Emily decided to pursue her passion in the performing arts after dabbling in the corporate world working for companies such as, Saatchi & Saatchi and Toyota Motor Sales. She studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and soon after, got her break in television recurring on ABC’s daytime drama "Port Charles".
Her other TV credits include: “Boston Legal”, “Lincoln Heights”, “What About Brian”, and Spike Lee’s Showtime movie, SUCKER FREE CITY. You can see her on the big screen this fall, starring in the Magnolia Pictures release, A GOOD DAY TO BE BLACK & SEXY, which was a hit at Sundance 2008. Her theatre highlights include: L.A. Theatre Works’ BOATS ON A RIVER (opposite Emmy award winning Gregory Itzen), Ziggurat Theatre’s RED THREAD (LA Weekly, LA Drama Critics Circle awards), Lodestone’s SOLVE FOR X, and Lane Nishikawa’s GILA RIVER.
Emily started her production company, Sweet Violet Films, three years ago because of a dearth of leading roles for Asian American actors. In 2006, she produced her first feature film, THE TROUBLE WITH ROMANCE, a comedy about relationships, which has toured festivals to sold-out houses and will be released in 2008.
Born in Salt Lake City and raised in Los Angeles, Emily grew up speaking Mandarin and trained in many disciplines including ballet, tap, jazz, piano, tennis, swimming, and horseback riding. Her talent for the arts was apparent when she won high school competitions for her oil paintings and regional/state competitions in ballroom dance.
Emily graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.A. in Psychology and was recently invited back as a keynote speaker. She also recently spoke on a panel for Women Leading in Entertainment at the NAAAP Convention (National Assoc. for Asian Americans) in Los Angeles.
Emily is the proud granddaughter of General Liu Fang-Wu, a Chinese national war hero who won the Burma War in WWII.
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