Vicki Zhao - China's Multi-Talented Starlet

Zhao Wei, also known as Vicki Zhao, is one of China's brightest young stars. The thirty-year-old singer has starred in numerous movies and recorded six solo albums. The winner of all the most coveted awards of the industry in her home country is now looking for her big break on the international movie scene.

Zhao was born and raised in Wuhu, in the Anhui Province of China but studied in Beijing. The daughter of an appliance designer and a teacher was taught the importance of getting an education and in 2000, Zhao graduated from the Faculty of Acting of the Beijing Film Academy. While Zhao was still studying, she took on the television role of Little Swallow in a series called Princess Pearl, which later won her the award for Best Actress.

Glorious career

In 1999, Vicki Zhao won the Golden Eagle Awards (Mainland China's Emmy) for Best Actress for her performance on the series Princess Pearl. With this accomplishment she also made her mark as the youngest actress ever to receive that honor. The same year, Zhao also made her debut in the music industry and released her first album titled "Swallow."

Zhao also continued her acting career starring in a number of successful television series and movies. In 2004, she won the award for the Most Popular Actress at the 11th Beijing Student Film Festival for her performance in the movie "Warriors of Heaven and Earth," even though she only had a 25-line dialog in the entire movie.

2005 proved to be a successful year for Zhao after she won the Best Actress award at the Shanghai International Film Festival and the Huabiao Award (highest governmental award in the film industry). Both were for her performance in "A Time to Love." At the same time she was ranked number 4 on Forbes' 2005 List of Top Chinese Celebrities. Her music career has been highlighted by her victories at the Channel V Chinese Music Award in 2006 for Most Popular Female Artist and Most Popular Music Video for her music video "Shangguan Yan and I."

The four albums that Zhao Wei released in 1999 and 2000, sold a total of more than 3,700,000 copies in Asia within two years. In November 2004, her new album "Piao" sold more than 300,000 copies in only 10 days in mainland China. Her sixth album, "Double," broke "Piaos'" record release in July 2005.

Behind the mask

In an interview with Time Asia, Zhao confesses to having thought she could never become an actress because, in her opinion, they were supposed to be extraordinarily beautiful and she found herself to be "just" ordinary. No matter how Vicki Zhao defines herself, her down-to-earth personality, undeniable beauty and irresistible charm make her appealing to a wide audience.

For her entrance exam into the Beijing Film Academy, Zhao played the role of a customer who is treated rudely upon returning goods to a store. Zhao burst into tears and was actually praised for it because, according to her, being able to cry at any time is considered a rare skill.

Zhao studied under the famous director Xie Jin, who cast her in his movie "Penitentiary Angel," in which Zhao's performance, in her own words, left something to be desired. After this Zhao was cast as Little Swallow in the television series Princess Pearl. Zhao reveals that working on the show was very hard with film session around the clock. Looking back Zhao feels that she was being worked too hard, but being young, she did not revolt.

After receiving recognition for her performance as Little Swallow, Zhao thought that she had gone career-wise as far as she could on Chinese television. The young actress went to work in Hong Kong.

One movie later the comedy, "Shaolin Soccer" (2001), catapulted her to the international screens. Zhao recalls the director Stephen Crow told her to play down her physical charm and be subdued. It was a good schooling for someone already a pro in front of the camera. Through that experience Zhao adopted a new kind of attitude towards the camera - "It was like falling in love," she told Time Asia.

Zhao also knows how to shock. In 2001, the audiences were stunned to see her parade in a dress with a pattern that resembled a Japanese battle flag from World War II. An offended construction worker whose parents had been killed during Japan's occupation of China attacked her after a concert and smeared her with feces. A painful subject, Zhao says that she knows what she did was wrong.

Luckily the public forgave her and Zhao has since been seen as one of three beauties jumping from cars making daring stunts in the movie "So Close" and as a policewoman in "Jade Goddess." In 2003, she starred in "Warriors of Heaven and Earth" and "Green Tea."

Zhao has also taken the time to take part in good causes. In 2004, Zhao participated in a charity walkathon promoting education and raising money for building schools. The route followed the footsteps of the Chinese Red Army's Long March of the late 1930s.

According to unverified information, Zhao will next star opposite Jet Li in a movie based on the video game Tekken.

Bright future

Zhao is a versatile actress mastering several genres ranging from melodrama to comedy. The ability to conform and mutate is a skill that not that many have. Zhao herself says that maybe her lack of outstanding personal characteristics is what enables her to assume the traits of different movie characters.

To date, Zhao has starred in over twenty television and movie productions. In March, 2006, she appeared in the fashion magazine, Harper's Bazaar. Just a month earlier she posed as a "Classic Beauty" in Cosmogirl, posing in a 1940's look. In 2006, she was also given the honorable mention of being one of the "100 Most Beautiful People" in the May 8th issue of People Magazine. This year she also won the award for Most Popular Mainland China Singer at the MTV Asia Awards. The awards and nominations to her name are countless...

Zhao remains one of the most successful entertainers of her time. Remains to be seen at what point the international movie audiences will take notice and fall head over heels for this the almond-eyed chameleon, for whom only the sky seems to be the limit.

More information: http://vicki-zhao.com/home.php?x=films.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhao_Wei