May 24, 2008

Jackie Speaks at Oxford University

On the evening of May 23, Jackie visited the University of Oxford in England where he gave a speech at the historic Sheldonian Theater. Jackie spoke to the audience of over 700 students for more than two hours, answering questions on subjects ranging from his experience at the Peking Opera School to what he would discuss with the Dali Lama if given a chance ("movies").

Jackie told the enthusiastic audience that the key to success was believing in yourself, working hard, and having confidence. The students asked question after question about Jackie's charity work and film life. When asked what he would do differently if he had a chance to turn back the clock, Jackie said that he would go to school and finish his education. Jackie played his Three Dreams video for the audience and debuted a special video about his Build a School for a Dollar program.

Earlier in the day, Jackie attended a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Fu Ying at the Chinese Embassy in London. He spoke to the foreign press about his experiences visiting the earthquake zone in the days following the devastation. An emotional Jackie expressed his extreme sadness over the loss of life and his admiration for all the people who have reached out to help the victims. He also talked about making a movie about the earthquake, saying that there were countless stories of bravery and humanitarianism which have come to light in the days since the quake. He said that he had never seen Chinese people and the people of the world come together as they have in recent days. He vowed to continue to help the people of China and said that assistance would be needed not only in the immediate aftermath, but in the years to come. He said that he would use the money collected by his Dragon's Heart Foundation to rebuild schools which had been destroyed. He also expressed his concern that many of the news reports about the disaster which are airing on Chinese television are not making their way to television news around the world and stressed the enormity of the tragedy, pointing out that over 50,000 people had been killed and over 5 million were left homeless.

Jackie will return to China to continue the fundraising effort; he has scheduled charity concerts for the beginning of June in Hong Kong and later in the month in the Mainland.