Kieu Chinh [p.3]

KC: It was almost like someone up there helped me. I went to a reception premiere for the movie Jaws with Tippi Hedren and I was so lost in the big crowd. A man saw me standing in a corner by myself and asked who I was. Someone told him I was a well-known actor from Viet Nam. Later I learned he was the executive producer of the show M*A*S*H [Burt Metcalfe]. He told Alan Alda about me because Alan had written an episode in which his character Hawk-Eye falls in love with a Korean woman. For some reason they had me in mind, so they called my agent. But at that time I had just arrived in America. I didn’t even have a TV and I didn’t know what M*A*S*H was. My agent sent me to the audition and that’s how I ended up on M*A*S*H.

NHA: Did the roles keep coming after that?

KC: It’s funny, when the episode aired Burt Metcalfe called me and said, “Kieu Chinh, we received tons of letters praising you, we want you to come back.” But then days after that he called me again and said, “Kieu Chinh, unfortunately more letters are coming in against Hawk-Eye falling in love with a Korean woman. We’re very sorry but we have to kill your character.” So that was the end of my character in M*A*S*H. But after that many more roles came to me, not important characters, but my agent advised me to take them because it’s very difficult in Hollywood and there were not many parts for Asians. There were lots of Asians working here and they looked like me but they were born here, their English was much better, and here I was a newcomer. I’m very lucky that I’ve been working continuously every year.

NHA: What was the film industry in America like at the time? What kinds of roles did you get? What sort of barriers did you encounter? Specifically, have you ever encountered a situation where you felt like your opportunities were limited because you are Asian—that you were not being judged by the merit of your acting?

KC: It was very difficult. I would say yes, but not just for Asians. If we look back 50 years the black community had the same problem. They’ve been struggling for so long. Asians faced the same problem until recently. I’d say it’s only been in the last three years that we started seeing more Asian leads and things started picking up a little. I think the first [breakthrough] started with the movie The Joyluck Club in 1991. I remember when I talked to Amy Tan and she said it took her two years knocking on producers’ doors. They turned her away, saying, “Who would be interested in a story about all Asian women?”

NHA: I remember how The Joyluck Club was seen as a breakthrough film for Asian Americans. How was it for you to work with an all-Asian American cast?

KC: I was nervous! That was my most enjoyable work. Everybody asked, “It’s all women, did they have any conflict?” I said no, we became good friends. Especially Ming Na and I, we have a good relationship.

NHA: You have played a range of characters in film and television. What are some of your favorite or most memorable roles and why?

KC: In the United States, I would say for a feature film it was The Joyluck Club. For TV, M*A*S*H is still my favorite because the characters say something meaningful. These were my favorite until recently. There’s a movie that’s not out yet, Journey from the Fall. This film talks about our own people and what they’ve gone through being boat people, being in re-education camps, families breaking down.

NHA: Yes, let’s talk about your latest film, Journey from the Fall. It was pre-released for the 30th anniversary (of the Fall of Sai Gon on) April 30 last year and is awaiting general release. The film features an all-Vietnamese cast and was written and directed by the young up-and-coming director Ham Tran [whom we have featured in past issues of NHA.] Can you tell us about the character you play and what it was like working with the cast and crew?

KC: Yes, the film was also recently shown in Utah at the Sundance Film Festival. Ham Tran and the cast, including myself, we were all there. I am very happy and very proud of this young generation. Of course, the Vietnamese community in the United States has been here for 30 years, but the first 20 years we were still struggling. The young generation is grown up now and some of them have chosen to go into the motion picture industry as writers, directors, in front and behind the camera. I’m very proud to be part of Journey from the Fall. I admire the young generation. They came here when they were very young or they were born here and educated here, but when they make these films they always look back to our history, the motherland, the culture.

NHA: In this film you play the role of the grandmother, Ba Noi. Can you talk a little bit about your character?