SINGAPORE, March 9 — Every morning, Ian Fang wakes up, looks into his mirror and tells himself: “Wow, you look good today.”
But it’s not because he’s vainer than your average pretty boy, even though, as he said with a dismissive wave of his hand, “we are all vain.” It is “motivational, inspirational encouragement,” he explained. Not that Fang needs much of a confidence boost. Even though he “had to be ugly” in his role as a stroke patient in MediaCorp TV Channel 8’s drama “Life Is Beautiful,” which began its run last week, he affirmed how he has always been “totally fine” with taking on such roles.
“I’m an actor. I don’t really care about how I look or the image I have to project. Of course, celebrities have to maintain their image, but when it comes to work and acting, I think you have to throw away all your self-consciousness about your appearance,” he said.
He just hopes “the audience will be able to accept the face I’ll be wearing” — the tear-streaked one, that is. In episodes to come, Fang will be crying us a river. “I’m emotionally soft at heart. So it’s easy for me to cry,” he said with a smile.
But he isn’t crying much these days. “I’m happier now. Just like that, with a snap of the fingers, I decided I want to be more positive,” he said. “I kept saying that last year was a bad year; last year didn’t go smoothly for me. But this year’s great. Every single day, when I wake up, I think, ‘Today will be a great day.’ I complain less and I don’t get angry so easily — which means I’ve grown up.”
Fang is admittedly ready for change. “It has been three-and-a-half years (since I started out). Come on. You see the ‘swagger’ thing, you also will feel ‘sian’,” he continued. “I’m 26 this year. Physically, I need to change as well.”
Just wait for his performance in the coming “The Journey: Our Homeland,” he said. “Just wait for next year’s Star Awards. After that, I’ll be in another production. There will be certain changes. If I succeed, I’ll be on TODAY’s T cover again.” Okay, Ian — we’ll be holding our breath. — TODAY
