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Maria Tran (Vietnamese: Maria Trần, born January 30, 1985) is a Vietnamese-Australian actress, martial artist, producer, and director based in Sydney, Australia and Las Vegas, Nevada.[1] She has appeared in the Australian comedy series Fat Pizza: Back in Business, Street Smart, as well as international productions like Fist of the Dragon (produced by Roger Corman), Death Mist, and Tracer.
Tran has directed and starred in several independent action short films, including Hit Girls, Gaffa, Enter the Dojo, and Operation Kung Flu[2]. In 2023, she portrayed "Madame Tien" in the Paramount+ television series Last King of the Cross.[3] She also served as producer, director, and lead actor in Echo 8, a microbudget, community-led action film.[4][5]
She has won awards such as the Breakout Female Performer award at the International Action on Film Festival and the 2016 Female Action Performer of the Year at MartialCon.[6]
Born in Brisbane, Australia,[7] Tran's parents were refugees who fled Vietnam in the 1980s. Her father was a former soldier in the South Vietnamese Army and her mother worked in publicity. She has a younger sister, Elizabeth H. Vu,[8] a collaborating screenwriter. Her family moved to Sydney before settling in Brisbane, where they opened a fish-and-chip shop. Tran attended Dinmore State School and Camira State School before moving to Sydney and attending Villawood Public School, Fairfield West Public School, Westfields Sports High School, Sunnybank State High School, and Canley Vale High School.
After becoming a victim of a school bullying incident,[9] Tran began taking taekwondo lessons in 1998. She left home at 16 and moved back to Brisbane. She returned to Sydney a year later to finish school[7] where she graduated in 2002 from Canley Vale High School. She later attended the University of Western Sydney[7], where she graduated with a Bachelor of Psychology in 2007.
Tran first became involved in filmmaking in 2007 through a community filmmaking workshop, and later became a coordinator and educator working with culturally diverse and at-risk youth.[10] She went on to serve as a community arts trainer for several local councils in Western Sydney[11][12], and was a guest lecturer in filmmaking and digital media at the Australian National University.
In 2013, Tran directed her first theatre production, Press Play,[13] and from 2013 to 2015, held the role of Vice-President (External Affairs) for the Vietnamese Community of Australia in New South Wales. In 2019, she was selected as an Australian representative for the Australia–Vietnam Leadership Dialogue.[14][15]
Tran is an Australian filmmaker whose work spans documentary, drama, action comedy, and martial arts genres. Her early recognition came with Happy Dent, a documentary-drama that won Best Film and Achievement in Directing at the 2008 Shortcuts Film Festival, leading to the creation of the six-part kung fu micro-series Downtown Rumble.
In 2009, she received the Metroscreen Multicultural Mentorship Scheme for her short film A Little Dream, which she directed under the mentorship of Khoa Do.[16][17] She later produced and starred in the self-documentary Quest for Jackie Chan! (2011),[18][19][20] chronicling her filmmaking journey and her meeting with action star Jackie Chan. In 2016, Screen NSW awarded her a stunt attachment on Jackie Chan’s film Bleeding Steel.
Tran went on to direct and produce a series of short action films, including the action-comedy Hit Girls (2012). That year, she was also awarded the Screen NSW Emerging Producer Placement.[17] In 2013, she was commissioned by the Cancer Council and Information & Cultural Exchange (ICE) to direct Change of Our Lives, a community health film later selected for the 2014 Viet Film Fest.[21]
In 2014, Tran developed two original screenplays through ICE's Produce Perfect program:[22] the Vietnamese historical epic The Drums of Me Linh and the action-comedy Fury of the Far East, the latter of which later evolved into Tiger Cops under the ABC Fresh Blood scheme. The Drums of Me Linh was later adapted into a bilingual children’s book in collaboration with illustrator Britney Fong and Lost in Books.[23]
In 2017, Tran established her production company Phoenix Eye,[24] producing and directing the mockumentary The Subtractor, which explored challenges faced by Asian leads in Hollywood. She has also taught at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS), specializing in stage combat and fight choreography, and has run filmmaking workshops across regional New South Wales.[25]
Tran made her feature directorial debut with Echo 8 (2023),[26] co-starring Japanese actor Takashi Hara. Self-funded on a $10,000 (AUD) budget, the film won several international awards, including Best Film at the Tokyo Film Awards and Best Feature Film – Women’s Film at the World Carnival–Singapore Film Festival.[1] It was later distributed on Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Apple TV+.[27]
Following its success, Tran created and starred in The Echo 8 Trilogy—a community-led, female-driven martial arts action film series produced by Phoenix Eye Films. The trilogy includes:
The trilogy was shot over 50 days with more than 200 cast and crew.[28] Tran collaborated with screenwriter Elizabeth H. Vu on the final two installments, which are scheduled for international release in 2026.[29]
Tran's first acting role was in Australia's first kung fu comedy, Downtown Rumble, in 2008, followed by her first TV role on the ABC Logie TV series My Place, Channel 7's Australia: The Story of US, and Channel 9's Love Child.
Her self-produced, directed, and acted action comedy Hit Girls, co-starring Juju Chan, earned her 2016 Breakout Female Action Performer of the Year at the Action On Film International Film Festival. After the film's success, she worked on Roger Corman's movie Fist of the Dragon, directed by Antony Szeto, starring Josh Thomson, and filmed in Guangzhou, China.
In 2015, Tran landed the role of leading female antagonist "Phuong Lua" in the Vietnamese blockbuster Truy Sat[30] starring Truong Ngoc Anh and filmed in Vietnam.
In 2018, Tran was cast as the comedic Tiger wife "Trans Phat" in Streets Smart , and the following year she was cast as nun-chuck wielding "Susie" in Fat Pizza: Back In Business.
During the COVID pandemic, Tran was commissioned by Diversity Arts Australia through their program "I am Not A Virus"[31] to produce 1 in response to the anti-Asian sentiment during that period.
In March 2022 it was reported[32] that Tran would be amongst the cast of Paramount+ show Last King of the Cross, alongside Lincoln Younes, Tess Haubrich, Callan Mulvey, Matt Nable and Tim Roth. She also had a role in the film Suka and The Gift that Gives.[33]
| Filmography Film Year Title Alternative title Role Notes | Title | Alternative title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Enter The Dojo | Fighter | also producer | |
| 2012 | Hit Girls | 《职业女杀手》 | Charlie Vu (Lead role) | also co-director |
| 2013 | Change of our Lives | Bich | also director and producer | |
| 2015 | Fist of the Dragon | 《猛龍追擊8小時》 | Zhen | |
| 2015 | The Challenge Letter | 《挑戰書》 | Jennifer | |
| 2016 | Tracer | Truy Sát | Phuong Lua | |
| 2021 | Operation Kung Flu[35] | Phoenix | also director and producer | |
| 2023 | Suka[36] | Lyn | ||
| 2023 | Knot | Karen Pang | ||
| 2023 | The Gift That Gives | Erin Huynh | ||
| 2023 | Echo 8[37] | Echo 8 | also director and producer |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Downtown Rumble | Apprentice | Main cast |
| 2009 | My Place | Thi Mai | 1 episode |
| 2015 | Australia: The Story of Us | Vietnamese Mother | 1 episode |
| 2015 | How Not to Behave | Beach Girl | 2 episodes |
| 2015 | Love Child | Hoang | Supporting cast (season 3) |
| 2017 | Tiger Cops | Tiger | Main cast |
| 2018 | Street Smart | Trans Phat | 8 episodes, Supporting cast |
| 2019–21 | Fat Pizza: Back In Business | Suzie | 4 episodes, Supporting cast |
| 2019 | Deadly Women | Thi | 1 episode |
| 2019 | Nightwalkers | Flashback Vamp | 1 episode |
| 2023 | Local Council | Kara | 2 episodes, Supporting cast |
| 2023 | Last King of the Cross | Tran Cat Tien | Main cast |
