The Nanfang / Blog

Haohao

New Sitcom In Production About Expat Life in Beijing

Posted: 07/23/2014 10:36 am

no pets or foreigners sitcom tv show expats china foreignersA new sitcom called No Pets or Foreigners that details the comedic adventures of expat life in Beijing may be coming to a TV near you.

Time Out Beijing features an interview with star and creator of the show Murray Clive Walker that details some of what you may come to expect from the burgeoning show.

No Pets or Foreigners is about two expats that live in China and their relationship with their bad-tempered landlord Mr Li and his materialistic and mercenary-minded daughter Lingling.

Walker explained that the show’s humor will be aimed squarely at foreigners in China, and not at all critical towards the local Chinese culture:

It’s mostly about taking the piss out of two foreigners. I’m aware of the whole mianzi thing with the Chinese so I won’t be making any digs at them and their culture.

Explaining why the show is bilingual, Walker again focused upon the expat characters:

In order to enhance the stupidity of the foreigners they had to be speaking in English.

Even though there are no previous sitcoms about foreigners in China, the entire idea is still a well-worn cliche. Walker says he’s trying to avoid falling into that trap.

no pets or foreigners sitcom tv show expats china foreigners

When asked what kind of humor we can expect from the show, he said:

There’s a lot of toilet humor as well because I think that’s something we all wrestle with here what with the squat toilets. It’s not meant to be sophisticated but I do want to imbue the show with an emotional content. I’d like to find that balance between humor and emotion.

Have a sneak peak of the show from the video below:

Photo: Youku screenshots

Haohao
  • http://twoamericansinchina.com/ Amanda Roberts-Anderson

    If it is aimed at expats, then why are the subtitles in Chinese? When the Chinese people speak, there are no English subtitles. The creator needs to figure out who his actual target audience is. He also won’t be using tired Chinese cliches, but he will be using Western ones? Are expats really going to be interested in watching a couple of clueless laowais acting like idiots? I’m not. I see that enough at Sea World. As for the acting quality…total rubbish.

  • http://www.postlinearity.com gregorylent

    i think this article is satire

AROUND THE WEB
Keep in Touch

What's happening this week in Shenzhen, Dongguan and Guangzhou? Sign up to be notified when we launch the This Week @ Nanfang newsletter.

sign up for our newsletter

Nanfang TV