Giddens Ko

Giddens Ko

Ko in 2008
Native name 柯景騰
Born 25 August 1978
Changhua County, Taiwan
Pen name Jiubadao (九把刀)
Occupation writer and film director
Language Chinese
Nationality TaiwanTaiwan
Citizenship TaiwanTaiwan
Education Bachelor of Management Studies, Master of Social Science
Alma mater National Chiao Tung University
Tunghai University
Genres horror, science fiction, romance
Notable works You Are the Apple of My Eye, Café. Waiting. Love
Years active 1999–present
Partner Hsiao-nei[1]
Website
www.giddens.tw/blog

Giddens Ko (simplified Chinese: 柯景腾; traditional Chinese: 柯景騰; pinyin: Kē Jǐngténg), is a Taiwanese writer and director born on 25 August 1978 in Changhua County, Taiwan.[2] He earned his Bachelor of Science in Management from National Chiao Tung University[3] and Master of Social Science from Tunghai University. Since he published his first book online, Ko has completed around 60 books, many of which have been adapted as films.[4] He writes under the pseudonym of "Jiubadao" (九把刀), which means "nine knives".[5]

Biography

Ko grew up as the second of three sons in Changhua, where his parents own a pharmacy.[6] Ko discovered his love of writing when he penned a story as part of his university application.[3][7] He started writing fiction in 1999, and posted most of his first works on the Internet.[6] Ko struggled through the first five years of his writing career, before branching out into multiple genres, namely horror, science fiction, and romance.[8] He writes 5000 words daily, and at his peak writing pace published one book per month for 14 consecutive months.[7] This set of work helped Ko's popularity rise in Taiwan.[8] Ko has compared himself favorably to Louis Cha, Gu Long, and Ni Kuang.[6]

In 2008, Ko directed the film "LOVE", along with Vincent Fang, Chen Yi-xian and Huang Zijiao.[3][6] In 2010, Ko directed the film "You Are the Apple of My Eye",[8] based off his book The Girl We Chased Together in Those Years.[6][9] In 2011, Ko adapted his "Killer" series[10] into the film "The Killer Who Never Kills".[7][11] He produced a documentary focusing on Taiwan's animal shelters in 2012, titled Twelve Nights.[12][13] In 2014, another of Ko's books was adapted into the film Café. Waiting. Love.[14][15] The film adaptation of another of Ko's books, Kung Fu, was originally set to be released in 2014,[16][17] but its release date was pushed back to 2015.[18]

In 2012, Ko notified Apple Inc. that some approved applications on the company's iOS platform were accessing pirated versions of his books. Apple initially refused to pull the apps, as the company was unsure about Ko's publisher having proper authorization to contact them.[19] Ko traveled to Hong Kong to file a complaint in person before the matter was resolved with the removal of the apps.[20] On October 9, 2012, Ko was chosen as one of "Ten Outstanding Young People of Taiwan" by the Junior Chamber International Taiwan.[21]

In October 2014 it was reported that Beijing had ordered works by Ko removed from shelves.[22][23] A few weeks previously, Ko had shaved his head to show solidarity for Occupy Central with Love and Peace, the organization that started the 2014 Hong Kong protests.[22][24] In the same month, Ko admitted cheating his girlfriend of nine years with a television reporter.[25][26]

Pen name

"Jiubadao" was originally a song written by Ko as a senior high school student.[6][8] The song's title stuck as a nickname when a tutor spotted students passing notes signed by Jiubadao and asked who he was. Classmates revealed Jiubadao to be Ko and he used the nickname as a pseudonym after graduating college.[27]

References

  1. ↑ "Director Giddens Ko admits cheating on girlfriend with TV reporter, refuses to apologise to public". The Straits Times. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014. (subscription required (help)).
  2. ↑ 九把刀到底有哪些經典作品呢？ (in Chinese). SET News. 1 October 2014. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Chung, Vanessa (9 October 2011). "Apple of his eye". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  4. ↑ Timm, Leo (13 October 2014). "Leading Sinologist Comments on Hong Kong Protests, Chinese Regime Censors Him". Epoch Times. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  5. ↑ Fang, Joy (22 November 2011). "Success a miracle, says director Ko". AsiaOne. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Han Qian; Phill Newell (January 2012). "Giddens Ko: This Ain’t No Foolin’ Around". Taiwan Panorama. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Hollywood studio buys the rights to Giddens Ko story". Taipei Times. 13 February 2011. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Napolitano, Dean (28 August 2011). "The Talents of Giddens Ko". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  9. ↑ Zhang Chan (13 December 2011). "Taiwanese author shocks critics with successful film". ecns.cn. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  10. ↑ Chen, Christie (25 August 2014). "Giddens Ko's new film to hit theaters in Malaysia, Singapore". Central News Agency. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  11. ↑ Napolitano, Dean (14 November 2011). "Giddens Ko ‘Speechless’ When It Comes to ‘Apple’". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  12. ↑ Hsu, Jenny W. (13 December 2013). "Film Triggers Debate on Plight of Taiwan’s Homeless Dogs". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  13. ↑ Chen, Wei-tsung; Chou, Nien-chu; Pan, Jason (22 December 2013). "Documentary gives viewers wrong impression, animal shelter staff say". Taipei Times. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  14. ↑ Chan, Boon (5 September 2014). "Cafe.Waiting.Love is a brew of appealing fresh faces and a fantastical story". The Straits Times. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  15. ↑ Chen, Christie (23 August 2014). "Giddens Ko's new film soars at box office". Central News Agency. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  16. ↑ Shakleton, Liz (10 April 2013). "FIP to produce Giddens Ko’s Kung Fu". Screen International. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  17. ↑ Tsui, Clarence (10 April 2013). "Fox International Productions Backs Taiwanese Film ‘Kung Fu’". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  18. ↑ Hsia, Heidi (23 July 2014). "Giddens Ko's upcoming movie halts production". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  19. ↑ Muncaster, Phil (15 November 2012). "Apple staff call Taiwanese filmmaker an 'idiot'". The Register. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  20. ↑ "Jiubadao denies pursuing lawsuit over Apple apps". Taipei Times. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  21. ↑ "Giddens Ko is selected as one of "Ten Outstanding Young People of Taiwan"". Asia Pacific Arts. 11 October 2012.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Frater, Patrick (13 October 2014). "Giddens Ko Among Authors Banned by China in Hong Kong Political Reaction". Variety. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  23. ↑ Wang, Ching-yi; Chen, Christie (12 October 2014). "Books by Taiwanese writer allegedly banned by China". Central News Agency. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  24. ↑ Tai, Ya-chen; Chen, Christie; Wu, Lilian (14 October 2014). "Culture minister refrains from comment on China's ban on writers". Central News Agency. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  25. ↑ Lee, Hsin-Yin (22 October 2014). "Bestselling writer admits cheating on girlfriend". Central News Agency. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  26. ↑ "Giddens Ko admits to cheating on girlfriend". Channel News Asia. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  27. ↑ 九把刀《那些年》献给初恋女友 自曝现任女友吃醋 (in Chinese). Yanzhao Metropolis Daily. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2014.

External links

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