Maria Tran

Community arts & advocacy

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.^[8] She went on to serve as a community arts trainer for several local councils in Western Sydney^[9][10] 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,^[11] and from 2013 to 2015, she 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.^[12][13]

Filmmaking

Tran began her career with the award-winning short Happy Dent (2008), followed by a series of action and comedy projects including Hit Girls (2012). She was recognized with the Screen NSW Emerging Producer Placement and commissioned to direct community films such as Change of Our Lives (2013),^[14] later selected for the Viet Film Fest.^[15]

Through ICE’s Produce Perfect program, she developed two original screenplays — the historical epic The Drums of Me Linh and the action-comedy Fury of the Far East — the latter evolving into Tiger Cops under ABC’s Fresh Blood scheme.^[16]

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.^[17][14] She later produced and starred in the self-documentary Quest for Jackie Chan! (2011), chronicling her filmmaking journey and her meeting with action star Jackie Chan.^{[18][19][dead link][20][dead link]}

In 2017, Tran established her production company Phoenix Eye and directed the mockumentary The Subtractor, examining challenges faced by Asian leads in Hollywood.^[21] She has also taught stage combat and fight choreography at AFTRS and led filmmaking workshops across regional New South Wales.

Tran made her feature debut with Echo 8 (2023), co-written with her sister Elizabeth H. Vu and co-starring Takashi Hara.^[22] Produced on a modest $10,000 budget, the film won Best Film at the Tokyo Film Awards and Best Feature Film – Women’s Film at the World Carnival–Singapore, and was later distributed on Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Apple TV+.

Building on its success, Tran launched The Echo 8 Trilogy, a female-driven martial arts action series produced by Phoenix Eye, with sequels Five by Five and Echo 8 Beyond scheduled for international release in 2026.

Acting career

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.^{[citation needed]}

Tran self-produced, directed, and acted in the action comedy Hit Girls, co-starring Juju Chan. She received the 2016 Breakout Female Action Performer of the Year at the Action On Film International Film Festival. After Hit Girls, she worked on Roger Corman's movie Fist of the Dragon, directed by Antony Szeto, starring Josh Thomson, and filmed in Guangzhou, China.^[23]

In 2015, Tran played the female antagonist "Phuong Lua" in the Vietnamese blockbuster Truy Sat^[24]

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"^[25] to produce 1 in response to the anti-Asian sentiment during that period.

In March 2022 it was reported that Tran joined the cast of the show Last King of the Cross.^[26] The same year she acted in the film Suka and The Gift that Gives.^[27]

Film

Television