Bright young things with stars in their eyes

Chen Kun says the studio is an exploration of acting and an experiment aimed at breaking educational conventions. The founders have adopted what they call adaptive and advanced teaching methods suited to each individual, to improve the students' acting techniques and to enhance their aesthetics and perceptions of life, Chen says.

"We thought about the courses we need, the professional acting courses, including voice, speech and movement. Channeling a character is largely on the spiritual level, and that requires one's own reflections on life. So we invited eminent teachers not only of acting, but also of aesthetics and those who can give spiritual guidance."

In the Dome Studio's short life it has developed a reputation for its strong teaching force, including guest lecturers from some of the world's leading drama schools. In June and August it put on two master classes, inviting Ellen Parks and Christopher Bayes from the United States.

Parks, a Hollywood casting director and professor at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts on Broadway, came to teach the students how to audition and to act in front of a camera.