The Longbow Papers

Not being able to breathe is scary, folks. At the moment, I am able to do so relatively well due to a mixture of medicines and some pretty good doctoring. So what's the story, you ask?

A week ago, while shooting a TV series on location in a rather remote part of Hainan, we needed some visual effects for a riot scene. Easy enough--soak old tires in gasoline and set 'em ablaze! Looked great. Unfortunately, it also created some very toxic smoke, of which I somehow received the largest dose. That scene happened a week ago Friday.


For the last couple days of shooting, I spent my time in a hospital on oxygen and IV drips until I was needed on set, then I would go back to the hospital. It was not how I wanted to end the series and our week in beautiful Hainan Dao. But, we got it done.

I returned to Beijing early Wednesday morning and have been receiving treatment for toxic smoke poisoning at one of China's best hospitals. I will recover completely within three months, I am told. I have gone back to teaching because I could not miss any more classes with only six weeks to go in the semester.

The 20-episode series, titled, "China's Peacekeeping Police," will begin airing on CCTV 1 sometime in March, 5 nights a week for 4 weeks during "Golden Time," 8:00 p.m. While
the experience ended painfully, I am still thrilled and quite proud of being a part of it. I created a character very unlike myself--which is what an actor most wants to do. And keep breathing, of course.



Photographs by Ellen Sander

 

Links to this post:

<\$BlogBacklinkControl\$> <\$BlogBacklinkTitle\$> <\$BlogBacklinkDeleteIcon\$>

<\$BlogBacklinkSnippet\$>
posted by <\$BlogBacklinkAuthor\$> \@ <\$BlogBacklinkDateTime\$>

6 Comments:

I think it is really an interesting experience..isn't it
Shirley

By Anonymous, at 8:56 PM  

Dear Shirley,

It's great to hear from you! Yes, all of it was an interesting experience. I had forgotten how much I enjoy working on the other side of the camera.

All the best,

Joseph

By Joseph, at 12:05 PM  

Umm....OMG, I hope you really do manage to recover completely. As long as you feel the doctors are treating you properly I guess it'll be ok, but I'd recommend getting a second opinion if you're worried about anything. Sacrificing your health in the name of your art is...um...a very dedicated thing to do. I'll keep an eye out for the series in March, but I'm usually teaching in the evenings.
dishuiguanyin

By Anonymous, at 2:26 PM  

Hey Joseph, I just did a post on China's current Peacekeeping contributions. After I finished I saw this post, so I linked you up. The beret suits you.

By davesgonechina, at 10:23 AM  

Dear Dave,

Thanks for the link; I was just at your site. You are on top of China's UN Peacekeeping activity. Good work.

Yeah, I kind of liked the beret myself.

All the best,

Joseph

By Joseph, at 5:34 PM  

Joseph is amazingly handsome! lol~~~

By Renee, at 6:36 AM  

Post a Comment