PUBLISHED ONJanuary 02, 2024 6:52 AMByYeo Shu HuiFuelled by passion to tell a good story to her audience, singer-actress Celest Chong used to spend almost every waking hour remembering her lines during drama productions in the past.
"For three months, I only slept an hour at the most or half an hour sometimes," said Celest, who returned to Singapore in September after spending 13 years in Canada. She was speaking to actress-host Jernelle Oh, 29, in a recent episode of JustSwipeLah.
Celest added that when she was in a Hong Kong production in the past, she could film up to 18 scenes a day during the production period.
"I just kept memorising my lines, even while showering and getting my makeup done," she shared, adding that she did this so that she could start filming right away once she reached the set.
Jernelle was shocked by Celest's revelation and asked how she persevered through it.
Celest responded: "I don't know, when I was on set, I was full of energy."
Because of this experience, Celest also shared that she had learnt to conserve her energy in between scenes when she was not required to film.
"I can sleep anywhere. I can even sleep on the floor right there now," she said.
Celest, who debuted as a model when she was 14, got her first local TV role opposite Ix Shen in the 2001 drama, Light Up My Life.
She admitted that she was earning a lot more at the time from being a successful model than from acting.
"Actually the fees for filming this drama wasn't really a lot and it required a lot of work. But I maintained the mindset of wanting to tell this story well," shared Celest.
She was also asked if she prefers acting over modelling.
"They each have their own merits. Because being a model is also a feeling of creating art. I love creating different things and collaborating with everyone to make a good production," she shared.
They multi-hyphenate added that through her career, she has learned that enjoying the process of creating art is more important than the end result, which is unpredictable.
She also shared that she loves filming comedies because everyone is energised from the laughter generated on set.
"In a comedy, everyone is laughing like mad, so it's alright even if we don't sleep."
Celest added: "I think the most important thing in filming a comedy is the chemistry among the cast and the entire crew. If everyone's chemistry is very much in line, it will be very fun… I will never insist on not filming comedies."
Her dream role however, would be to play a "very good, very evil character", referencing Joaquin Phoenix's role in The Joker.
"I think it is much like human nature and there's more to work with."
Celest made her debut overseas appearance in Hong Kong TV drama Feel 100% in 2002 and was asked by Jernelle why she decided to take her career abroad then.
Celest said that the opportunity was given to her by her boss, who had faith in her.
"My boss thought that I could venture out at that time, and every time we filmed, I was the only person representing Singapore," she added.
However, this resulted in some provocation from the other actors while filming overseas.
"Some of them were like, 'Where did this person come from? Why did she suddenly become the lead actress?'" Celest said.
Despite that, Celest shared that she maintained her professionalism as she just wanted to do her job well as an actress and explained that the situation was usually "just a transition period".
"After a while, everyone was harmonious and became friends," she added.
Celest also shared news of a new album which she will be releasing this year. She added that it was produced by many talented producers including Omar Martinez, who had worked with Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande.
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