On March 11, 2024, the Hong Kong International Film and TV Market opened with grandeur. At this significant moment, Alibaba’s Entertainment division announced the exciting “Hong Kong Arts Revitalization Plan”. The plan claims that in the next five years, at least 5 billion Hong Kong dollars will be invested in Hong Kong, focusing on key areas such as TV series, movies, performances, and the nurturing of young talent. In addition, Alibaba Pictures revealed information about a series of upcoming high-quality Hong Kong-produced films and announced the establishment of its second headquarters in Hong Kong.
With Youku boldly announcing the much-anticipated “Media Queen 2” among a line-up of heavyweight series, this collection of film and television announcements has attracted widespread attention. Once the news of the series was officially declared, it quickly climbed the social media trending charts, sparking widespread discussions and expectations.
The previous season of “Media Queen” brought everyone an array of exciting high-quality Hong Kong drama experiences that had been long missed. The original story concept for this successful work originated 20 years ago when supervising producer Cheung Sui-ka, in his creative research, discovered that society’s recognition of women’s capabilities was insufficient. Yet today, many important institutions and company executive positions in Hong Kong are held by women.
Cheung Sui-ka believes that there should be no difference for women to hold any position; if there must be a difference, “it might be that women encounter more hardships and difficulties because they often face unfair treatment in society.” This reality also became the starting point for his storytelling.
When creating characters, Cheung Sui-ka tends to integrate the actor’s own temperament into them. Charmaine Sheh, and her character Man Wai-sum in “Media Queen”, is a prime example. “Without Charmaine Sheh, there would be no ‘Media Queen’.” He believes that Sheh’s personal experiences, acting skills, image, and dedication to work made her the perfect fit. She portrayed a Man Wai-sum who appears to be indifferent and charismatic, yet warm at heart.
In addition to experienced actors like Charmaine Sheh, Kenneth Ma, Eliza Sam, the new season of “Media Queen” will also feature new-generation actors such as Venus Wong, Hera Chan, Kaman Kong, Karl Ting, and Jessica Kan, injecting fresh blood into the series. TVB had once faced issues with uncomfortable transitions between generations and a lack of innovation. However, “Media Queen”, with its brand new look, has now won both popularity and critical acclaim, reigniting the audience’s love for classic TVB dramas.
However, restoring TVB’s former glory is no easy task. Only by continually rolling out high-quality works can the audience’s trust and support for TVB productions be rebuilt.
