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Drug busts nab Zhang Yuan, Wu LalaPosted by Joel Martinsen on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 9:13 AM
This COPS-style video of a drug bust aired on Beijing TV yesterday: The program follows police to Keypoint & Cinerent Studio, where they arrest cinematographer Xie Zhengyu (Missing Gun) and Wu Gang. Wu, also known as Wu Lala, has done the sound work for a number of well-known films including Beijing Bastards and Not One Less. Then the police raid the home of Zhang Yuan, director of Little Red Flowers, Green Tea, and Beijing Bastards, where they arrest Zhang and artist Mi Qiu on suspicion of using ice and ketamine. They were acting on a tip provided by one of the people they arrested at Keypoint; a Modern Express article identified the tipster as Wu Lala but then absolved him:
The paper dutifully reproduced some of those "stories," citing anonymous sources. It also sought reactions from people who had worked with Zhang Yuan in the past, like Wang Shuo ("I'm not the one being arrested. What are you asking me for?") and Vicki Zhao ("I can't talk right now"). Keypoint & Cinerent Studio issued a statement distancing the company from the situation: the drug bust occurred in Wu Lala's personal studio, not on company property; the people with him were personal friends, not Keypoint employees; the sound on A World Without Thieves and Assembly (which were mentioned in the TV report) was done by Wang Dan, who doesn't use drugs. Links and Sources
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Comments on Drug busts nab Zhang Yuan, Wu Lala
Do not use drug at home, Big Brother is watching you!
More like younger brother is calling the cops...
busting artists is and should be a priority for beijing authorities--you know, since there's nothing more dangerous to social stability than the recreational drug use of a handful of filmmakers.
a suggestion for zhang yuan's *next* film? a documentary on the 4th, 5th, and 6th amendments to the u.s. constitution.
Several media reports (and I believe this is stated at the end of the exciting TV report above) have stated that this bust was meant to show that in the run up to the Olympics no drug use will not be tolerated, not matter how many European film awards you've taken home.
(Frankly, I would assume there must be some other motivation involved. I seriously doubt anyone is worried about drug use. I think the point is to encourage "good behavior" in general on the part of artists and media-makers.)
But, in any case, I think the explicit message is clear:
During the Olympics, no effort will be spared to divert precious public security resources to snuff out drug-users quietly doing dope at home. Under no circumstances will the Olympic Games be interrupted by the distant "bad vibes" of artists getting high in their own homes at four in the morning.
No-one likes a grass. Stop snitchin', Beijing.
哥们儿们，Olympic 要严打啦， 能闪的快闪！！！逃呀！！别玩儿啦.
云南见。。。
K LOL. My nose itches.
Soooo busted.
later when Zhang Yuan was interviewed, he still didnt think he was that wrong and he said when he did the dope at home, he can feel that can give more inspirations to his work.
No it doesn't. It kills brain cells. Destroys your life completely. Drugs are evil! Keep humans away from these evil substances. This is a proven fact. Thousands of years of human history has shown us this. Just say no! Say NO!
The government needs to execute this guys immediately. For the good of the Olympics, we must make sacrifices.
holy shit man, it's THAT GUY! He came in the beijing scene office one time and I thought it was a scene out of Eraserhead! Man that sucks for those guys, too bad they got it on BTV, otherwise they could just pay the cops a few hundred thousand rmb and go eat yangrouchuanr the next morning. The music scene has had much worse, Dou Wei and all those early guys in early-90's were in deep trouble the heroin, constantly getting scooped out of jail.
Well, texasdave, things didn't turn much different from what you described: the media made a reasonably big story of Zhang's trip to a karaoke bar the following week when he was let out of detention.
"No it doesn't. It kills brain cells. Destroys your life completely. Drugs are evil! Keep humans away from these evil substances. This is a proven fact. Thousands of years of human history has shown us this. Just say no! Say NO!
The government needs to execute this guys immediately. For the good of the Olympics, we must make sacrifices."---ARLIGHT
Sure is kills braincells BUT some great music was composed, films shot, and books written while people were under the influence of narcotics...call me cynical but you will never full eliminate the problem so tax it and make some money at the very least.
As for your comment to execute these violation...all I have to say is, "WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!???????????????????"