Pisay Pao

Last updated
Pisay Pao
Born
Pisay Pao

(1984-11-01) November 1, 1984 (age 40) [1]
OccupationActress
Years active2005 to Present

Pisay Pao (born November 1, 1984) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cassandra in the Syfy series Z Nation .

Contents

Early life

Pao was born on November 1, 1984, in Thailand, at a refugee camp where her Cambodian parents were placed to escape political persecution during the Cambodian Civil War. [1] Her parents were granted political asylum in the United States in 1986, and settled in Seattle, Washington, where she was raised. [2] [3] [4] [1] [5] Pao stated that she was attracted to the arts from an early age, and began painting, drawing, dancing, and performing as a child. She obliged her parents' wishes to focus on an academic career instead, earning a scholarship to attend the University of Washington. [2] However, she left her university course to instead pursue a career in fashion and the performing arts. [2]

Career

Pao has credited the movie The Motel for showing her there was space for Asian American stories in visual culture. [6] Pao was introduced to a talent agent through a friend that was a model. [2] Pao stated that she exercised several times per week to prepare for her role in the TV series Z Nation . [7] [8] Pao reportedly often attends comic book conventions to meet fans, and has expressed her wish to portray Marvel Comics super hero Storm. [5] [7] In addition to film and TV work, she also appeared in the play what you are now, from Sam Chanse, at the Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. [9] [10]

Personal life

Pao has stated that her parents' struggle to escape the Cambodian civil war is an inspiration for her work. [8]

Pao is also a Christian. [11]

Pao has travelled to Cambodia to visit her family members who remained there. Her first trip was in 2001. [5]

Pao is a self-professed advocate for women's rights. She has stated that she "wants to find a way to bring justice for all women who are victims of sexual violence." [2] [5]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2005 Simply Fobulous Chantavy
2009 The Whole Truth Inona Kim
2010Your Lucky DayWife
2012Door to DoorDee
2018Bitter MelonsSophia
2019 Velvet Buzzsaw Attorney
2019We Take the Low RoadHospice Worker

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2014–2016 Z Nation CassandraMain role season 1&2 guest season 3
2016 NCIS: Los Angeles Jamie PattersonEpisode: "Core Values"
2019–2020 Doom Patrol Oyewah7 episodes

Video games

YearTitleRoleNotes
2018 State of Decay 2 Lynne (Medical Nurse)Live action role


Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gabrielle Union</span> American actress (born 1972)

Gabrielle Monique Union-Wade is an American actress. Her career began in the 1990s, when she made dozens of appearances on television sitcoms, prior to landing supporting roles in 1999 teen films She's All That and 10 Things I Hate About You. She rose to greater prominence the following year, after she landed her breakthrough role in the teen film Bring It On.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mara Wilson</span> American actress (born 1987)

Mara Wilson is an American actress. She rose to prominence as a child actress playing Natalie Hillard in the film Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) and went on to play Susan Walker in Miracle on 34th Street (1994), the title character in Matilda (1996), and Annabel Greening in A Simple Wish (1997). Following her role as Lily in Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000), Wilson took a 12-year hiatus from acting to focus on writing. She returned to acting in 2012 and has predominantly worked in web series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Somaly Mam</span> Cambodian writer and activist

Somaly Mam is a Cambodian anti-trafficking advocate who focuses primarily on sex trafficking. From 1996 to 2014, Mam was involved in campaigns against sex trafficking. She set up the Somaly Mam Foundation, raised money, appeared on major television programs, and spoke at many international events.

<i>Comrades: Almost a Love Story</i> 1996 Hong Kong film

Comrades: Almost a Love Story is a 1996 Hong Kong film starring Maggie Cheung, Leon Lai, Eric Tsang, and Kristy Yang. It was directed by Peter Chan. The Chinese title refers to "Tian Mi Mi", a song by Teresa Teng whose songs are featured in the film. It was filmed on location in Hong Kong and New York City. Leon Lai later commented in 1997 that the story of Li Xiao Jun is somewhat a description of his own life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angelina Jolie</span> American actress (born 1975)

Angelina Jolie is an American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award and three Golden Globe Awards, she has been named Hollywood's highest-paid actress multiple times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saoirse Ronan</span> American-born Irish actress (born 1994)

Saoirse Una Ronan is an American-born Irish actress. Primarily known for her work in period dramas since adolescence, she has received various accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, in addition to nominations for four Academy Awards and five British Academy Film Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenny McCarthy</span> American actress and model (born 1972)

Jennifer Ann McCarthy-Wahlberg is an American actress, model, and television personality. She began her career in 1993 as a nude model for Playboy magazine and was later named their Playmate of the Year. McCarthy then had a television and film acting career, beginning as a co-host on the MTV game show Singled Out (1995–1997) and afterwards starring in the eponymous sitcom Jenny (1997–1998), as well as films including BASEketball (1998), Scream 3 (2000), Dirty Love (2005), John Tucker Must Die (2006), and Santa Baby (2006). In 2013, she hosted her own television talk show The Jenny McCarthy Show, and became a co-host of the ABC talk show The View, appearing on the program until 2014. Since 2019, McCarthy has been a judge on the Fox musical competition show The Masked Singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cristina Vee</span> American voice actress (born 1987)

Cristina Danielle Valenzuela, known professionally as Cristina Vee, is an American voice actress. She provides voices for English dubs of anime, animation, and video games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mahira Khan</span> Pakistani actress (born 1984)

Mahira Hafeez Khan is a Pakistani film and television actress. One of the most popular and highest-paid actresses of Pakistan, she is the recipient of several accolades, including seven Lux Style Awards and seven Hum Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alicia Vikander</span> Swedish actress (born 1988)

Alicia Amanda Vikander is a Swedish actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, and nominations for two Golden Globe Awards and three British Academy Film Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellen Pao</span> American businesswoman (born 1970)

Ellen Kangru Pao is an American investor and former interim CEO of social media company Reddit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maude Apatow</span> American actress (born 1997)

Maude Annabelle Apatow is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Lexi Howard in the HBO drama series Euphoria (2019–present).

<i>Z Nation</i> Post-apocalyptic dark comedy series on Syfy

Z Nation is an American horror television series that aired on Syfy, created by Karl Schaefer and Craig Engler, and was produced by The Asylum. The first season of 13 episodes premiered on September 12, 2014. Z Nation was filmed in the Spokane, Washington, area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leelah Alcorn</span> American transgender girl (1997–2014)

Leelah Alcorn was an American transgender girl whose suicide attracted international attention; she had posted a suicide note to her Tumblr blog about societal standards affecting transgender people and expressing the hope that her death would create a dialogue about discrimination, abuse, and lack of support for transgender people.

Mia Khalifa is a Lebanese-American media personality and former pornographic film actress and webcam model. Born and raised in Lebanon, she and her family relocated to the United States in 2001. Her career in pornographic films lasted approximately three months beginning in October 2014, and she soon became the most-viewed performer on Pornhub. Her career choice was met with controversy after the release of a video in which she performed in a threesome while wearing a hijab; the scene brought Khalifa instant popularity as well as criticism from writers and religious figures. In 2015, Khalifa was voted the "Number 1 Porn Star" on Pornhub. In January 2017, xHamster reported that she was the most-searched-for adult actress of 2016. In 2018, she became the most-searched-for actress on Pornhub.

Rey (<i>Star Wars</i>) Fictional character from Star Wars

Rey is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. She was created by Lawrence Kasdan, J. J. Abrams, and Michael Arndt for The Force Awakens (2015), the first installment of the sequel film trilogy, and is primarily portrayed by Daisy Ridley. Rey also appears in the film's sequels, The Last Jedi (2017) and The Rise of Skywalker (2019), and related Star Wars media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mackenzie Ziegler</span> American singer and actress (born 2004)

Mackenzie Frances Ziegler is an American singer, actress, former dancer, and internet personality. She appeared as a child for six years on the Lifetime reality dance series Dance Moms together with her older sister, dancer and actress Maddie Ziegler.

Dianne Doan is a Canadian actress. She is known for portraying Kora in season 7 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and as the character of Mai Ling in Cinemax's Warrior.

Ramona Abish Young is an American actress. She is known for her recurring roles on the television series Man Seeking Woman, The Real O'Neals, and Santa Clarita Diet. Young is also known for her regular roles as Kaya on Z Nation, Mona Wu on Legends of Tomorrow and Eleanor on Never Have I Ever.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Pisay Pao (November 1, 2016). "Pisay Pao Twitter". Twitter . Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Naluda (January 1, 2016). "Pisay Pao". Naluda Interviews. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  3. CHAW, KENNETH (10 March 2016). "Meet Cambodian-American actress Pisay Pao". Star2.com. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  4. Katie Sauro (March 31, 2015). "Pisay's Power Play". Media Inc. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Darcy Tharp (June 9, 2016). "Z Nation star Pisay Pao talks acting and staying in shape". Most Magazine . Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  6. Yang, Pauline (August 28, 2015). "Getting to Know Z Nation's Pisay Pao". CharacterMedia. Archived from the original on February 8, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  7. 1 2 Amrie (September 11, 2015). "Previewing Z NATION Season 2 with Pisay Pao". My Take On... Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  8. 1 2 Bianca Teixeira (September 18, 2015). "A Woman You Should Meet: Pisay Pao". Sharp Magazine. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  9. Finkle, David (March 17, 2022). "What You Are Now: A Cambodian Family in Universally Identifiable Memory Denial". New York Stage Review. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  10. Kumar, Naveen (March 18, 2022). "Review: In 'What You Are Now,' Memory Is a Dangerous Thing". The New York Times . Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  11. Pisay Pao (December 11, 2017). "Pisay Pao Twitter". Twitter . Retrieved December 17, 2017.