Popup Chinese

Things were starting to look ugly. While blockbuster films could still draw people to theaters, the rise of Youtube and Bittorrent had savaged the rest of the industry, destroying the rental income most studios relied upon to break even. And while the big studios had adjusted with ever more extravagant productions, the reality for most directors was less pretty. Unable to cast big name stars, smaller productions were forced into hiring cheaper and cheaper actors, to the point that the cast for this particular production resembled nothing so much as the extras from a George A. Romero flick. Learning Chinese? Our lesson today is an advanced listening test set at a video shoot. Your challenge is to listen to this fast and colloquial clip and try to figure out who is being filmed and why? If you think your Chinese is good enough to tease out the answers from our one-minute dialogue take a listen and see how you do on our accompanying quiz. These aren't easy questions, so if you get anything wrong consult our transcript to see what you missed. We think you might be surprised at the results.

What was it about his in-law's apartment that put Derek on edge? The kitchen was small but serviceable and the rest of the apartment didn't seem to lack any amenities: the living room had a television and pull-out sofabed, a wireless router provided steady Internet access, and a fridge and washing machine stood tucked into a tiny alcove near the door. At only fifty square meters it wasn't exactly a place he would choose to live himself, but why should even a short visit give him such a strange sense of unease?

In a China accustomed to glacial political change, Bo Xilai's dramatic fall from power this week has stunned observers nationwide. Joining us to help make sense of things is Guardian correspondent Tania Branigan, who helps review what exactly happened to the former Chongqing Party Secretary and once Politburo contender. Sinica then turns to a discussion of history, architecture and murder with fellow guest and soon-to-be-famous author Paul French, whose non-fiction murder mystery Midnight in Peking is set for a much broader international release next month. Want to keep up-to-date on all things China? Hosted by Kaiser Kuo and Jeremy Goldkorn, Sinica is a regular show covering everything from politics to literature. If you like what you hear, drop by every Friday to hear the latest episode. Alternately, subscribe to the show by RSS to have your computer download new episodes automatically as they're released. To do this just select "Subscribe to Podcast" from the Advanced file menu in iTunes and provide the url http://popupchinese.com/feeds/custom/sinica when prompted. [standalone mp3 download]

Given the recent death of Edward's solicitor and the mysterious disappearance of his wife, it seemed natural to suspect foul play in the millionaire's own untimely passing. But who could the culprit be? There were but five people on the island at the time of his death, and every one had an ironclad alibi, having gathered to dine not only with each other at the time of the murder, but with none other than Detective Wentworth Summers, the most reputable sleuth in all of Scotland Yard. Learning Chinese? Today we take a break from verb conjugation drills to present a murder mystery that piles up the bodies faster than Greek Tragedy, all the while operating under conditions of voice recording austerity that would satisfy even the International Monetary Fund. So take a listen, and see if you can guess the solution to our mystery before all is revealed. And let us know what you think in the comments section too: we like that.

Could the police crackdowns and online competition really be having such a deleterious effect on Shanghai's leading film shop? Whatever the cause, it was clear the quality of the merchandise at Movie World was regressing. As recently as the Shanghai Expo the store had managed to keep the latest releases consistently in stock. But now the shelves would stay empty for days on end, while the clerks showed almost complete indifference to the state of the selection. Learning Chinese? This elementary Chinese podcast is probably different from any other learning material you've come across before. Instead of coddling you with artificially slow mandarin, at Popup Chinese we feature native-level Chinese spoken exactly the way people speak it in China. Adjusting to real Chinese speech can be a bit tricky when you start, but it also makes for a much faster learning curve. So if you want to learn Chinese and are tired of methods which do not work, give us a listen. And if you have any questions? Feel free to write us anytime by email at service@popupchinese.com.

Sinica is coming out a bit earlier than usual this week: we were lucky enough to catch Jeffrey Wasserstrom this Monday during a well-timed visit to Beijing, and so dragged him into the studio to get his views on the recent elections at Wukan, what is happening in Beijing right now with the CPPCC, and also his more general thoughts on the way people tend to look into China's past when seeking a mirror for its present: what comparisons are actually useful or valid for this current period? For those unfamiliar with our guest this week, Jeffrey Wasserstrom is a professor of Chinese history at the University of California, Irvine, and the organizing force behind the excellent China blog The China Beat. Jeffrey is also the author of a number of popular books on China, including China’s Brave New World, Global Shanghai: 1850-2010 and China in the 21st Century. We enjoyed our chance to chat with him and hope you enjoy the show too. Like Sinica? If you'd like to subscribe automatically through iTunes, just select "Subscribe to Podcast" from the Advanced menu and provide the URL: http://popupchinese.com/feeds/custom/sinica. This will setup your computer to download new episodes of Sinica as soon as they're released. You can also download this show as a standalone mp3 file. And if you run into any trouble on either count, just send us an email at service@popupchinese.com.

Winter had arrived with unexpected vigor, and from his window overlooking People's Square, Roald could still see the scattered husks of several unfortunate souls who had failed to find shelter. This was the survival of the fittest at work - in Shanghai as in Antarctica - and yet the Norwegian explorer's narrow escape from a similar fate still haunted the man. For despite the high price of rental properties in Shanghai, his current accommodations were still inadequate for the coming chill, and his nerves persisted despite his landlord's repeated pledges to weatherize the compound. Learning Chinese? This is an advanced mandarin lesson featuring a lengthy Chinese diary from one of the lesser known Amundsen expeditions to Southern China, and capped-off by a discussion of something you won't hear about anywhere else: the traditional Chinese solar calendar, knowledge of which will allow you to come across as suffocatingly knowledgeable about Chinese culture at your next cocktail party.

We're not suggesting that the Lido hotel is evil in the same way as the Overlook from the Shining, but be informed that at least one of the bank machines in there is on the fritz, and withdrawing cash may involve a longer wait than is customary, with the exact length depending on how many technicians are needed to pry off the faceplate of the machine and dive into its innards in search of your American Express card. Learning Chinese? This is a pretty basic lesson all about various cards (bank cards, credit cards, telephone cards) and the various things they can get up to with and without your permission. This lesson is suitable for anyone with less than two months of Chinese study, and will cover some useful vocabulary and sentences for daily life in China. We hope you like it, and please let us know if you have any feedback or suggestions in the comments section below.

This week on Sinica, your hosts Kaiser Kuo and Jeremy Goldkorn are pleased to welcome Geremie R Barmé, the well-known Chinese historian, author, filmmaker and translator, and the Director of the Australian Centre on China in the World at the Australian National University in Canberra. And the topic for debate? Today we take a break from our usual focus on current affairs for a more wide-ranging discussion that starts with the history and constant reinvention of Hangzhou's West Lake, and moves on to the Chinese penchant for top-ten lists, the lingering importance of Southern Song general Yue Fei to Chinese patriots, and the perennial issue of history's grip on the Chinese psyche and its role in determining China's place in the modern world. We hope you enjoy the show half as much as we enjoyed recording it. Be sure to let us know whether you agree or disagree with our opinions in the comments section as well. Enjoy Sinica? Stay up-to-date on all things China by subscribing to the Sinica show through iTunes. The easiest way to do this is to select "Subscribe to Podcast" from the Advanced file menu in iTunes, and provide the URL http://popupchinese.com/feeds/custom/sinica when prompted. You'll be able to download new episodes automatically as soon as they're released. Note that this podcast is also available as a standalone mp3 file.

A comedy-mystery-thriller laced with father-son conflict and a subplot involving the Transportation Security Administration, "Father, why must you dress up like this every Wednesday" is a masterpiece of contemporary drama that defies categorization while calling attention to the all too human costs of airport security theater. Learning Chinese? Our dialogue today is about as fast as they get at the Elementary level. Our focus is on how to tell others to mind their own business using one of a number of common and fairly short phrases. We cover a variety of polite and not-so-polite ways of doing this, and we'll admit that two of our selections are ultimately a bit vulgar. That said, they're worth knowing about, if only to understand the recent upsurge in Chinese Internet ornithography.

This week on Sinica, Kaiser Kuo and Jeremy Goldkorn are pleased to host Ed Wong from the New York Times along with Adrienne Mong who you've seen on NBC News. First up is Xi Jinping's recent visit to the United States, and a closer look at the personal and political background of the man who will be King. Also on our roster is a discussion of the state of development across Southeast Asia, and of course Eric Li's controversial editorial in the New York Times last week, which seemed to argue for the superiority of the Chinese political system over Western democratic models. Enjoy Sinica? If you want to subscribe to the show via RSS, just open iTunes and select the option "Subscribe to Podcast" from the Advanced file menu. When prompted, provide the URL http://popupchinese.com/feeds/custom/sinica. Alternately, you're welcome to download the show as always as a standalone MP3 file, free to play as you wish or pass along to a friend. And let us know what you think in the comments section below.

In our inaugural episode of the Popup Chinese movie show, opinions split over Let the Bullets Fly, the Chinese western directed by Jiang Wen and starring train-robbing, gun-shooting and horse-riding versions of himself and Chow Yun-Fat. This is the film that broke the Chinese box-office record shortly after its release, but considering that its competition that year included possibly the worst Chinese film ever made, we thought it about time for a discussion of whether the film is actually any good. Learning Chinese? We're pitching this show at the intermediate to upper-intermediate level and aiming for a discussion that splits half-and-half between English and Chinese. The English is there to help weaker listeners follow the discussion, but there is a lot of Chinese-only material here too, especially as the show goes on. And if you're having trouble following it? We've added a vocabulary list with some of the more difficult words, along with a number of sample sentences to illustrate usage.

Liu laid the device on the table to the confusion of the assembled crowd. It seemed to be nothing so much as a strange evolutionary variant of the mobile phone, perhaps half the size of a normal wallet, although illustrating the same folding mechanism. Gone was the touch screen and sleek glass cover, replaced with an industrial keyboard that folded into the casing. And there didn't seem to be anywhere to scrawl Chinese input. Back in the 1990s, McDonalds used to bear the brunt of public riots here in Beijing. Apparently the new kid on the block is Apple, although the crowds these days are less pissed off about American culture forcing its way into China, and more irritated that it isn't forcing its way into the country fast enough to keep up with demand. Which means that if you really want the latest stuff, you have to have either special connections or an Internet connection.

Until the age of five, Simon had never known misery, his life being a series of happy discoveries, as the young boy discovered in turn the pleasures of self-locomotion, the power of speech, and eventually the joy of socializing with a group of well-adjusted peers in the local kindergarten. And yet these good times were not to last, as events beyond his control conspired to end this idyllic period of this life. Learning Chinese? Our Chinese podcast today is for absolute beginners to mandarin. In it we cover some useful words and phrases for talking to children, and learn the basics of how to make simple sentences using adjectives. By the end of this ten minute show, you'll also know how to use simple possessives to say that something is yours, or his, or hers.

Although his vision was still clouded by the drugs in his system, James had enough sense to know he was in a scientific laboratory of sorts, or perhaps a telecommunications center. The distinct hum of an industrial-grade ventilation system and lack of any natural light suggested a deep subterranean lair or perhaps military-grade bunker. Yet it was not until his head began to clear and the room came into focus that the true peril of his situation became menacingly clear.