I am SO sorry it has taken me a month to do this, but HELLO FROM NEW YORK!

After a long and agonising wait for all my necessary documentation and funding to get sorted, I ended up leaving London in a frantic whirlwind on Sept 11th 2011, exactly seven years to the day since I left Malaysia for the UK on Sept 11th 2004. I guess the old saying about life progressing in seven-year cycles is true! Everything fell into place in an abrupt flurry hence the lack of blog updates:  it was a Friday afternoon when my visa was approved just as we were moving out of our flat (literally- I was sitting in our corridor with our packed bags when I got the phone call), and by Sunday morning I was at Heathrow airport bidding a painful and teary goodbye to the country that had become my second home and my fiancé, who is responsible not only for selflessly encouraging me to audition for the ASDS in the first place but for helping me create and maintain this fundraising site.

The  irony of flying on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 into the very city where it took place is not lost on me-  that and the fact that a good friend’s roommate just happened to be moving out roughly the time I was arriving (hence freeing up her room for me to rent) makes me believe that this entire adventure was truly meant to be. To this day I cannot believe I am actually HERE, and it is the absolute truth when I say none of this would have been possible without every single one of you who have supported this site. Be it through dollars, newspaper columns, tweets, Facebook links, comments or supportive emails, I hope all of you realise just how big a role you have played in helping me to raise 70% of what I needed to make this opportunity a reality.

The battle is not yet over however- the remaining 30% required for the 2nd and 3rd year’s expenses is still a work in progress, and though it is not generally recommended (due to the strenuous hours of the course) I have applied for on-campus jobs in the hopes that I can earn the rest of what I need. It is unfortunately proving tough as most positions were filled before I even knew I was coming here, so until I get some kind of paying job the site will remain open to contributions. Nonetheless, I am positive it will all work out now that I am here and not fighting against the clock as much- once I suss out how to set up my baking/catering business here as well as provide private Pilates classes WITHOUT breaking US immigration law, things should be fine. In the meantime, I thought it would be nice to say hello so you don’t think I’ve forgotten you, and to update you a little on what life has been like in the past five weeks

WORKING YOUR BUTT OFF, BEING ON TIME AND OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF

The Actors Studio Drama School so far has been everything I could have hoped for and more: it is intense and hardcore in line with its notorious reputation, and every class exhausts and challenges you either intellectually, emotionally or physically. Above all however, it is utterly inspiring, and I am awed and humbled on a daily basis by the sheer experience and depth of knowledge that my teachers possess. There is nothing like being immersed completely in the company of like-minded artists all of whom share and understand your passion and seriousness in developing your craft, and I can only hope that beyond graduation I stand a chance of being accepted into the Actor’s Studio itself so that I can continue this practice with my peers for the rest of my career. The past month has already taught me more than any experience I have had so far, and I find myself excitedly scribbling pages of notes furiously so that I may one day repeat all that I am getting to Malaysians. I promise I will eventually, and I hope you will be patient with me as I concentrate on being a sponge and absorbing all I can.

Self-discipline and the establishment of good professional habits is the name of the game here, and one fantastic rule (particularly relevant to Malaysians!) is the ASDS’s uncompromising stand on punctuality.  The classroom/studio doors are locked at 0900 sharp if you have a 9am class- arrive at 9.01 or any later and you have to scribble your name on a piece of paper along with your time of arrival and slide it under the door. You then may or may not be allowed in at the teacher’s discretion when/if they spot the note. Two latenesses counts as an absence, two absences downgrades your mark by a half point (A+ becomes A-, A- becomes B+ etc) and once you hit B-, any scholarships you hold are potentially revoked and you risk being kicked off the course!

What a terrific idea- needless to say this zero-tolerance policy REALLY WORKS, and as a result I have been on time if not early for every single class. It is simply the best way of separating the ones who take it seriously from the ones who don’t, and should I ever set up a school or programme in future I fully intend to implement something similar.

I cannot wait to share more about what I have learnt so far, but for now it is time to get back to homework- this weekend it is transcribing mid-vowels using the International Phonetic Alphabet (for Neutral American Speech class, which will move on later into different accents), reading Chapter II of Lee Strasberg’s A Dream of Passion  and analysing Aristophanes’ Lysistrata for Theatre History tomorrow (we are currently learning about ancient Greek drama in order to understand the origins of acting and theatre). That and of course the mandatory daily actor’s journal, where we record things we notice about ourselves and others to help us develop the keen observation skills and attention to detail needed to play different characters. Fascinating stuff.

I am tired but happy, busy but inspired, excited for all that is to come and above all, grateful- thank you all for helping me on my way!

Just a quick update to say that with the help of this site and the scholarships, corporate sponsors as well as individual contributions that have come as a result, My ASDS Fund has now hit six figures with over $105,000 raised in the past few weeks!

Needless to say this is absolutely beyond anything I could have envisioned, and I owe it all not just to those who have clicked “Donate” or ordered a cake through my bake sale but also everyone who took the trouble to tweet and Facebook on my behalf, as well as of course R.Nadeswaran (who himself found out through the power of Twitter) for dedicating his widely-read Citizen Nades column in The Sun Daily to this 2 weeks ago.

Unbelievably we are now over 70% of the way there, and I could not feel more thankful and blessed at the support and encouragement I have received. There is still a little bit to go, but once the target of $150,000 is achieved all Paypal buttons will be disabled and removed to prevent raising more than I need (a delightful problem I never thought I’d had to face!).

Once again, THANK YOU!

x

Sam

With three weeks left to go before the first day at the ASDS begins, I have just received TERRIFIC news that Pace University has awarded me a substantial scholarship for international students which, combined with the other grants already received, means I have managed to raise my  tuition fees for 2011/2012 (as well as a large chunk of most of the other two years)!

 This page will therefore focus on raising the living expenses I still need. Thank you all so much for your support, I am eternally grateful!

Touching upon not just her background but also the creative mentors who had a significant impact upon her life, the article sees Samantha make her case for why it is so important that she makes it out to New York to hone her craft over the next three years.

To read the article in full CLICK HERE

R. Nadeswaran is a prominent Malaysian journalist and five-time winner of the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award- the Asian equivalent to the American Pulitzer Prize- for excellence in public service journalism and opinion writing.

Posted by Arivind Abraham, My ASDS Fund’s social media gremlin

I’ve worked with Samantha Tan on two major projects.

The first was 5:13, an independent psychological thriller.  She starred in this film, alongside Iki Putra.  I was the editor on this movie.  Samantha had the task of holding together a two-hander movie that focused solely on her character and her relationship with the character of Ash.  The film was entirely character driven so Sam was responsible for engaging with the audience, bringing them into her world and, being as it was a low-budget independent movie, had to convey the fear that her character was experiencing without big-budget special effects.  She completely pulled this off and the reviews that came back were positive, including some nice comparisons to Paranormal Activity.

The second project I worked with Samantha on was Timedancer, an interactive sci-fi experience for Windows Phone on which I am an executive producer and programmer.  Samantha played the role of Vivien, a member of a large corporation that had turned rogue.  Samantha had the challenge of playing the character in different points of time, stretching her emotional range.  She had to slip into this role for several short scenes, and lend her talents to voiceovers for explorative parts of the app.

It was very exciting and enjoyable working with Samantha on these projects.  She brings a level of dedication to what has been challenging roles.  In 5:13, she had to hold the captivation of the audience solely through her portrayal of her character, and in Timedancer she had to play an enigmatic role, bringing a level of mystery to her character.  Throughout this project she brought many different ideas to the table and the character of Vivien become quite collaboration and, especially in episode 2, she helped evolved the story in exciting new directions and I’m looking forward to working with her on Episode 3.

“Working with Sam is great – she brings a lot of energy to the work, and really tackles it head on. Having someone with her positive attitude is an absolute pleasure to work with.

Training as an actor is immensely important in order to understand the relationship you build with a director, but also to allow you to hone the skills you bring to the table.  Acting is a dark art and developing a proper toolset as an actor can mean building a foundation for a lifetime of career development.”

“Training is the key to the fuller use of one’s resources and talents to becoming an actor.

In our opinion the skill of integrating one’s own truths with that of the character is like any other pursuit of mastery. It requires effort, determination and guidance. An excellent training program that stretches one and inspires their creativity is of utmost importance.

Unfortunately the process of the development of an artist is very much undervalued until the label of “star” authenticates it.  A society is as rich as the appreciation of its artists. That is the legacy and heritage that we bequeath on our future generations.

We applaud Samantha’s striving for excellence.”

Here is a clip of Samantha & John in Episode 2 of Timedancer:

There in my inbox lay the most fantastic piece of news:  Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Vincent Tan, Chairman of the Berjaya Corporation has decided to award me a scholarship that will cover almost 70% of my remaining required tuition for the entire 3 years through his personal “Better Malaysia Foundation”!

*speechless*… Where do I start? “Thank you” seems hopelessly inadequate at this point, but Tan Sri if you are reading this… THANK YOU!

The focus of this site will now be to raise the 30% of fees I still need ($9,510 for this year) as well as living expenses (estimated at $16,142 by the school). Considering $3,682 has already been raised in the first week of this site, I truly believe with your continued support we can make this happen!

Thank you once again to everyone who has contributed so far!

It is a true testament to the incredible power of social media (and the general loveliness of people) that I have received support not only from the UK and Malaysia but also Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Norway, Texas and even Kansas City. Money aside, the messages of encouragement, the offers of constructive criticism on how to improve my site and of course the many who have clicked “Share” or “Retweet”  have been priceless contributions in themselves.

At the request of many, I will frequently be posting updates on how this fundraising site is doing. Please keep checking back and please keep spreading the word, and thank you once again!

Regards,

Samantha