In 2014, Chen began a 4-year Master of Fine Arts in Drama (MFA) Program at the Juilliard School in New York City. She graduated in May 2018.[7]
Career
Television
2005–06: Entry to the TV scene
In 2005, Chen began her professional acting career when she signed an 8-year contract with TVB. She started out as a host on numerous variety shows on TVB's Mandarin channel TVB8, before making her acting debut in the TVB series Forensic Heroes guest starring as a murderess.
2007–09: Breakthrough
Chen at the HFC Park 'n Shop in Hong Kong (2007)
In 2007, after starring in Heart of Greed, The Family Link, and Steps, Chen won her first acting award in the Best Supporting Actress category for her role in Steps.[4] Additionally, she was also nominated for "My Favorite Female Character" and "Most Improved Actress" categories for the same role. She also received a nomination in the "Most Improved Actress" category for her roles in Heart of Greed and The Family Link in 2007.
Chen's breakthrough came in 2008, when her notable work was for the character of Gam Wing Hing (a mute girl) in TVB series Moonlight Resonance, an indirect sequel to Heart of Greed, as she had to learn sign language for the role.[4][8][9] The role landed her nominations in the "Best Supporting Actress" and "My Favorite Female Character" categories for the second year in a row.
Chen dancing onstage with Michael Tse at London's Brent Cross shopping centre, during Happy Family Gala (2008)
In 2009, Chen was nominated again for the "Best Supporting Actress" and "My Favorite Female Character" categories for her role in The Stew of Life.
2010–13: Leading roles and entry to the music scene
She later took on roles as the first female lead in productions including Lives of Omission, Queens of Diamonds and Hearts, and Triumph in the Skies II. Lives of Omission (2011) was a distant sequel to the 2009 film Turning Point in which Chen had also acted in as the sister of a triad boss. Queens of Diamonds and Hearts (2012) allowed Chen to experiment with looking 'ugly' on screen as her character Chung Mo Yim, based on historical figure Zhongli Chun, was born with a prominent birth mark on her face. Chen played the role of Holiday Ho in Triumph in the Skies II —a free-spirited punk girl who aspires to fly—who became emotionally entangled between two male leads, Captain Samuel Tong played by Francis Ng and Captain Jayden Koo played by Julian Cheung. Chen also starred in 2013's Will Power alongside veteran actors Wayne Lai and Moses Chan where she played the role of Sam Yuet Kan, a junior barrister with a tough personality.
Her contract with TVB ended in mid 2013 and Chen became a self-managed artiste. Having more freedom to choose and ever so determined to become a better actress, Chen would like to direct her focus on filming more movies and dramas, and she is not afraid to take up new challenges.
2014: Entry into China's TV industry
Chen acted in her first mainland Chinese drama series, Sound of the Desert, where she played the role of Li Yan.[2] It aired in 2014 and was based on the historical romance novel Ballad of the Desert by Tong Hua.
In 2009, Chen took her chance at her first female lead role in the movie Turning Point as Michael Tse's girlfriend and Francis Ng's sister. Turning Point is a spin-off from the 2009 TVB crime drama E.U., where the character "Laughing Gor", played by Michael Tse, became a household name.
In 2010, Chen starred in two movies, Black Ransom and 72 Tenants of Prosperity. In Black Ransom, she acted as a superintendent, alongside internationally acclaimed Hong Kong actor and film producer, Simon Yam. 72 Tenants of Prosperity on the other hand, was a light-hearted Hong Kong comedy film directed by Eric Tsang, involving a star-studded cast of Hong Kong stars.
Chen took to the movie scene again in 2011, acting in the first installment of the heartwarming I Love Hong Kong film series, directed and produced by Eric Tsang. She too worked together with Eric Tsang again who produced and acted in The Fortune Buddies, another Hong Kong comedy film which also co-stars Louis Yuen, Wong Cho-lam and Johnson Lee who are better known as "Fuk Luk Sau" (福祿壽).
Tales from the Dark 2 (2013) was her first shot at the horror movie scene, and acting with her is Gordon Lam. Chen's story revolves around pillow demons, where her character Chow Jing Ee is seen to suffer from serious insomnia after her break-up with her boyfriend Yuen Hao Hong, played by Gordon Lam. Chen delivered a stellar performance, and was commended for the preparation work she did prior to filming, by staying a few nights alone in the cold apartment they filmed at to get into character and understand the loneliness and insomnia that the character suffered. The media had focused on the scene where Chen's character accidentally killed her boyfriend and tried to get rid of the corpse by taking off all of his garments and putting him into a vacuum bag. This is the first time that Gordon Lam has gone fully nude in a film. Owing to the explicit scenes, the movie has received a Category III rating.[10]
Chen starred in the Cantonese version of Despicable Me 3 as the voice of Lucy Wilde, an Anti-Villain League agent, Gru's wife and the girls' adoptive mother. Doing voiceover for an animation film for the first time, Chen commented that it requires a lot of energy and precision to sync with the character's lip movement and it takes capturing the unique sounds and myriad of nuances in personality to bring the character to life.
Ever since Chen's contract with Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) concluded in 2013, she went on to pursue a 4-year Master of Fine Arts in Drama (MFA) Program at Juilliard School with the passion and determination to better herself as a professional artiste. The MFA Program only accepts 8 to 10 students each year, and encompasses areas such as production, directing, playwriting, pedagogy, and current trends in American and World Theater.
Chen's debut on the theatre stage came in 2016 with Skylight – the premiere of Chinese adaptation of the 1995 British play written by David Hare that debuted in West End and Broadway. The play was scheduled to run for 24 shows at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, but due to overwhelming responses, 11 additional shows were added, making that a total of 35 shows running across 1 July 2016 to 14 August 2016. Starring alongside Dayo Wong and Terrance Lau, Skylight was a sold-out show within a few hours, and it received plenty of raving positive reviews including praises for Chen's performance as a theatre actor.
In 2010, Chen signed under Stars Shine International and subsequently launched her first Canto-pop debut album, Beautiful Life, released on 31 July 2012. Some of the highlights from the album are "一半", "愛上鳥", and "Beautiful Life". Among these songs, "一半" was the first plugged song which garnered her awards in the Best Newcomer category across various music platforms such as 2012 TVB8 Golden Music Awards for the Bronze Award, 2012 Jade Solid Gold Best Ten Music Awards Presentation, and "2013 IFPI Hong Kong Top Sales Music Awards".
Within a week from the launch of her album, it had climbed up to first place on HMV's 'Asian Album Top Sales Chart'.[citation needed]
Chen was the spokesperson for Olay in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. She was also Hong Kong Cancer Fund’s Pink Ambassador for the Pink Revolution Campaign, held every October to promote breast cancer awareness and raise funds to support free services for patients and their families.
Personal life
In 2008, Chen married Hong Kong businessman (later actor) Daniel Sit. In 2011, she brought Sit to attend a church sermon delivered by friend and No Regrets costar Sheren Tang, hoping to expose him to the Christian faith.[15] The couple divorced in 2013.
In 2019, Chen married French entrepreneur Emmanuel Straschnov.[16][17] In February 2021, she announced that she had given birth to a daughter.[18]
On 18 March 2024, Chen announced via Instagram that she had given birth to a son.[19]
