DIVERSITY SPOTLIGHT: GABRIELLE CHAN
Gabrielle Chan’s role in upcoming SBS series Hungry Ghosts brought back memories of the rich Vietnamese culture of her childhood.
For over a decade Gabrielle Chan has acted in a diverse range of theatre, Chinese opera and TV and film roles. Chan is of Vietnamese Chinese heritage and stars in the upcoming Australian drama series Hungry Ghosts, premiering 9:30pm August 24 -August 27 on SBS.
How do you get into acting?
It all started as a hobby, as my day job in software development was very technical and extremely stressful. I needed to do something fun, entertain myself and others. My acting journey began at my Chinese opera training. My opera teacher said she could tell I had gone through a lot in life and from these personal experiences, they contribute to a performer’s emotion and often results in a brilliant performance. I just have to dig deep.
I was then casted as Ah Lan by random luck in the multi-award winning short film The Last Chip in 2005. A few filmmakers contacted me through The Last Chip’s director Heng Teng as obviously there was a shortage of middle aged Asian actors two decades ago. The role I played opposite Joan Chen as her best friend in Home Song Stories marked the beginning of my acting career.
It was difficult to balance a life in a demanding job while acting. Since I could not have the best of both worlds, I chose acting as a career when I was offered my second time job redundancy five years ago.
What made you choose a career in acting?
I have always loved to be on the stage. I love to perform in Chinese opera. It was like travelling back in time to become an ancient historical person, something I could never imagine I could be. And then when I act in theatre/film/TV, I enjoy them more because I no longer have to worry about the structured art forms or the traditional performance styles that were passed down from the Chinese ancient culture. In theatre/film/TV, I am a character of the modern world, I can feel it, sense it, touch it, emote it freely and naturally. I have been lucky enough to be given many opportunities from an international prostitute ring leader, murderer, death rowed prisoner to successful restaurant owner, kitchen hand, factory worker, caring sister, stroked sufferer, cancer patient, tiger mum, mean granny, and even an ordinary bored office worker. Acting fills my life with colour and excitement, especially when Im acting in the type of roles that may inspire others and may help to change the world into a better place.
Who are your role models?
Daphne Lowe Kelley is my role model. She’s a second generation Chinese originally from New Zealand, whom I know through her running of community activities. Daphne is now well into her senior years but health and age have not slowed her down. She has done so much for our Chinese communities and organisations, her daily schedule is busier than a CEO! I respect her not only for her work, her handling of conflicts, her calmness in handling ridiculous insults and her support of young Asian performance artists — this has given me lots to learn and to look up to in life.
What was your most memorable acting job?
I was born in Cho Lon, the Chinatown of Saigon, Vietnam. My family migrated to Hong Kong three years after the Vietnam War ended when I was 15, an age that was old enough to experience some extraordinary sweet and bitter life events; events and experiences that have been irrevocably imprinted in my memories.
Imagine then how excited I became when I was cast in the role of Lien Nguyen in the four-part SBS TV series Hungry Ghosts. Lien is a first-generation Vietnamese migrant and other than a few health issues, she lives happily with her family. Her life is seriously disrupted when her first husband, a dead soldier in the South Vietnamese army, makes contact with her. As you can imagine, there are a few ghosts in the stories, but Lien’s ghost is kind, gentle and handsome and most importantly, he came back for her as he still loves her wholeheartedly. I enjoy this sort of human-ghost triangle love story but never dreamt of being part of that narrative on-screen.
The Hungry Ghosts script brought back memories of the rich Vietnamese culture which was all but forgotten in our new home of Australia (for example, hitting a bowl with chopsticks/spoons would mean waking up the dead and inviting them to join the meal with us). The script also carries a strong religious thread of Buddhism. It also references Vietnamese black magic or Ngai which is quite popular in Vietnam even today.
Hungry Ghosts is scheduled to be screened from the 24th of August-27th August on SBS. I hope it will be a blast as this is the first TV drama with over 30 Asian actors telling authentic Vietnamese stories. Also, Australia’s decade long military commitment during the Vietnam War remains Australia’s largest force contribution to a foreign conflict since World War II. I believe Hungry Ghosts stories set in the aftermath of Vietnam War will be well received as it has a deep connection with Australia and will resonate with the Australian public.
Do you think there’s enough diversity reflected in Australian film and TV?
Stories in scripts are mostly snapshots of real life because they some way relate to certain part of the life experience of the writers. With the recent effort of Annette Shun Wah — the founder of Contemporary Asian Australian Performance — more and more Asians faces can be seen both on screen and stage. But I do not believe the current representation of diversity reflects the multicultural society we are living in. I have seen diverse roles were still given to non-diverse actors in recent productions. I hope the influencers, filmmakers, artistic directors, media who have power and status to change can push the diversity even further. We have a pool of very diverse talent in Australia, what’s missing is a chance for them to shine. The success of MasterChef this year is an obvious example of how a show with diversity can be so amazing and successful. I also hope all diverse actors believe in themselves, as our families brought us plenty of beautiful stories, and this film industry need these stories to tell. We need the industry as much as they need us and should therefore give us all jobs.
What have you been doing during COVID-19?
As acting has virtually come to a halt during COVID-19, I have been involved in creative community works. Daphne and I are the founders of Australasian Art & Stageworks Inc. (AASI), a not for profit organisation. Last year, AASI in conjunction with a professional opera troop from Hong Kong produced a large scale Chinese opera show called Monkey King and Skeleton Devil with performances in Auckland, Sydney and Melbourne. The COVID-19 break has allowed me to start planning future activities for AASI for 2021.
How did you get into Chinese Opera?
I used to hate Chinese opera because of its noisy music instruments which was too much for a depression sufferer like me. While working in Canberra, I enrolled myself into ANU to study Chinese as I wanted to keep up with my existing Chinese literacy level. The music still irritated me at the time but I was very attracted to the beautifully written lyrics. To me, it was even richer than poetry, it had story, it had rhythm and it brought me to an imaginary world beyond words. I studied Chinese literature in high school, and I had never seen anything beautiful like that. Just in a few short paragraphs, it had summed up the entire life including the feeling of a character. I was drawn deep down into it and then I was gradually drawn into the performance due to its exquisite makeup and costumes. I was very lucky to learn opera performance from a retired professional Beijing opera performer/teacher Duan. She taught me some basic technique of water sleeves, opera sword/spear fighting, ribbon dance, fan dance and the techniques in how to project my voice.
What advice do you have for anyone wanting a career in the arts and entertainment industry?
Be strong enough to face failure, be confident and never give up. Believe in yourself. Look for opportunities if opportunities don’t come to you. And most important of all: get a day job.
What is your motto that you live by?
Everyone comes to this world with a destiny, don’t waste it.
