David Black interviews Grace Liu for the Australian Short Film Network Journal
Grace Liu is an actor, model, singer and dancer in Melbourne. I met her at the first Boogie Nights short film night in 2016. She was dressed up and looked so glamorous that I knew she had that star quality immediately. I didn’t get a chance to act with her until November 2021 though, when we were in “Game of Groans” together.
Today I am lucky enough to be interviewing Grace.
DB – Hi Grace. Thanks for taking the time to chat to me today. I loved your performance on Game
of Groans and can tell that you have a strong background in entertainment. I believe that you are also a model and that you sing and dance. Can you tell me a bit about your singing and dancing?
GL – I’m an Opera singer, I was trained to sing Italian Opera songs, “Lacia Cio Pianga” is my performing song on the stage, and also some French, Latino, German, English Opera songs - I was also trained to sing the Opera song “Carmen” in French, “Ave María” in Latino, “Aus den östlichen Rosen” in German, “Dido’s Lament” in English.
Besides singing the Opera, I also sing Jazz and pop songs, I was confused about my voice..because I seemed like singing man’s key in pop songs (I have a deep tortured voice), the audiences suggested me to sing for the funerals not for the weddings. Then I got told by my trainer that’s because I had a wide range in the notes, for the lowest key on the piano to soprano C6 in Opera, and still developing to hit on higher notes, and I also have the whistle register (a human voice sounds like a dolphin). So singing Opera songs won’t be a problem for me. I have performed Opera singing on the stages before.
I was a dancer at my early years before I got into the film industry. I used to be a contracted dancer for many shows, I did various of dances, and focused on Latin dances, and I finally defined myself to be a belly dancer in belly dancing, which is one of the most difficult dances in the world to perform. I have done belly dance performances in Thornbury theatre and many other theatres in Melbourne.
The singing and the dancing skills are helpful for my acting in films and musical theatre acting. They are connecting to the film industry.
DB – As well as singing and dancing, you also have done quite a bit of modelling. Can you tell us a bit about that?
GL – I’m a trained model, and was trained to do the catwalk on the runway. I have been in some of the beauty pageants and the modelling competitions before, I was also in some of the fashion shows to present the clothing for the fashion brands on the runways. I’m a trained photographic model as well, knowing how to pose, move during the photos taken and the better angles connecting to the cameras, and knowing how to motivate with the photographer.
I was in the modelling stills photo for JetStar Australian Airline for 5 years, and got paid $1000 each time for the poster rolled over.
DB – And now for the acting! Your IMDB has quite a few credits from 2015 – 2021. The first 5 or so look like they are extra roles, but as soon as we get to “Colony”, you have the role of “Anne”. Can you tell us a bit about that film?
GL – I was cast in the role of “Anne”, this name was originted by me, Anne is a woman who was on the planet, she met those 2 sisters Rhian and Seren who ventured to this planet. A sinister alien sea creature has communicated with Rhian and presents her a chance of survival but at a terrifying cost. There was a scene of me and Rhian got into a fight for food to survive on the planet. A few of white triangle tents were set up by the film crew as the background for this scene.
Me and the actors and the crew more than 40 people were living in the wood houses of the National Park of Cape Otway, the Great Ocean Road for 3 days and 2 nights. As there was no signal in the National Park, so we 40 people were “missing” in Cape Otway.
The living condition was tough and there was not enough food, at the night during the film shoot, my health was getting in a worse condition, but I still hold until my part of scenes finished. The fighting scene of me and Rhian, I was actually in a worse health condition already.
I was walking at the mid night in the forest myself a few times due to the wood house has no bathroom so I had to look for it. That was a unforgettable journey of this film shoot.
The director was also having serious health condition and was sent to the hospital over night. But it was gratified at the early morning, the director came back to us, everyone was sitting outside near the camp stove, the make up artists started doing make up for us, and we ate breakfast together before the shoot.
DB – You have also been on at least one major set. You were in the TV series “Hungry Ghosts” with Bryan Brown! That must have been amazing.
GL – I was one of the cast members in the 90mins Italian feature film “The Bathtub Murder”, and also the Canadian feature film “Human Contact”. I was in an Egyptian film too. I love acting in European films, and some other foreign films, if there are any opportunities.
I was one of the lead roles in the 1980’s long web series “Average Joe”. My role was Joe’s ex-wife, Darlene. When I arrived at the audition, I thought it was a porn video, and the production company was SAE Creative Media Institute.
I was auditioning for the role as Joe’s ex-wife, the lines were all about she yelled at Joe angrily to get divorced. I was told that I have brought the anger to the role, that was what they wanted, so I got the role.
Average Joe is a comedy about the Australian porn industry.
Andy Dumbass is a notorious porn star in many Australian adult videos. As he has sexed too much in the adult movies so he has lost his life, and the pimp is still looking for a guy who looked like Andy to continue his porn videos.
I was also a main role as Verna of the Theatre acting, a mellow drama, a British sci-fi dark comedy “Hot Hot Plot Rocks” for Melbourne Fringe Festival at Metanoia Theatre. On the space ship, we 3 people were fighting for the Hot Plot Rocks, for one’s own benefits, we turned from good friends to kill each other by guns. We performed 6 times at the theatre during the whole festival.
I was also in the Opera: Serenading Adela. I was singing 2 songs “Peace Talk”, “Ghost Don’t Lie” there. My singing was Sproano, Alto, Contralto and wearing the costume of First World War. It was hosted by Moreland City Council for Humanity Issues. The location was in Coburg Town Hall. About 100 people were performing singing and dancing in this opera, the Pentridge used to be a female prison in WW1, where Adela was imprisoned there. It was great momentum that we performed on the outdoor stage there, brought the very impressive outdoor prison scene with singing in front of the ancient buildings.
I was also the main role of Pro Studio Battles (TV Show), I was singing an Opera song called "Dido's Lament" and a pop song "Bang Bang - My Baby Shot Me Down" at the story of attending the audition, and the judges were watching me singing, then gave out the comments.
I was also the main role of Milky Journey Travel Agency’s Commercial Video, I acted as a mother with 18 years old son, wearing evening gown and headpieces and attending the Melbourne Cup, Flemington & Hiking at the forest of Mt. Dandenong.
I was interviewed for the documentary about Death, and another interviewed about the paranormal activities by the topic Spooky story on weekly magazine “That’s Life!” To recall the supernational stories in my real life.
DB – Grace, you are a multi-talented actor and have quite a bit of solid work behind you. Can I ask what your future plans are?
GL – I should continue to develop my soprano voice, I’m grateful that I have this gift of singing and dancing since I was born. I should become an international actress to go for the lead roles of the major sets in films, and be singing and dancing in the Operas and the Musical Theatre plays.
My multi background sounds complicated but they are actually connected to the film industry. I used to be a photographer, a graphic designer, a painter in European painting art. I was trained to match the colours, the composition of the pictures, and was trained to present the Surrealism style in the paintings and the photographs. I was also trained to do human skeletons dissection and sculptures sketch for years, the details include the structure of every muscle and every bone in the whole body, so when I talk to people face to face I can even see how their muscles and bones on face are moving, how their body structures are in the dissection angle.
My final goal is to establish my own fashion brand with the Haute Couture skills, and present it by singing, dancing, photography and films and…human skeletons dissection. I’m going to make the extremely luxury evening dresses/ball gowns/men’s suits by using garbage/recycled materials, with an dissection style that no one else has ever thought of, and will interpret my stories by my fashion.
DB – thanks for taking the time to chat to me today Grace. Where can our readers follow your work?
GL -