#101 | Sky Liam | Wushu, Beijing and Acting

Actor Sky Liam on captaining USC's Taekwondo and Wushu teams, training and competing in Beijing, and life as an actor. Sky Liam attended the University of Southern California where he studied Theatre and Chinese language while captaining both the Tae Kwon Do and Wushu martial arts teams. After graduation he moved to Beijing, China, and spent time training and competing internationally. Sky grew up in Portland, Oregon and resides in Los Angeles. To learn more about Sky: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5379096 Chapters 0:00 Welcome Sky Liam 2:32 The other side of Portland 5:02 Growing up with a Vietnamese community 7:31 Peter Weir, The Last Wave and Gallipoli 10:07 A teacher who showed three moves at once 12:33 Samurai Showdown and video production camp 15:05 Two Portland passions that shaped him 17:30 Learning things you will use for life 20:07 Waiting for school results on TV 22:32 Missing the film school application 25:05 Discovering Wushu at USC 27:37 Shaolin and China's live martial arts shows 30:00 A language requirement that led to Chinese 32:38 Switching to a Chinese major and a theatre minor 35:05 Friends from the Wushu world 37:33 Flying to China after 9/11 40:01 The black belt test he never took 42:30 Performing with a sword on CCTV 45:07 Picked from the audience and winning 47:37 Photographed a thousand times in 2001 50:05 Teaching English and finding a path 52:36 Ryan on China as part of his path 55:00 Getting around China on a first trip 57:34 Struggling to hear the tones 1:00:05 Coffee culture arrives in China 1:02:32 Ryan on leaving China before the lockdowns 1:05:00 Punching the air 1:07:32 Coming home to a new family at the club 1:10:05 Back at a Chinese university to train 1:12:35 Which choice makes your life story more interesting? 1:15:03 Modelling, voice work and other jobs in China 1:17:34 Kung fu films and fight coordinators 1:20:05 Chasing one experience after another 1:22:33 Ryan on 74 days across Canada 1:25:02 The best way to know people 1:27:37 Kyokushin karate and its champions 1:30:05 Rugby, padding and the NFL 1:32:31 The mat is yours 1:35:05 A Shaolin form against flips and twists 1:37:31 Playing loose and relaxed 1:40:04 A stunt studio in Long Beach 1:42:38 Training with stunt performers 1:45:01 Tough and physically aware 1:47:34 Talent is not the same as success 1:50:08 An industry still figuring itself out 1:52:33 From actor to writer 1:55:05 Writing, acting and hosting live events 1:57:38 Finding the revenue stream 2:00:06 Still training every morning 2:02:36 Wrapping up The Ryan Pyle Podcast is ad-free by choice. If you enjoy these conversations, you can buy me a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/ryanpyle Ryan's TV series are streaming around the world. Follow the Podcast X: https://x.com/RyanPylePodcast Facebook: https://facebook.com/ryanpylepodcast Follow Ryan Pyle YouTube: https://youtube.com/@ryanjpyle Instagram: https://instagram.com/ryanpyle X: https://x.com/RyanPyle Facebook: https://facebook.com/ryanpyle https://www.ryanpyle.com