Meet Bing Fu | Actor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bing Fu and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bing, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I was born in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. It’s a small city about 30 minutes northwest of Knoxville. For those who might not know, it was known as “The Secret City” as it was developed and built in secrecy during World War 2 as part of the Manhattan Project – the U.S. effort to develop an atomic bomb. My parents settled there in the late 60’s after my father got a job at the national lab out there.

Growing up there was interesting as it was a very eclectic mix of types of people – scientists, non-scientists, black, white, and quite a lot of people like my parents who came there from other countries to create a really diverse mix of national origins and cultures.

I believe that I learned a lot from that experience about how to get along with people from different walks of life and from different backgrounds. And I think that has really helped me to try and have an open mind that people don’t fit into boxes and that diversity in backgrounds and cultures can be a positive thing.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I became an actor almost by accident, as I started participating relatively late in life. There was an online call for models at a local talent agency – with whom I’m still with by the way – and mostly on a whim I decided to submit. I was fortunate enough to be able to achieve some success with small commercial and television roles.

Having not had any real background in dramatic acting, this small success in front of the camera created an interest for me in scripted, theatrical acting for tv and film. I was able to meet like minded individuals in my area who were nice enough to include me in their projects and gain some experience and refine my craft.

I am still relatively new to it, all things considered, with only small minor roles and independent projects under my belt. But I try to carry as much of a natural feeling into all of my performances as I can. Early on it was the easiest to have those characters essentially be a reflection of myself – friend, father, coworker, etc.. But more recently I’ve been able to stretch my range some into more serious or even darker roles so I’m excited to see where those will take me.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Hm that’s a tough one but I think there are definitely a lot of really big, fun things in this area that many people enjoy.

I’d say the number one thing that draws people to this area is the natural beauty. Growing up here I kind of took it for granted seeing it every day but as I get older I have learned to appreciate it more and more. Of course the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited park in the country, so we would have to include that. But there are a lot of other state parks and natural areas – and lots of beautiful waterfalls – within short drives of Knoxville itself. We could spend the whole week doing those.

For sports fans of course the biggest draw here is the University of Tennessee. From football, to basketball, to baseball, to soccer… they have an incredible fan base and incredible facilities to take in the sights and sounds of whatever sport is going on at the time. Definitely have to catch a performance of Rocky Top!

Food and drink in Knoxville has evolved tremendously from a chain restaurant purgatory when I was young to a thriving food scene now. There is truly something for everyone here. Whether it’s along Gay Street, in Market Square, or The Old City, what was once a vacant downtown area has been revitalized into something exciting, alive, and new again in recent years.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shoutout goes to Cody McHan.

Cody is a filmmaker from East Tennessee with whom I’ve collaborated with in the past several times as an actor. He is a very talented writer and storyteller and I believe his name and his work deserves to be told to a wider audience.

Website: https://m.imdb.com/name/nm10591445/

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