State of Grace!

Born in Taiwan but raised in Australia, Grace Huang grew up to be fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin. The emerging ingenue made her feature film debut in the 2010 thriller Overheard alongside Louis Koo and Daniel Wu.

She subsequently exhibited her versatility showcased her acting talents in the romantic comedy Love in Space playing the dreadlocked, nose-ringed waitress, Bunny. More recently, Huang appeared in rapper-turned-director RZA’s martial arts epic, The Man With the Iron Fists. Her small but pivotal role in a key action sequence caught the attention of Quentin Tarantino who remarked, “She’s so fierce in the scene that I felt intimidated!”

Here, she talks about her latest outing opposite Sean Faris in Lost for Words where they co-star as a ballerina and a former U.S. Marine who fall in love in Hong Kong.

Kam Williams: What interested you in Lost for Words?

Grace Huang: I was attracted to the script by its simplicity in its celebration of love. I really enjoyed the way it follows Anna and Michael and shows how the love develops between these two very different people. Not many films do that these days, it’s usually just “Bam!” and they’re in a relationship. Lost for Words gets in there and shows you all the quirks and turns in the decision-making process in a couple of very complicated lives, and the issues they have to deal with to be together. I found their courtship really sweet. Their struggles are very real and I wanted to be in Anna’s shoes through that journey.

KW: How would you describe the film in 25 words or less?

GH: Lost for Words is a classic look at how a cross-cultural relationship develops. These two people fall in love and you experience their struggles and internal conflicts.

Author: Ukay CheungGrace Huang.

KW: How did you prepare to play Anna, a ballet dancer. Had you studied ballet as a child?

GH: I love dance and studied Jazz ballet when I was growing up in Sydney, Australia. It’s not exactly the same, nothing “en pointe,” but it still gave me the basic dance principles, tempos and movements. It was actually quite fun training for the dance scenes, albeit grueling. And it was good to revisit and wake up my classic-dancing muscles.

KW: What message do you think people will take away from Lost for Words?

GH: I think they will be reminded of how sweet, but also how confusing, falling in love can be.

KW: What project is up next for you?

GH: I have a few things in the pipeline that I’m really excited about. One project I just shot is Independence Day: Resurgence, the sequel to the first blockbuster from 20 years ago. It was amazing to work with Roland Emmerich. He is such an amazing director and a total Energizer bunny. I worked with Liam Hemsworth on that, which makes him the second Hemsworth I’ve worked with. I worked with Luke Hemsworth on the sci-fi thriller Infini. Chris is next!

KW: What keeps you up at night?

GH: The one thing I love and hate about life. The uncertainty of the future is so scary but also so exciting! There are endless possibilities and each day and whenever I get anxious, I just focus on channeling that energy into positive thoughts and also positive action.

KW: If you could have one wish instantly granted, what would that be for?

GH: I would wish that there would be equal parts women and men in positions of power in politics and every industry. I think that equality would make a big difference in the way the world is run and that change would make a big positive.

KW: Was there a meaningful spiritual component to your childhood?

GH: I was born in a country town in Taiwan and spent my first 6 years growing up there. My days would involve playing in our backyard which had a creek, and there would be tadpoles, free-range chicken running around, and night time fireflies. I count myself very lucky to have had such a carefree and unaffected beginning to my childhood, being so in touch with what nature had to offer. It has allowed me to have a different perspective on life, fully appreciating how advanced we’ve come as humans but never forgetting and losing touch of where we came from. I’m never oblivious to the fact that we are destroying the Earth by our often wasteful and harmful practices as humans who consume at such alarming rates. I am an avid recycler and do as much as I can to minimize my impact on our fragile environment.