Based on the memoirs of Li Cunxin, director Bruce Beresford's Mao's Last Dancer tells the true story of a young man who, at the age of 11, was plucked from a poor Chinese village and taken to Beijing to study ballet. In 1979, during a cultural exchange to Texas, he fell in love with an American woman. CLINT MORRIS caught up with real-life ballet dancers, Amanda Schull(of the San Francisco Ballet Company) and Camilla Vergotis (of the Hong Kong Ballet), who have ‘acting' roles in the film.

Amanda, first of all, it's all your fault my wife is now doing ballet! [Laughs] No, in all seriousness, she was inspired by your performance in Center Stage - not to mention the ‘Red Tutu' that I never hear the end of! - and decided to sign up!

AS : Oh, tell her thank you! That's so nice to hear! In addition to the red tutu, they put glitter all over my lips - and not ‘make-up glitter' it was ‘glitter, glitter'! It was all over my mouth! And I kept eating it! [Laughs]

Really? Now have you found that a lot of young women have signed up to ballet classes as a result of the film?

AS : Yeah, I have found that - and guys too! I've met a lot of guys who says the film changed their perception about ballet. The only thing with that movie was a lot of fans would wait outside the San Francisco Ballet Company for me - waiting for me to come out. They knew no boundaries. They were so determined. They're definitely not shy. There are times when I was physically chased by them - like physically chased!

Wow! And of course they wouldn't be able to separate you from the character.

AS : Yes, exactly! They'd always be calling me by the character's name - Jody.

That movie obviously changed your career - but is acting something you had even considered?

AS : I always thought ‘if it happened, it happened' - but it wasn't something I actively pursued. I'd get asked when I was younger what I wanted to do and I'd say ‘well I'm dancing now, but we will see what happens after wards'. The stars aligned, and the universe seemingly did have something else in store for me.

And what about you Camilla, did you ever envision becoming an actress?

CV : I always loved acting at school. And when I started ballet, I realized that I typically enjoyed doing the type of ballet performances that involved telling some kind of story. So I jumped at the chance to do this. As for whether I'll keep doing it, I guess I'll see what happens.

How did you get involved in this movie?

CV : I was performing in The Nutcracker and little did I know Bruce Beresford was watching my show. He was scouting the Australian Ballet Company looking for someone to play the role of Mary. I met him after wards, and he asked me for I'd like to read for the role.... And I got it!

And Amanda?

AS : Oh my story is so much more boring [Laughs]. I got the script, and then I got to audition. So Hollywood!

But when you read the script, and you realized you're being offered the role of the character that's not dancing, what did you think?

AS : I loved it! I remember when my agent told me about the part I just assumed it'd be another dance movie [like Center Stage]. But then she told me that there was really only one scene where you see me practicing ballet, and that's about it! I was excited! It was more of a dramatic part. I was honored that they would even consider me for the part!

Did you know of the book?

AS : I knew of the book, and I knew of the story, but I hadn't read the book. And I didn't want to read the book until I knew that I had gotten the part. I just didn't want to go get too invested in it, and too excited about it, if it wasn't going to get it.

Was this your first gig since Center Stage?

AS : I went back to the San Francisco Ballet Company after Center Stage, but I've been in L.A for a while now so I've done some other acting parts - but I can't even think of what.... Mustn't be that memorable [Laughs]

Ha! Was it good to get back into acting with this one?

AS : It was! And it was a great refresher course for me - everything had to be explained to me again. It was good too because everyone was around the same age. It was a familiar setting. I felt really comfortable. It was nice to go to work and enjoy what I was doing.

And was most of the film was shot here in Australia?

CV : I shot half of it in Beijing. The other half was shot in Sydney.

AS : All of the stuff that wasn't in China was Sydney - well besides some exterior shots that a second unit got [in America].

Had you been to Australia before?

AS : No, and when I read the script and saw which part I'd been cast in I just assumed I'd be going to Houston for a while - which is Okay, it would still have been an adventure because it would've taken me out of L.A, but wow! I never expected Australia! When my agent told me I'd be going to Australia for a couple of months, I screamed! It was great! I've made some great friends here - especially in Melbourne - and I took classes here at the Ballet school, and I got to see the sights too!

What did you know about Australia before coming here?

AS : Honestly, I didn't know anything. I don't think I've ever told anyone this - maybe I told Bruce [Beresford] - but when I first got to L.A our acting coach asked us to write down what goals, or what things we wanted to accomplish in our lives, on a bit of a paper. I wrote ‘to work with an Academy Award-nominated director'. And number two, ‘To work in overseas or in somewhere like Australia'. I swear to God!  I guess if you bury it in your subconscious, you can make it happen... somehow!?

Isn't that how ‘The Secret' works?

AS : You know, I have The Secret on DVD but it's still in plastic - I haven't watched it!

CV : It is. It's based on the Law of Attraction. But the book has things in it like, ‘If you want that bike, you will wake up and that bike will be there!' - so you got to take most of it with a grain of salt. But it's all about positive thinking.

What was it about Ballet that attracted you guys to it in the first place?

AS : I hated it. My mum forced me to do it.

How old were you when you started?

AS : I was about 6. And at that stage, all we did was play. But the more disciplined it got, the less I wanted to do it. I was always the one getting into trouble because I wasn't paying attention. But by the time I was say, fourteen, I realized that the better you are at something the more fun it is. I wasn't the biggest advocate at the time, but now I am.

CV : I loved it! I always looked forward to the next ballet class. I'd get ready in the car, after school, so I would be ready by the time I got to ballet class and would have more time to practice. I lived on the Gold Coast, and my brothers would be dropped off at the Beach and I'd be taken to a hot tin shed where we'd practice Ballet. I wasn't obsessed, but I just loved it - it was like my everyday breathing!

AS : But you were good at it from the beginning, that probably made a difference. My favourite part was the ‘going to' Ballet. We had a carpool and I just loved talking to my friends in the car.

CV : I had a ballet teacher that was very encouraging, I think that made the difference with me.

AS : There you go - if you're inspired, and you have someone encouraging you, you can accomplish anything.