The following is an exclusive interview between Hollywood Weekly and Ms. Wang:
by Jenny Werth.
Jenny writes
In this issue, we have the colourful sunrise in Rebecca Wang’s eyes as she sets her sights on movie producing and passion.
In Rebecca, we find a gorgeous example of what makes a dazzling woman a rare gem; one illuminating both integrity and inspiration. Within her pure heart, the world celebrates a woman who embraces an inward commitment toward the betterment of society through her selfless contributions and the staggering success of her production company, Rebecca Wang Entertainment.
Indeed, Rebecca personifies a rare type of jewel. One that shines multiple rays of success on the myriad of her accomplishments. It takes extreme dedication to live a life that includes such rich adherence to so many purposes. As a graduate from UC Berkley with a Masters in Psychology, Rebecca has helped advance a steadfast resolve for the compassion for humanity. While with her dedication to a romance with fashion, she has also created designs of extraordinary beauty. And most recently, we find her tackling the challenging world of producing movies. Yet another in a long list that makes up an impressive resumé.
Rebecca Wang blooms in the light. She flowers as seamlessly as the lotus flower that serves as her production company’s logo. She thrives in the daylight’s vigor, and by night, beams under the bright flashes from red-carpet photographers. For no matter which brand of light falls on Rebecca, she remains radiant underneath them all.
Hollywood Weekly: What would you say were formative influences and inspirations for you as a teenager and then a young adult?
Rebecca Wang: My formative influences and inspirations for me as a teenager were sport, ballet and piano. The discipline of all that physical exercise and practice inspired me and has given me inner strength and confidence, as well as a commitment to my own optimum well-being. However, of greater impact than this was the influence of film and fashion. “e #lm stories and the glamorous visions of fashion both made a big impression on me.
H W: Do any of these inspirations and influences still impact you today?
R W: Yes, they are both two vital and continuing passions of my life. I also learned the piano as a little girl. “is did not come easily, but it opened me to the world of music and, like ballet, forced me to develop the skills of being disciplined, focused and patient.
H W: Whereabouts did you live and travel during your formative years? How did this help shape/influence your current perception of people from different cultural, social and economic backgrounds?
R W: As a child I grew up in Asia, and have later lived and worked in the US and Europe, and am now based out of London. In addition to this, every summer when I was young I would travel with my family. Each year was a whole set of new experiences, and the new education I was given about different cultures was not only exciting but also very rewarding. I still love to travel, along with all the enrichment that it brings. I feel I have been fortunate to have had such a broad experience, as it has given me an ability to feel at ease in a wide range of global, social and cultural contexts. It has also taught me to be open-minded and compassionate towards people no matter what their background is
H W: Beyond your work in cinema and with your production company, what are your passions in life and why?
R W: My passions are wide-ranging, but for the most encompass the arts. I appreciate all art forms, most especially film, photography and fashion, and this passion has led to me becoming both a member of the Circle for BAFTA – the British Academy for Film and Television Awards, and of the Director Circle of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and in addition, patron to the Tate Modern, National Portrait and Serpentine galleries and Royal Academy of Music in London.
H W: Are there any belief or value systems which you hold dear in life?
R W: I hold the values of honesty and integrity very dear. Respect and loyalty are also qualities that are highly significant for me. For example, I have chosen a lotus flower as my company’s logo, since the values it embodies reflect my beliefs. The journey of a lotus flower growing towards the light is like that of a human on their life path: we meet obstacles that will make us strong and whole. To overcome them, we have to go beyond negativity in ourselves and practise persistence, patience and faith, and make the best and most fully conscious choices that we can.
H W: Having graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a Masters degree in Clinical Psychology, you then practised at various leading institutions, including the University of California, in addition to several elementary schools, specialising in family, children and counselling. What led you to this early career choice, and the areas of psychology you chose to practise in? What gave you the greatest satisfaction in this work, and what did you learn from it? How did your knowledge and experience in this #eld help and inform your passion for all art forms?
R W: I have always trusted my intuition. From a young age I found it never to be far o$ the mark. I decided to develop what was already innate and channel it into education. I gravitated towards clinical psychology because of the huge fascination I had and have for people and how our minds work, what trigger our reactions, and why we behave the way we do in certain situations. I was fortunate to be accepted at Berkeley, as its psychology major is known to be exceptional. During this process, I developed my own understanding both of myself and of others, and this also extended my ability to show empathy in my approach as a therapist. My fulfilment in the post-graduate work came from the privilege of being able to hear about other peoples’ life stories, which greatly increased my capacity for both experiencing compassion and awareness, and incorporating these qualities into my personal and professional worlds. “is gave me the opportunity to hopefully make a positive contribution to the lives of others. Seeing someone heal, grow and go beyond their previous limitations was what gave me the greatest satisfaction. The connection from that work to my passion for the arts came with the recognition that in therapy, arts have a healing role. They can create a sense or an experience of comfort and harmony for a person, which may enable them to release pain, and to connect with joy
H W: What drives and motivates you in your projects?
R W: When working on any of my projects, I am driven primarily by the ability to create, to see and to watch an idea grow and develop from nothing into a finished entity. For me it is a privilege to be able to experience and develop or learn from that complete process. “at is what drives and motivates me the most.
H W: Philanthropy is very important to you. At what point did you realise that you had the ability to make an impact on this world for the better, and what guides you when choosing projects to support?
R W: I believe I was practising philanthropy from a young age, always giving and sharing my clothes and toys with others, or passing them on to charity when I had no further use for them. The attitude and actions developed naturally from there. I feel that philanthropy is a universal human attribute we all have within ourselves; we can all make a difference if we choose. Outside of the arts world, when choosing which projects to support, the area of health and humanitarian issues is important to me. For example, my admiration and respect for the pioneering work and achievements of amFAR (the American Foundation for AIDS Research), has led me both to support them and become involved in their iconic charity Gala Series. Most recently I acted as sponsor to the 2012 Inspiration Gala held in Paris, and acted as one of the chairs for this year’s Inspiration Gala held in New York.
H W: We have seen photos of you appearing on major gala event red carpets, standing next to A-list celebrities. Frankly, in most instances, you look more comfortable than the celebrity. What is it about your concept of and sense for fashion and style that enables you to look so re#ned in front of the cameras?
R W: For me fashion and style are an extension of an individual’s personality, value systems and overall awareness. As a teenager, I was a tomboy who developed a love a$air with fashion, and would secretly register for fashion design courses in the summer. My mother also had a major influence: always impeccably dressed and groomed, she would take me along with her to fashion shows in Paris, and also to museums and major art exhibitions. I believe that early exposure to fashion
greatly helped cultivate my sense of style and taste. Beyond these factors, when attending a special event, I always make a habit of retreating to my own space away from the excitement and mania, and take some time to meditate or practise yoga. I believe that these both calm me and also cause me to feel mentally more prepared for all that is to follow, and that, perhaps, is why I might appear to look comfortable in front of the camera and in these settings
H W: Your accomplishments as an Executive Film Producer and as a CEO of your own Production Company are very impressive. How does that feel to you, and how does it feel be an inspiration for success?
R W: Like most people, I never feel myself to be standing on top of a completed mountain of impressive accomplishments. No matter what you achieve, you generally always want to strive further
H W: During your time in the entertainment industry, what do you consider to have been your greatest achievement, and what obstacles did you have to overcome to achieve this?
R W: To have gone into a whole new arena, and for the first time, and without any previous experience to have produced a full length feature Hollywood film – with two Oscar nominated actors Bill Murray and Mickey Rourke (also a BAFTA winner), and also the talents of Megan Fox and British actor Rhys Ifans, was an achievement and also a major learning curve for me. Being able to overcome each obstacle as it occurred on a daily basis, was the ongoing challenge I had to meet.
My greatest achievement in all this was the learning and personal growth I gained from the experience, most especially that of breaking through my own fears and limitations.
H W: It is clear that you are on a path of continuous development and connection, in which areas do you see your next direction as being, and why?
R W: Across all my fields of work and interests, things are constantly moving and fluid.I embrace new possibilities and take them as they come.
