We were lucky to catch up with Amy Hart Nguyễn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Amy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

When I was taking a Scene Study class, I was feeling so lost even after I had graduated from an acting conservatory. It felt like I was back at square one and couldn’t do anything right. Every time I had a go at the scene, I always felt so dissatisfied with myself as though I kept regressing. However, on the last class, we had a substitute teacher who came in and who brought in what I needed to hear at that time in order to get better at the craft. She said that as actors, we often get held back by what we “should” do. She encouraged us to release ourselves from this feeling that one should speak, move or behave a certain way. It was so refreshing to hear that after years of academic training where I was taught otherwise, instilling in me a sense that there seemed to be a right way and a wrong way of acting.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a Vietnamese actor based in New York City. I was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. I wanted to become an actor ever since I was a child because what I saw the actors do on screen resonated deeply within me and their expression felt authentic and truthful. It seemed to me that life was full of people wearing masks, not being their true selves, not saying what they really want to say or doing what they truly want to do. I personally felt inhibited myself and I often had to hide my true feelings growing up. However, seeing these actors fully expressing themselves as these colourful characters was a cathartic experience for me. It made me want to learn acting because I wanted to be able to simply express my thoughts and feelings freely and fully.

I moved to New York City about three years ago to study acting and now I am auditioning and working full time as an actor. I have done student films, independent shorts and theatre work. What sets me apart from other actors is the fiery energy that I bring everywhere I go. I am a very passionate and animated person who loves what I’m doing and who loves connecting and collaborating with people. I’m proud to have contributed to the works of Vietnamese writers and directors. It has empowered me to embrace my own individuality as well as my community. I feel that representation is quite important and that it is much needed so being a part of that makes me feel extra proud.

I’d like people to know that I take my work very seriously but that I also have a very goofy personality. I wish my work to be able to make people learn more about themselves as I did when I watched my favourite actors on screen.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Being an artist enables me to think outside the box and to progress in a non-linear fashion. It empowers me to believe in myself and to make choices that are in alignment with my values and mentality. It gives me the freedom to live differently and to pursue projects and things that feed my soul and keeps me on my toes. It is constantly stimulating as there are always new things to learns or new ways and techniques to adapt. I love how each role gives me a different point of view on the world so that it’s always changing from one to another, thus making my understanding of the world wider as looking inward always reflects outwardly as well.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal is to learn as much as I can in my lifetime because everything fascinates me. I am an extremely curious person and I love that acting can bring you all those different experiences. I want to expand my abilities physically and learn from different disciplines. On a deeper level, I’d simply like to get to know myself better so that I can help and uplift other people on their journey, whether it be a creative one or not.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_amy_hart/

Image Credits
Derek Liang Valerie Terranova Paul Michael Graves Milky Tran Dominique Perron