A legal career can take many twists and turns – we all know that, right? – but appearing on a Chinese reality TV show is something right out of left field.
However for Wellington lawyer and entrepreneur Patrick Rosevear it is all part of the great tapestry of an interesting legal career.
The young lawyer, who works for Chinese-New Zealand law firm Prestige Lawyers, has appeared on a popular Chinese TV dating show and sung a Flight of the Conchords song that has landed him in a Chinese travel show with a crew of around 120 people.
The trip then, has been a long and interesting one from his days not so many years ago as a Wellington College and Victoria University law student, let alone a dating show contestant and travel show host.
As Stuff.co.nz report, He moved to Shanghai after visiting on a whim in 2012, falling in love with the city, and deciding he wanted to learn Mandarin.
“I had that instinct like so many other New Zealanders that I needed to get into the world and challenge myself and learn about other people, so I went to Shanghai for a short holiday and sort of fell in love with the city.”
He immersed himself in the culture, living with Chinese flatmates and taking two-hour Mandarin lessons seven days a week.
His break in TV came after he returned to China after doing a short stint at an Auckland law firm that works with many Chinese clients.
His Auckland boss suggested he go on the Chinese dating show Fei Cheng Wu Rao, known in English as If You Are the One, which has up to 50 million viewers an episode.
“I didn’t go on it to find a girlfriend … It’s powerful in terms of marketing effects, so we decided we’d try and go on and market our law firm in China, I thought it would be funny and silly.”
Despite being “very nervous” about his Chinese language skills on the show, he regaled the girls with a guitar song and Chinese conversation, and ended up winning a date.
From there he was asked to be on a chat panel of foreigners, where he busted out a Chinese translation of the Flight of the Conchords song Jenny, about a case of mistaken identity, on national television.
That led him to be shoulder-tapped for a government-funded travel show that took foreigners all around China and filmed their reactions, which he has just completed.
It has given him the idea of doing something similar with Chinese tourists in New Zealand.
“I’d love to do a travel show so we can introduce New Zealand to Chinese people in Chinese language. New Zealand and China have so much more to offer each other outside of trade.
See the video at the Stuff Link Here
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