"Champion Of The Arts" - an article by Dennis Chua of the New Straits Times

Gosh... I've come quite a way, it seems. I THINK that black and white photo of me was taken at my very first ever press conference, for the Indonesian-Malaysian film Irisan-Irisan Hati. I was such a kid then.

But I have a story about Irisan. My company was chosen to do the casting for the Malaysian actors in the film, and I remember we combed through every film and TV actor, then every singer, then we looked at models and TV commercial talent, before arriving at the final selection of the Malaysian actors you see in the film. But Bustal Nawawi, the film's executive producer, still hadn't found the right girl for Ipah, the Malay Kampung Girl from Johor who finds Hadi (Deddy Mizwar) washed up on the shore and saves him and later they get married and she discovers he had a wife in Indonesia (Christine Hakim). Anyway. He finally said, "You audition." And I said NO. I said I didn't want to be an actor. I'd done like one Malaysian film once and I was NOT impressed and I said to myself that acting was SO not for me. Firstly, filming was stretched over 2 long years, it was ridiculous. I didn't like the way actors weren't allowed to have any opinion, and were just TOLD to do this, move like that, say it like THIS, feel like THAT. Stuff this, I said. I wanna do what I want to do. But I wouldn't mind being the gal who calls the shots. Who moves and shakes the business, who shapes the projects, who makes things happen. I wouldn't mind being the producer.

Anyway. Pak Bustal knew that I was on my "I wanna-be-an-entrepreneur" trip then, and he said to me, "OK I'll make you a deal. You audition, and if you're right for the role, I promise you I will personally teach you the business of film-making. I'll teach you to become a PRODUCER." B-I-N-G-O. That's really the story of how I started out. Sign up for 4 Indonesian films, I'll teach you the business. Done deal.

And man, look where all that has led me today. "Champion of The Arts", eh? That's a SUPER way to kick off 2011. Thanks very much Dennis. I'm all fired up, and I ain't gonna be hangin' up my cape for a long, long time. The year has only just begun.



Sunday, January 16, 2011, 08.17 PM

THEN AND NOW: Champion of the arts

2011/01/15

By Dennis Chua

Tiara then...and now

DATIN SERI TIARA JACQUELINA

THE name Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina is synonymous with the acclaimed musicals Puteri Gunung Ledang and P. Ramlee, both staged at Istana Budaya, Kuala Lumpur, over the last decade.

From a model, dancer and actress, she has worked hard to become a champion of the arts.

During her schooldays, she was active in theatre and had appeared in many print and television advertisements, most notably Hazeline Snow. This ad, which used American pop star Cyndi Lauper’s award-winning song Time After Time as background music, had Tiara running on the beach with a white horse.

Tiara later hosted talk shows on RTM such as Selamat Pagi Malaysia.

In 1995, she appeared in popular director Datuk Paduka Shuhaimi Baba’s acclaimed film Ringgit Kasorrga with Hans Isaac. The role earned her Best Actress at the 12th Malaysian Film Festival.

She also starred in the Hollywood film Beyond Rangoon with Oscar-winning actress Frances McDormand.

She produced Puteri Gunung Ledang The Movie in 2004 and starred as the title character, alongside M. Nasir (as Malay warrior Hang Tuah) and Adlin Aman Ramlie (as Sultan Mahmud Shah 1 of Malacca).

She produced Puteri Gunung Ledang The Musical a year later, with British-Malaysian actor Stephen Rahman-Hughes taking over Nasir’s role.

P. Ramlee The Musical won six awards at the Boh Cameronian Arts Awards 2007. It also marked pop queen Datuk Siti Nurhaliza’s musical theatre debut.

In 2009, Tiara became the first female principal of Astro’s popular reality talent show Akademi Fantasia’s seventh season.

Last year, she became Malaysia’s adviser for the performing arts section of the new Guide To Malaysia. The book, in its eighth edition, is published by Leisure Guide Publishing.

Tiara, a mother of two, is managing director of Enfiniti Productions, which produces musicals, films and television programmes. Her dream is to set up an academy for the performing arts that caters to all Malaysians with talent.

Read more: THEN AND NOW: Champion of the arts http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/THENANDNOW_Championofthearts/Article/#ixzz1BCUoAP5

Pushing our Malaysian Brand (from Star e-browse)

One of my wonderful fans sent me this through FB, a much more exciting look at the actual article itself. I thought I'd post this here for the record, and for posterity. Thank you Zazu Azan ;-)

Interview with 16-year old Anesha G. Kumar for NST's Niexter

Victoria from my office emailed me a request from NST's Niexter desk, for me to give an interview to a 16-year old. I have always liked the idea of kids learning and seeing the world from different perspectives, and I definitely welcomed the idea of engaging with the younger generations to see what exactly they might find interesting about "my world". Here's the article Anesha wrote, and a photo of her and me before I changed into a slightly more traditional gear to attend NSTP's Open House right after that. (Thanks a million Anesha, I really enjoyed our chat last week!)

Tiara for a Princess

2010/10/06
Anesha G. Kumar, 16, Petaling Jaya, Selangor

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WHEN I stepped into the room, I prepared myself for a more than an interesting interview with Tiara Jacquelina, who was Gusti Putri in 4 sold-out seasons of Puteri Gunung Ledang, The Musical including one in Singapore. I must admit I was a teensy bit nervous meeting someone like her, well-known for her fame in both the film and musical. But the moment she stepped into the room, she brought warmth and a sense of ease with her dazzling smile. It was overwhelmingly awesome!

Putting aside her unique and beautiful Burmese-Indonesian-Chinese looks, her down-to-earth personality was what shone the brightest. Now, it’s easy to understand why she stands out in the crowd, with a colourful aura surrounding her.

Tiara’s passion in the arts started during her schooling days. She was always so active as a producer, director, choreographer, dancer, singer, actor in the school annual musical productions, concerts and the cheerleading team that she said it’s a wonder she managed to get decent grades!

“We went to other schools including our rivals, promoting our plays. I spoke to the students before their class,” says Tiara who got her early education at SMK St. Mary.

“You can see how my formative years at school have definitely led me here. Students were always encouraged to explore and develop their creativity and leadership skills out of the classroom. We had a fantastic bunch of very supportive teachers, who believed that creative and artistic development of a child was just as important as scoring 17 A1s.”

Even being the captain of her cheerleading squad in school has helped build her to be who she is today. Tiara says, “Cheerleading is great. It’s all about encouraging that person across the finish line, motivating them all the way.

And in the end, it’s not only that person who is happy but the whole sports house shares the joy. She applies that same concept even today in her life.

She was very sure about one thing right from the onset in her career-to lead every project she undertook. In her mind, she had a clear idea of the outcome of every project and she could only achieve this if she was in the driver’s seat.

As a college student in KDU she started her first venture as an entrepreneur by setting up one of the country’s first talent casting and management agencies, then called Jacquie Eu Productions, with her best friend and college mate Jennifer Ong. They discovered talents like Sofia Jane, Linda Hashim, Sasha Bashir, Nasha Aziz, Maria Faridah, even Meer Habib, as well as many others, during this time.

In 1987, her agency was approached by Bustal Nawawi, Indonesia’s most well-respected film producer, to cast Malaysian actors for the first Malaysia-Indonesia joint venture movie called Irisan-irisan Hati. They auditioned everybody in the business – actors, models, singers, even TV newscasters, but the producer wasn’t happy.

“He finally asked me to audition, and I did so quite reluctantly. He apparently liked what he saw and offered me the role, but I turned him down, saying I had no intention of being an actor, that I was happier to run a business.

He then promised me that if I signed on to do four films under his company, he would teach me the business of film production as well. That did it for me – the chance to learn from the best, first hand as well. I signed on and never looked back as an actor and producer”, says Tiara.

Tiara Jacquelina was also the soulful voice behind the hit song Asmaradana from the soundtrack of Puteri Gunung Ledang. Tiara says she had always wanted to change the music landscape in Malaysia and so they tried out a more ethnic fusion. They also experimented a lot with dance form to add more funk but still keep its traditional vibe to it.

She is also a diligent (producer). She’s always on the go and wants to explore what has never been done before. She saw the opportunity for a magical story in Puteri Gunung Ledang, and even while the movie was being filmed, the version had its own parallel journey. “There wasn’t an industry as such when we first announced we wanted to put a musical version of PGL on stage”.

“To be quite honest, it seemed like the odds were dead against us – we couldn’t find performers who could act, sing AND dance, nobody had the experience to put on a large-scale production, but most worrying of all was that nobody went to the theatre in Malaysia – people didn’t even know WHERE Istana Budaya was, or that we even have one,” she says.

According to Tiara, her favourite aspect of being a part of a musical would definitely be the magic of being able to share it with the audience. “It’s an experience that money can’t buy,” she says. “You always know the applause or standing ovation at the end of it all is genuine because it comes from the heart of the audience.”

As for advice for aspiring musical actors, Tiara says that you always have to be prepared mentally and physically because nothing is going to be easy. She says, “I had to sing day and night as well as learn how to dance for the Puteri Gunung Ledang role”.

Tiara Jacquelina who is also the managing director of Enfiniti Vision Media, says that in her eyes, working with young and dynamic people is always important as you need people around you to be hungry for work. “Having the right spirit and personality is important,“ she says.

From experience, coming into the entertainment business cold, she is currently working on a variety of short courses catering to all ages; children, youths and working adults through Enfiniti Academy.

“We hope to nurture the talents early in children and youths but we also understand that there are many out there holding stable jobs and yet have a stifled love for musical theatre. Our courses will allow them to juggle their passion and responsibilities. In fact, some corporate seminars will teach them how to get the best of both worlds by incorporating musical theatre theories into their everyday lives,” she says.

And of course, I couldn’t leave without finding out her favourite musical of all time. “Oh, Miss Saigon of course, that’s my favourite,” she says with a huge smile sprawled across her face. “When I saw Lea Salonga on stage, I said, ‘If she can do it, I can do it too!’,” she says. She also admires Andrew Lloyd Webber because “he’s a genius” and I couldn’t help but agree.

I must say now that I have been very fortunate to have met someone like Tiara, who has been gracing the stage for years with her vibrant persona. To sum her up in a word would be hard because words cannot define what an amazing and remarkable individual she is. All I can say is that she is definitely a ‘Puteri’ of the musical scene.

Her last words, “Think big, think (like) Obama! Do what you’ve never dreamt of. You have to lead to determine the outcome, be it in life or in a performance”.

Read more: Tiara for a Princess http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/TiaraforaPrincess/Article/#ixzz11enH4etF

NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE, AND IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING!

I received an SMS from a friend of mine, Amhari Effendi Nasruddin saying his sister in law wanted to interview me for a school project. Thought I’d share this on my blog with everyone cos some of the thoughts I expressed are very current especially in my current “transformasi” mode. Tell me what you all think:

Dear Datin Sri Tiara,

My name is Fatin Farhanah bt Mohd Hanif (Hanah) 21, studying Diploma in Mass Communication in KDU. I was made to understand from Amhari that this is the best way to get an interview since you just came back from overseas and having a hectic schedule.

I feel very honuored to get this interview. Attach is the interview questions for my Feature Story Assignment for "News Writing & Reporting for Print Media" class. My lecturer's name is Rubin Khoo. I think you might know him. He used to write for The Star now he's got his own magazine - August.

I will be absolutely delighted if I can get a photo of you from your reply for my interview and better still if I can meet you at a point just for 30 seconds to have a photo with you - if time permits by Thursday.

My syabas to Datin Sri for a great theatre. Thank you for allowing me to have this interview. I am so proud to have an ex-KDU student at such heights. My best wishes to you.

Thanks heaps & Salam,
.Hanah.


1. Datin Sri, you once studied in KDU. Did you enjoy your time studying there and what did you remember most about KDU and the surrounding area?

I liked the fact that it was a potpourri of different cultures at KDU. We had kids from all over the country as well as international students, so it was a nice "world community" feeling back then. I thrive in surroundings like this and every day was an interesting discovery for me!

2. At the time you were in KDU, did you think that you'd be in the theatre world and making it this far?

I was already very ambitious even back then, and had started my first venture as an entrepreneur whilst I was at KDU. I set up one of the first talent casting agencies in Malaysia, and discovered talents like Sofia Jane, Maria Faridah, even Meer Habib, as well as many others, during this time. I was also very active in the concerts and plays and pageants-performing, choreographing, directing, producing... and i would give everything a go for sure. I hadn't any clue it would take me this far but that was where I dreamed my first dreams!

3. You must have had some mixed feelings on the last day of PGL 3 recently. How did you feel exactly the moment the final curtain call of the 3rd season of the PGL the Musical was called?

It was the most painful moment of my life, like having to amputate a part of me! What made it a beautiful and memorable experience for me was the love from the audience who was there that night to join me on my final moment up the mountain, that, I will never forget.

4. How would you describe the development and standard of Performing Arts as a whole in this country?

My honest opinion is that we have a lot to catch up on, compared to our other Asian counterparts. That's a fact we all have to wake up to, and face up to, before we can go any further. I'm really excited by the opportunity presented to me to head Akademi Fantasia in their quest for a "transformation" in season 7 because I have an opportunity to hopefully change the mindset of not only the AF7 students but the thinking of the movers and shakers in the Malaysian entertainment industry and the millions of TV viewers who tune in every night tp watch AF. We need to get out of a "GOOD ENOUGH FOR MALAYSIA" mentality and think of COMPETING WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD. This is the only way Malaysia will ever be relevant, for people to take any notice of us. We need to hit like a TIDAL WAVE to make any sort of impact and to tell the world we even exist.


5. What would you advise youngsters or anyone for that matter who has the interest and passion for Performing Arts?

Always start with a Big Hairy Audacious Goal! I set very high, almost ridiculous goals for myself every time I venture into something new, and people who work with me know this. Its the only way you can ever achieve something beyond what's available in the market, and way beyond anything you would have been able to achieve in the past. We have to get OUT of a "mediocre" mode - like the Malay saying goes, "Mati Segan, Hidup Tak Mahu". We can't afford to be an "also ran" in any competition - Malaysia must start to be recognised for producing ICONS - we need more Lee Chong Weis and Nicol Davids so people KNOW that Malaysia is a force to be reckoned with and we're here to play, and here to stay. Your mantra should be, stop at nothing to make that goal happen. Once you're there, keep working hard to continuously stay on top of your game, stay relevant, current, stay determined and most of all, stay focused.

6. Datin Sri, you seem to have reached milestones that very very few have achieved. Nevertheless, where do you see yourself in 10 years time?

I hope to have set up a Performing Arts Academy of my own, where all the best talents and icons in our country will graduate from. My graduates will be industry leaders, movers and shakers, and will make waves on the world stage. How's that for a hairy scary goal?

7. I understand that you lead a very positive and balanced life. What are your latest indulgences and hobby during your free time?

I spend a lot of my free time with my kids, and we discuss everything from how to make paper guns to the latest transformers to the latest pop songs and movies. We travel a lot together, watch movies, paint, indulge in sports like tennis, horse-riding, golf, cycling. I learn so much about life through the innocent eyes and hearts of my kids.


8. You come from a background of experiencing various cultures. What's your favourite food and how does this relate to your cafe in Sunway?

well, I think I AM one of the best living examples of someone whose own BACKGROUND is a mixture of various cultures, so my list of favorite food probably reflects this - from Laksa Sarawak to Laksam to Chilli Crabs to a Nyonya dish caled Joo Hoo Char... The first thing i did when i set up BORNEO RAINFOREST @ SUNWAY is to make sure I could share all my favorite dishes with everyone. Everyone else who loves yummy food and want to have a good time in a fun, relaxed surrounding, that is. Good food, good live music, under the stars... how's that for a sell? Ha Ha.


9. As a very busy person, you must have a favourite location to chill. Where do you think is the best hang out place?

What would you think my answer would be? Ha ha. When I want to relax and "let my hair down", I love watching the live band pay at Borneo Rainforest. Nothing like live music to lift your spirits. That's my idea of a great chill out.


10. Many people say that you have brought theatre to new heights and some already say you are an icon. If you could say anything, to anyone out there, what would it be?

It's never easy trying to be the one to raise the bar in any industry, you will face resistance from people who are used to doing things a cerain way for donkeys years, as well as the skeptics who watch from the stands and make all sorts of very senseless comments, people who and have never spent a day on the field themselves. But I've learnt that hard work and dedication pays off, and I've learned that things can only change if you have strong leadership and if you have a definite war-plan and a motivated team. Nothing is impossible and impossible is nothing.