Jump for joy - J-Team sign 5-year contract

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"The air-conditioning in our office has been quite cold recently," remarked Mark Lee, star pupil of Jack Neo in J-Team (a.k.a Liang Jia Ban). And indeed, 2 weeks ago, the press had quite a heyday with the departure of some well-known faces in the Entertainment Productions Unit. But, from August 30, 2000, things are going to be different because in a press conference held on the same day, Jack Neo has declared that the J-team (who have been with MediaCorp Studios for 10 long years) are here to stay (Phew, that means I will still get to watch my favourite Comedy Night.)!

< Eastciti.com, August 31 > "In the last 2 months, everyone has been in the state of chi bu xia, la bu chu (having no appetite to eat and at the same time, having constipation). We used to be such a bunch of happy people… cracking jokes and telling stories as we work. But now, everyone has been feeling rather low and everyone is very uneasy and sometime even fake. Sometimes we would meet each other and stare and each other and wonder, "Will you be leaving too?" and I really didn't like that feeling," says Jack Neo.

That probably summed up the feelings of many of the Entertainment Production colleagues that were also present at the press conference held yesterday to announce the collaborative 5-year contract between Media Corp Studios and the J-Team, Jack's own group of star comedians.

Part Of MediaCorp Studios Family

"I am very happy that I can work with them. MediaCorp Studios was very sincere," says Jack, who had taken a long time to hold group discussions, make analysis and deductions before making this huge decision that will deeply affect the rest of the J-Team. "The conditions were really good and they had very clear objectives. We could actually see where we would be going after the 5 years.

And yes, the conditions the MediaCorp Studios offered were indeed enticing. Other than offering to give the J-team a free rein to train its own spot new talents, artistes, production crew and scriptwriters, the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding by both parties will also mean that the J-Team will get to produce and air an hour worth of 'live' entertainment every week. On top of that, MediaCorp Studios will also give the go-ahead and the support for the J-Team to produce sitcoms and even movies (at least 1 a year in collaboration with Raintree Pictures). And the last we heard, there are even plans for the team to go regional!

Says Jack, "We have always dreamed of going overseas and we are glad because MediaCorp Studios' plans coincides with ours. Finally, we can fulfill our dreams and on top of that, we get to become part of the MediaCorp Studios Family."

What The Rest Of The J-Team Think
"I am very excited that we are able to work together again," says Mark Lee. And while he claims to have left the decision to his master, the master tells us that his disciple has offered a lot of constructive feedback and views.

"Actually, I am really glad that my teacher decided to stay because as everyone knows, Comedy Night was my first foray into entertainment performances. If we had decided to leave, I would not have been able to bear to leaving Comedy Night," adds Mark who says that their office has gotten rather cold recently due to all the departures. "But I am glad a lot of our fellow colleagues are still sticking around and working together with us."

Ask Patricia Mok and Henry Thia what they think and they are likely to tell you that they are very happy about this decision. Says Patricia seriously (for once), "I am really happy because I get to stay in Comedy Night. Recently, there have been rumours that I was some top model in a particular agency. But I want everyone to know that that is not true! I am a Comedy Night actress, not a model."

If you are interested in becoming part of the J-Team, send in your applications with a recent photo (no make over photos please!) to the following address or call the following number for more details:
J Team Productions Pte Ltd
Tampines Central Post Office
P.O. Box 50
Singapore 915202

Tel: 348-7533 (for enquiries pertaining to recruitment of performing artistes) or 348-3519 (for enquiries pertaining to the recruitment of production crew like producers, assistant producers, scriptwriters, co-ordinators and schedulers.)

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Watch the going ons of the Press Conference here!

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Jack Neo Interview
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Mark Lee Interview
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Patricia Mok Interview
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