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Rui En on her recent Instagram rebrand and dealing with criticism about her appearance
ENTERTAINMENT
Rui En on her recent Instagram rebrand and dealing with criticism about her appearance
The actress, who recently wiped her Instagram clean, wants to use the platform to advocate for mental health. She tells 8days.sg her plans, and how it’s taken her time to be comfortable in her own skin in the public eye.
Rui En's Instagram rebrand. (Photos: Instagram/@wilderseas29)
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Ainslyn Lim
04 Apr 2024 07:49AM
It has been three years since Rui En, 43, left her management label Hype Records to fly solo. It also marks the third year since the actress started her Instagram account, which she fully managed herself – up until now, that is.
Those who follow Rui En on Instagram would have noticed that she had wiped her page clean of all posts on Monday (Apr 1), leaving but one announcement which alluded to her “new era”.
She later announced that she is now working with celebrity photographer Walter Tan and the creative agency he helms, Assemblyclan, to produce new content.
8days.sg hopped on a phone call with Rui En to find out more about her “rebranding era”.
“I started to self-manage around August 2021 and at that point, it was a very steep learning curve for me. Having been managed by my previous agency since the beginning of my career, it was very scary and anxiety-inducing, but I managed to figure it out as I made mistakes along the way," she said.
“After a while of doing it on my own, I started to feel extremely exhausted and I really wanted a team for support,” Rui En continued, her excitement for this new era evident in her voice.
She first got to know Walter when they collaborated on several photoshoots when she started her Instagram page.
They “very naturally became friends” and she reached out to Walter to see if he was interested in helping her manage her social media account. And the rest, as one says, is history.
“It’s actually a very recent (decision), and because of this new collab with Walter, we decided to start with a clean slate and do something kinda risky but bold and brave, so we wiped my entire IG and are starting from scratch,” she explained.
Being a public figure on social media comes with its own set of challenges. From being judged based on appearances to constant comparisons with other artistes, Rui En has also experienced her own journey of growth, and is learning to be comfortable with being in the limelight apart from her on-screen appearances.
YOU MENTIONED THE STRESS THAT CAME WITH SELF-MANAGING, TELL US MORE ABOUT HOW THE EXPERIENCE WAS FOR YOU.
My gosh, I cannot even describe it. Imagine having everything done for you, and then having to learn that from scratch. It wasn’t easy, I had multiple meltdowns and I had (moments) where I was like, "I can’t do this anymore". It was a really steep learning curve for me.
I would say I’m proud of myself for actually trying, and doing something so scary, but yeah, eventually I reached a point where I really wanted someone to help me. It is part and parcel of what I do and it would be nice to have support. I recently told Walter that I felt like there was no one in my corner for a long time, and I felt really alone. I’m always grateful to him for coming on board and taking a little bit of that burden off.
YOU SAID THAT YOU WANT TO USE YOUR NEW CONTENT TO "INSPIRE AND PROVOKE CONVERSATIONS AROUND MENTAL HEALTH". HOW DO YOU PLAN TO DO THAT, AND WILL YOU BE SHARING PERSONAL EXPERIENCES?
I have always been sharing rather vulnerable things regarding mental health on my page because my passion is advocacy for mental health. That’s not gonna stop, I’m just gonna have more professionally taken photos and videos to tell that story and a professional team behind me.
The one new thing is probably the short-form videos we’ll be doing. This is a new collab so we are still brainstorming about what direction we want to take and the ways we can maximise this platform to get the mental health (message) across.
Walter was like, “Hey, mental health support includes entertaining people with the content, so we have to do funny videos”. The short reels that we do are kind of like TikToks, so already he’s pushing me out of my comfort zone. But I’m looking forward to that. I’m an entertainer, so of course I’m not gonna be doing anything too crazy or slapstick, but I’m looking forward to showing followers a different side of me. I guess they can also take it as something that helps my mental health because I’m less stressed and anxious.
DO YOU FEEL IT'S A PITY, HAVING TO ERASE SO MANY YEARS' WORTH OF MEMORIES AND CONTENT?
You would think that after three years of putting effort into content and wiping it (I would feel that way), but I don’t. Most people use IG as an archive or sort of like a picture diary, but for me, not so much. It has always been a platform where I can reach out to my followers and fans and share about the stuff I’m passionate about.
AS A PUBLIC FIGURE, YOU'RE INEVITABLY JUDGED BY YOUR LOOKS. DO YOU THINK THE INDUSTRY OR THE AUDIENCE IS STILL TOO SHALLOW IN ITS PERCEPTION OF HOW LEADING ACTORS SHOULD LOOK?
I think that it may be a rather general sort of thing – which doesn’t only apply to local audiences – where there is a stereotype of what constitutes a lead actress, like they have to be young or skinny.
If you look at the United States, you have Meryl Streep and older actresses in leading roles. I hope our entertainment industry or local dramas can go (in that direction) where you have (a variety of portrayals). I wouldn’t necessarily call it shallow or narrow-minded, but there’s room or more space to develop a sort of more (discerning) taste...
The fact of the matter is that we’re telling stories of the human condition, and humans are very interesting and there are many ways in which they look. There are many stories to be told. So I hope that it does go in that direction.
HOW DO YOU HOPE TO CHANGE THAT?
Maybe some people think that actresses and actors have a lot more power and authority than they do, but I do think that it’s an industry thing. For example, if you want leading roles that feature older women, that has to start with the story and script. Literally by the time I am cast, the story and script are in place. It is not something that I can necessarily control but it is something that I wish and pray would happen. I think that women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s – they have so many stories to be told. I would love to see more of that.
DO COMMENTS ABOUT YOUR LOOKS GET TO YOU? HOW DO YOU COPE WITH THAT?
I think in Singapore, we have it a lot easier than in China or Korea. But as a public figure who has been doing this a long time, there has to be a certain level of acceptance that no matter how you look, there are going to be comments. I think I’ve made peace with that fact. Of course, it stings because I’m human, but I think the whole being in the limelight and target of such comments has helped me grow in the sense that I am able to be okay with myself independent of those comments. To a certain extent, I appreciate the area of it that has made me grow. But generally, I feel like if you’re a public figure you have to be accepting of that fact.
HAVE YOU EVER TRIED TO CHANGE THE WAY YOU LOOK BECAUSE OF OTHERS' COMMENTS?
To be very honest, I think the whole monologue from Barbie is so accurate – it’s impossible to be a woman.
The funny part about entertainment and showbiz is that a lot of people constantly have opinions about the way you should look. That has been my experience since I literally got discovered, started acting, and went to Taiwan to release an album. The messaging is that you’re constantly not enough and it’s taken me a long time to be able to not have my self-worth tied to that.
It’s been a difficult journey because when you are a product and you are in the public eye there’s this constant “you need to do this or look that way”. It’s taken me a long time to realise that (there’s) Rui En the person and Rui En the celeb, which is like a product. They have to be independent of each other and I have to accept that this is an industry where aesthetics are important, but it doesn’t mean that if somebody feels I should improve something then I tie my self-worth to that.
It’s not easy to do that, and who is gonna feel good about themselves if they’re constantly never enough. Over the past few years, I’ve been working on that and I can’t even say I’m there like “Hey, I’m not affected”.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TOLD THAT YOU SHOULD LOOK BETTER?
Oh absolutely, all the time. Well, I try to be just gracious and be like “Thank you for this feedback or opinion”. I have to accept the industry is what it is and the only thing I can control is how I react to it. And I try to do my best lah.
This story was originally published in 8Days.
For more 8Days stories, visit https://www.8days.sg/
Source: 8 Days/kt
