwriters are collaborating on these telefilms produced by Samhwa Networks. Some of the big names lined up include Ahn Jae Wook, Cha In Pyo, Ji Jin Hee, Kim Ha Neul, Kang Ji Hwan, Kang Hye Jung, Ye Ji Won, and Shin Sung Woo. The two projects that have received the most attention thus far are the ones starring pop idols T.O.P and Seung Ri of Big Bang and Dong Bang Shin Ki's Hero Jae Joong.

Jae Joong makes his acting debut opposite Iljimae's Han Hyo Ju in the drama Heaven's Postman. Directed by Lee Hyung Min (I'm Sorry, I Love You) and written by Kitagawa Eriko (Long Vacation), Heaven's Postman revolves around a young businessman who falls into a coma after an accident, and becomes a postman delivering letters between the worlds of the living and the dead. The drama finished shooting last year, and is currently in post-production. Directed by Jang Yong Woo and written by Inoue Yumiko (White Tower), T.O.P and Seung Ri's 19 is about a trio of 19-year-old murder suspects locked in a cat-and-mouse game with the police. The two Big Bang members, who finished filming in mid-May, are also singing 19's theme song.

Other telefilms in the project include A Stone's Dream which stars Cha In Pyo and Kim Hyo Jin as a conman and a club dancer trying to help a young boy find his mother. Ahn Jae Wook, Lee Soo Kyung, and Kang Hye Jung, meanwhile, form a romance and suspense Triangle for a thriller directed by Ji Young Soo (Oh! Pil Seung, Bong Soon Young) and written by Ozaki Masaya (Love Generation). Starring Shin Sung Woo, Ye Ji Woon, and Ko Ah Sung, After the Wedding from My Lovely Sam-Soon director Kim Yoon Chul and Gokusen writer Yokota Rie is about a group of old college friends who find some surprises awaiting when they meet again at a wedding. Kang Ji Hwan is also faced with a big surprise as a shallow architect who gets beautiful and ugly women mixed up after a sight-impairing injury in My Love, Ugly Duckling directed by Lee Jang Soo (Stairway to Heaven) and written by Oishi Shizuka (First Love). Also directed by Lee Jang Soo and written by Okada Yoshikazu (Bambino!), Paradise stars Kim Ha Neul and Ji Jin Hee as two people who meet on a ship heading to an island called Paradise.

The Telecinema productions will begin hitting movie theaters as early as summer, and then be broadcast on Korea's SBS and Japan's TV Asahi as two-part dramas.

Text / Sanwei

The 62nd Cannes Film Festival wrapped on Sunday, May 24. The top Palme d'Or prize went to Austrian auteur Michael Haneke's The White Ribbon, and the Grand Prix was given to French film A Prophet.

Haneke, who won the Grand Prix with The Piano Teacher in 2001 and Best Director with Hidden in 2005, received the Palme d'Or trophy from jury president Isabelle Huppert, the French star of The Piano Teacher. A black-and-white film set in a pre-WWI German village, The White Ribbon bumped the critics favorite, prison drama A Prophet by French director Jacques Audiard, to the second place. The high-profile American representative, Inglourious Basterds by Quentin Tarantino, emerged winner of Best Actor for German actor Christoph Waltz, who played the major villain in the Nazi actioner. Best Actress went to French thespian Charlotte Gainsbourg for her hysterical performance in the controversial Antichrist by Lars von Trier. Still productive at 86, French master Alain Resnais had a new film Wild Grass in competition, which earned him the Lifetime Achievement Award and a standing ovation.

Despite the strong showing of European films this year, the Asian contingent managed to take home some important prizes, too. Filipino director Brillante Mendoza surprisingly snatched up Best Director for Kinatay. Chinese maverick director Lou Ye's Spring Fever, written by Mei Feng, got recognized for Best Screenplay. Finally, Korean maestro Park Chan Wook's highly anticipated Thirst shared the Jury Special Prize with English filmmaker Andrea Arnold's Fish Tank.

Text / dian

Maverick director Miike Takashi just can't seem to stop making movies. The prolific auteur recently revealed two upcoming projects, starting with a remake of the 1963 Kudo Eiichi samurai classic Thirteen Assassins. The film revolves around thirteen samurai and their suicide mission to kill a cruel feudal lord whose procession vastly outnumbers them. The Thirteen Assassins remake is spearheaded by Oscar-winning producers Jeremy Thomas (The Last Emperor) and Nakazawa Toshiaki (Departures), who produced many of Miike's films including Sukiyaki Western Django and The Bird People in China. The film starts shooting in July, and will be released in Japan by Toho.

Miike, whose recent Crows Zero adaptations were both box office hits, has also been tapped to direct a big-budget big-screen adaptation of the digital manga Takeru by Cobra and Midnight Eye Goku creator Terasawa Buichi. Set in an alternate-world Japan, Takeru is a fantasy adventure about a ninja who battles evil to protect the woman he loves. Produced by Nagasawa Yoshiya, Takeru is expected to feature a pan-Asian cast, and will start filming in 2010 for a 2011 release.

Text / Sanwei

Morning Musume's latest single Syou ga Nai Yume Oibito released on May 13 has crossed weekly sales of 48,000 copies, rewarding them with a new Oricon #1 single. It's their first #1 single since Aruiteru released in November 2006. It's also the first #1 for eighth-generation Morning Musume members Mitsui Aika and Chinese members Jun Jun and Lin Lin.

The runner-up is Rain is fallin'/Hybrid by the Japanese-Korean collaboration of trio w-inds and Korean hip-hop group Big Bang's leader G-Dragon, while two you by the special unit Yuzuguren (formed by duos Yuzu and Kimaguren) ranks third. Finally, duo VAMPS consisting of L'Arc-en-Ciel vocalist Hyde and Oblivion Dust's guitarist K.A.Z hold a #4 hit with Evanescent. Top R&B singers Kato Miliyah and Shimizu Shota share the 5th place with the song Love Forever.

Text / Snoopy

Well-known novels by two of Japan's greatest modern writers, Murakami Haruki and Dazai Osamu, are set for movie adaptations. Murakami Haruki's popular 1987 novel Norwegian Wood is traveling to the silver screen in the hands of acclaimed French-Vietnamese director Tran Anh Hung, with Detroit Metal City's Matsuyama Kenichi in the leading role.

Backdropped by the student movements of the late 1960s, Norwegian Wood revolves around college student's Watanabe Toru's emotional struggle over the suicide of his best friend, and his relationships with two very different women - one energetic and outgoing, the other fragile and troubled - played by newcomer Mizuhara Kiko and Oscar-nominated actress Kikuchi Rinko from Babel. The film's supporting cast includes Snakes and Earrings' Kora Kengo, Giniro no Season's Tamayama Tetsuji, and A Stranger of Mine's Kirishima Reika. Norwegian Wood begins shooting on June 1, and is scheduled for release in autumn 2010.

Late Showa-era writer Dazai Osamu's semi-autobiographical 1948 masterpiece Ningen Shikaku (a.k.a. No Longer Human), one of the most representatives works of modern Japanese literature, is also getting its first screen adaptation. Ningen Shikaku details the life of a troubled college student who feels alienated from the world, but chooses to hide his pain behind a jolly facade. The adaptation is being helmed by Zigeunerweisen producer and Akame 48 Waterfalls director Arato Genji, and Johnny's idol and television star Ikuta Toma will make his film debut as the protagonist Oba Yozo. Filming begins in July with a target release for spring 2010.

As 2009 marks the 100th anniversary of Dazai's birth, many adaptations of the writer's works are actually hitting theaters this year including Shayo directed by Akihara Masatoshi (I Carry the Ticket of Eternity), Pandora's Box directed by Tominaga Masanori (The Pavillion Salamandre) and starring Kubozuka Yosuke, as well as Villon's Wife directed by Negishi Kichitaro (Dog in a Sidecar) and starring Asano Tadanobu and Matsu Takako.

Text / Sanwei

The nominations for the 20th Golden Melody Awards were announced on May 15. A total of 101 works are up for 23 awards. Jay Chou has again wowed the music world garnering eight nominations for his album Capricorn, including Best Mandarin Album, Best Mandarin Male Singer, Best Album Producer, plus Best Song of the Year, Best Lyricist, Best Composer for his hit song Rice Fragrance, and Best MV Director for Mr. Magic.

Highly acclaimed newcomer Crowd Lu has proved to be the revelation of the year. His debut album 100 Ways For Living is the black horse fighting on five fronts: Best Newcomer, Best Song of the Year, Best Mandarin Album, Best Composer, and Best Arrangement. Singer-songwriter Khalil Fong's Orange Moon got four nominations, as did Taiwanese diva Jody Chiang's Holding You Tight.

Jay Chou faces fierce competition from Leehom Wang (Heart Beat), Xiao Huang Chi (I'm Xiao Huang Chi), Hong Kong singer Eason Chan (Don't Want to Let Go), and Khalil Fong for Best Mandarin Male Singer. Their Female counterparts are five-time nominee Fish Leong (Valentine's Today), the twice-crowned Tanya Chua (MY SPACE), Tsai Chin (Without Regrets), Sandee Chen (If There is One Thing That is Important), and A-Lin Huang (Diva). Mayday, The Chairman, 13 Band, The Hohak Band, and Natural Q vie for Best Band, while Best Group Vocal sees Da Mouth, Y2J, NyLas, and HoneyVoices in tight contention.

For Best Newcomer, singer-songwriters Crowd Lu, Joanna Wang (Start From Here), and Hsiao Hung Jen (Hsiao Hung Jen) are up against One Million Star graduates James Lin (Mystery), Jam Hsiao (Jam Hsiao), and Rachel Liang (Love Poem), but the fan-favorite OMS idol Aska Yang was surprisingly omitted.

Nominations for Best Mandarin Album go to the aforementioned Capricorn, 100 Ways For Living, plus Stanley Huang's We All Lay Down In The End, Sandee Chen's If There is One Thing That is Important, and Eason Chan's Don't Want to Let Go.

The Golden Melody Awards ceremony will be held June 27 at the Taipei Arena. To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the biggest annual music award in Taiwan, there will be an online poll for the public to vote for the 20 most memorable songs of the last two decades.

Text / dian

Some long-absent Korean artists are making their comebacks in May. Away for almost three years, R&B and ballad singer Kim Tae Woo of g.o.d, who completed his army service in February, is leaving tracks around the globe this month for his comeback. He performed at the Korea Drama Song Festival in Tokyo on May 8, and then at the Hollywood Bowl Korea Times Festival in Los Angeles on May 9. The Hollywood Bowl turned into a mini g.o.d reunion as Park Joon Hyung and Son Ho Young were at the event as well, fueling more rumors of a possible g.o.d. comeback in 2009, the group's tenth anniversary year. Kim Tae Woo will be releasing his new solo digital single on May 19 and holding comeback concerts from May 26 to 31.

Korean-American hip-hop guru DJ Shine, who has been out of the public eye since leaving Drunken Tiger four years ago, finally returns with the single album Right Round. Released on May 14, the song is a Korean cover of Flo Rida's same-titled hit, and features Noh Si Hyun of Gavy N.J.

Perhaps the most unexpected comeback though is that of popular 90s group The Blue which disbanded 14 years ago. Better known as actors, Kim Min Jong and Son Ji Chang were big as pop duo The Blue in the early and mid-90s during Korea's early wave of idol actor-singers. Their new album The Blue, The First Memories includes collaborations with Tiffany and Soo Young of Girls' Generation and a rearranged self-cover of "With You", the theme song of their classic 1994 youth drama Feelings.

Text / Sanwei

Besides making his Hollywood debut this year in an action comedy with Jack Black and Anne Hathaway, Hong Kong's comedy king Stephen Chow is also going to work with China Film Group to produce an animated film based on his 2008 blockbuster CJ7 for a possible release next year. When he began shooting CJ7 three years ago, Chow had already planned to make an animated version with the same setting but a different storyline. The film will combine 2-D and 3-D animation, and the cast of the live-action original is expected to come back to voice the characters. On the creative side, Chow will hand the reins to acclaimed director Dante Lam (The Beast Stalker), whose resume also includes the animated films Storm Rider: Clash of Evils and Sparkling Red Star, and to screenwriter Erica Li (King of Comedy).

CJ7 tells of the friendship between poor schoolboy Dicky and the extraterrestrial being that he names "CJ7". Doubling as director, writer, and producer, Stephen Chow plays second fiddle on screen to child actress Xu Jiao, whose turn as Dicky won her Best New Performer at the Hong Kong Film Awards. The sci-fi comedy was a gigantic hit at the box office across Asia, and an online game based on the movie is also in the works.

Text / dian

The Association of Music Workers in Taiwan announced their annual picks for 2008's Best 10 Albums and Singles on May 11. Hong Kong singer Eason Chan and Taiwan hip-hop artist MC Hog Dog were the industry favorites with an album and two singles each on the winner's shortlist.

The Association awarded their Best 10 Albums to Eason Chan's Don't Want to Let Go, MC Hot Dog's Mr. Almost, perennial winner Jay Chou's Capricorn, Hong Kong singer-songwriter Khalil Fong's Orange Moon, indie queen Sandee Chen's If There Is One Thing That Is Important, breakthrough singer-songwriter Crowd Lu's 100 Ways For Living, rock band Chairman's Spend All Of His Money!, 13 Band's Ma Lian Shui Shou De Xia Tian ("Summer of the Horse-Faced Sailor"), and two debut releases, Joanna Wang's Start From Here and Xiao Yu's Xiao Yu Tong Xue Jiu Shi Wo ("Classmate Xiao Yu Is Me").

In singles, Eason Chan's "Don't Speak" and "Rewind Life" and MC Hot Dog's "Mr. Almost" and "Ocean" are joined by Jay Chou's "Mr. Magic", Mayday's "You Are Not Truly Happy", Cheer Chen's "Wings of a Loser", Crowd Lu's "I Love You", Aska Yang's "Onion", and fellow One Million Star newcomer Yoga Lin's "Eye Color". The Association of Music Workers in Taiwan's Best 10 picks are often viewed as a precursor to the Golden Melody Award nominations which will be announced on May 15 this year.

Text / Sanwei

Considering the blockbuster success of TV-drama spin-offs Suspect X and Hana Yori Dango: Final last year, it comes as no surprise that there are many more Japanese small-screen hits trying their luck on the big screen in 2009.

Opening on May 30, Rookies -Sotsugyo- is the silver-screen finale to the 2008 TBS spring drama Rookies. Based on Morita Masanori's best-selling manga, Rookies revolves around a do-good high school teacher and baseball coach and his adventures reforming his team of delinquent students. After continuing the mini-series' storyline in a TV special in October 2008, the Rookies will finally graduate in May. The entire cast, including coach Sato Ryuta and players Ichihara Hayato, Koide Keisuke, Shirota You, and Sato Takeru, return for the movie along with new additions like Yamamoto Yusuke, Ishida Takuya, and Takeda Kohei. Over 180,000 advance tickets have been sold for Rookies -Sotsugyo- already, more than double the advance ticket sales of Hana Yori Dango: Final.

The similarly themed and even more popular Gokusen arrives in movie theaters on July 11. Based on Morimoto Kozueko's manga, NTV's Gokusen revolves around a cluelessly earnest teacher with a yakuza background, and her hilarious efforts reforming her delinquent Class 3D students. After headlining three hit seasons, leading actress Nakama Yukie will take her famed character "Yankumi" to the big screen, along with Takaki Yuya, Miura Haruma, and other young stars from the 2008 season and 2009 TV special. Kamenashi Kazuya of KAT-TUN will also make his silver-screen debut in the movie. He reprises his role from the 2005 season of Gokusen, now returning four years later as a rookie teacher.

The 2007 Fuji TV thriller Liar Game starring Matsuda Shota and Toda Erika is getting both a second season and a movie in a simultaneous release setup similar to Akai Ito. Another 2007 Fuji TV hit, the police drama S.P. starring Okada Junichi and Tsutsumi Shinichi, also has a movie spin-off in the works with hit-making Bayside Shakedown director Motohiro Katsuyuki remaining at the helm. Finally, the 2006 Fuji TV favorite Nodame Cantabile is lined up for not one but two movies, both due in 2010.

Text / Sanwei

International star Jackie Chan held his "Descendants of the Dragon: Jackie Chan and Friends" charity concert at the Beijing National Stadium on May 1. He was joined by over 100 performers including well-known Asian artists Alan Tam, Eric Tsang, Emil Chau, Sun Nan, Joey Yung, Khalil Fong, Charlene Choi, Yumiko Cheng, Super Junior, Zhang Liyin, Leehom Wang, Jane Zhang, Hacken Lee, Jonathan Lee, Angela Chang, Li Bingbing, Chris Lee, and Rain.

Jackie opened the performance with a drum performance and the song "Descendants of the Dragon". He also sang other Olympic songs and teamed up with Jonathan Lee and Emil Chau for "True Hero". The highlight of the show was perhaps Korean group Super Junior who have not appeared in Mainland China for some time. They sang the songs Sorry Sorry and "The Reason Why I Like You" amid thunderous applause. As for Rain, not only did he perform his hits Rainism and It's Raining, but he also sang the duet "Who Can Judge Love's Right or Wrong" with Jackie Chan. The tour closed with an ensemble song by all performers called "Singing Homeland".

Jackie's concert attracted over 70,000 people, amounting to around 95% of the Beijing National Stadium's seating capacity. Jackie also especially invited poor and disabled children who received aid from his charity fund to attend the concert.

Text / Snoopy

Having proposed for umpteen times throughout the years, 62-year-old Hong Kong actor Law Kar Ying finally got an affirmative answer from his longtime girlfriend, 61-year-old veteran TV personality Liza Wang. TVB General Manager Stephen Chan broke the news that the popular couple got hitched on May 2 in Las Vegas. This is Wang's second marriage and Law's first. The two began dating after collaborating on a Cantonese opera in 1988, and in recent years Law has publicly asked Wang to marry him on many occasions, despite her constant refusal. This made their decision to tie the knot after a 20-year relationship a pleasant surprise.

As an actress, singer, and TV host, Liza Wang has enjoyed a spectacular career spanning over four decades, and is a symbol of TVB. She is also influential as a politician and a leader of Hong Kong's Cantonese opera circle. Law, a famous Cantonese opera actor, rose to fame in the 90s with his comedic performances in several Stephen Chow movies. He was awarded Best Supporting Actor at the Hong Kong Film Awards and Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards for the 1995 film Summer Snow.

The marriage could be a boost for their careers. Wang is set to start shooting the TVB drama "The Queen's Office" when she comes back to Hong Kong, and Law appears in two high-profile 2009 Chinese sci-fi films, Wong Jing's Future Cop and Jeff Lau's Kung Fu Cyborg.

Text / dian

Martial arts biopic Ip Man was no doubt the 2008 Chinese movie juggernaut, being one of the year's biggest box-office successes and winner of Best Film at the Hong Kong Film Awards. Two sequels are being planned, and Part II will start shooting this August with a target release date of summer 2010. Director Wilson Yip recently revealed some details concerning the first sequel.

Donnie Yen and Lynn Xiong are locked to reprise their roles as Mr. and Mrs. Ip Man, who will have arrived in Hong Kong following the story in Part I. At the time, many martial arts clubs in Hong Kong are controlled by the triad, prompting the upstanding Ip Man to set up a martial arts school to teach Wing Chun himself. Action director Sammo Hung will step in front of the camera this time to play the leader of the rival "Hung Fist" school, and the film will stage plenty of fights between different schools of Chinese kung fu. Most of the first film's main cast members will return, including Lam Ka Tung and Fan Siu Wong.

It is known that the sequel involves a young Bruce Lee as one of Ip Man's disciples. Wilson Yip said that Lee will be a teenager and just a minor role in this film, so they will cast a newcomer with similar looks and temperament to play him, squashing rumors that Taiwanese superstar Jay Chou or Shaolin Soccer actor Chan Kwok Kwan are being courted for the role.

Text / dian