VIET THANH NGUYEN
Viet Thanh Nguyen’s novel The Sympathizer won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and numerous other awards. His most recent publication is A Man of Two Faces: A Memoir, A History, A Memorial. His other books are the sequel to The Sympathizer, The Committed; a short story collection, The Refugees; Nothing Ever Dies: Vietnam and the Memory of War (a finalist for the National Book Award in nonfiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award in General Nonfiction); and Race and Resistance: Literature and Politics in Asian America. He has also published Chicken of the Sea, a children’s book written in collaboration with his son, Ellison. He is a University Professor at the University of Southern California. A recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim and MacArthur Foundations, he is also the editor of The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives.

HOA XUANDE
“Hoa Xuande is an extraordinary actor and breakout talent.

Xuande is the lead in the highly anticipated series THE SYMPATHIZER for A24 and HBO which will premiere on April 14 and roll out weekly episodes. The series hails from visionary director Park Chan-wook and is based on Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name and is set during the Vietnam war, the series follows ‘The Captain’ (Xuande) a North Vietnamese spy in the South Vietnamese army, who stays embedded in a South Vietnamese community in exile in the United States. The series also stars Robert Downey Jr., Sandra Oh and Fred Nguyen Kahn.

The Australian-native, Xuande’s other credits include the Cineflix series LAST KING OF THE CROSS opposite Tim Roth; COWBOY BEBOP for Netflix; and TOP OF THE LAKE: CHINA GIRL opposite Elisabeth Moss. He is a Graduate of WAAPA (other alumni include Hugh Jackman and Jai Courtney) who also speaks fluent French and Vietnamese. In addition to acting, he’s been a surfer for over 15 years, he is a fantastic singer (Baritone/Tenor Range) and also is a skilled guitarist.

Xuande currently resides in Sydney.”

PARK CHAN-WOOK
PARK Chan-wook is a South Korean film director, screenwriter, and producer who is among the most acclaimed iconoclastic auteurs in the world. Park has constructed a unique cinematic world with his unconventional storytelling, fascinating characters and sensual visuals. He is perhaps best known for his “Vengeance Trilogy”, consisting of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance. He became celebrated as a global auteur with Oldboy (2003), winner of the Grand Prix at the 57th Cannes Film Festival. In the years since, he has continued to receive worldwide acclaim with films such as Thirst (2009), which won the Jury Prize at the 62 nd Cannes Film Festival; Stoker (2013), his Hollywood debut; and The Handmaiden (2016) had its world premiere in competition at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival to universally rapturous reviews. BAFTA award-winning limited television series The Little Drummer Girl (2018), based on the le Carré novel, premiered at the London Film Festival. He directed and Executive Produced the series for BBC and AMC. Park also produced the internationally acclaimed Snowpiercer, directed by Bong Joon Ho and serves as Executive Producer on the ongoing TV series. In 2022, he came back with his first feature film in six years, Decision to Leave. He is currently co-showrunning a HBO TV series, The Sympathizer starring Robert Downey Jr.