Yates, who is quite young to be an international presenter, got into the business when he was 16 and working on his father's (Eames Yates Sr) documentaries for HBO. He is known for his work at MTV Desai, targeting Asian Americans.

"All I knew about China was that it is doing extremely well but gets terrible press in the West," he adds. "I felt that there had to be more, so I decided to see it for myself. In the process I uncovered a truly beautiful and unique culture with incredibly inspiring and wonderful events happening on a daily basis."

Once he arrived, he was surprised "about how similar it was to America. Shanghai is a fast-moving action-packed city that reminds me of New York City."

One of the major differences between working in China and the US is the willingness of people to talk, Yates says.

"The Chinese that I spoke with during the filming were incredibly patient with my lack of understanding and took it upon themselves to teach me about their rich culture."

(Shanghai Daily March 15, 2008)