Interview with Peter Loung
‘I would like to take this opportunity to thank the entire team over at Moscow Tonight Magazine for affording me this honour.
My name is Peter Loung and I have always been a performer. From the tender age of five years I started taking guitar lessons, first at the Yamaha School of Music and then at the prestigious Royal Conservatory. These humble and, somewhat pedestrian, beginnings culminated in me receiving my ARCT in guitar performance and music theory. This pedagogical prowess was the catalyst which then catapulted me into the world of recording, touring and composing. Alongside my musical endeavours, I was a professional circus acrobat specializing in Aerial Straps, Double Trapeze and Corde Lisse. In this arena I had the opportunity to perform internationally in myriad shows, tours and corporate events working for a litany of troupes, companies and agencies, the most noteworthy being: Zero Gravity Circus and the infamous Cirque Du Soleil. In a fairly recent venture, I have started to piece together what can only be considered a clothing line. Persona Couture celebrates Old School Rock n’ Roll and Punk sensibility, while paying homage to New School Hip Hop attitudes and rebellions. “Necessity is the Mother of invention” and my designs are born out of that axiom. Though my clothing draws influences from the likes of Philipp Plein, John Varvatos, Pierre Balmain and Alexander McQueen, Persona Couture is unapologetically Peter Loung. Lastly, as for the true reason for this photo spread, I am an actor based out of Toronto, Canada. As an actor I have had the good fortune to be featured on both the small and large screens sharing them with the likes of: Robin Williams, Edward Norton, Tom Berenger, Kat McNamara, Simu Liu, Jessica Alba and a litany of other incredible talents!’ Peter
From editor:
We are so proud to know such an incredibly talented and versatile professional as Pete! We’ve got an exclusive interview with him! Read further!
— What films have you starred in? Are there any famous titles among them that you are proud of?
— I have had the great honour to share the screen with quite a few noteworthy actors in my tenure. However, being the “Number One” on the call-sheet is a distinction in which I have only achieved a few times. I had the starring role in a film entitled “Three Quests” about an overzealous, impatient and arrogant Buddhist monk seeking to fast track enlightenment. I was the lead in a dramatic film set in a high school entitled “A Text Book Romance;” I play the love interest to an awkward and quirky female student trying to find her place in a new school. Most recently, though not a film, I am one of the leads on “Rising Suns,” a dramatic television series where I play the son of a billionaire searching for his own path in life, all the while being coerced into the family business. As for “famous” films, I have had the good fortune to be cast in such cult classics as: American Psycho, 54 and Death to Smoochy.
— What connects you to music today?
Are you a performing artist?
— Music has been an intrinsic part of my life from since I can remember. I started playing guitar at the age of five years and was playing concert halls by the age of eight. Music contributes to a massive part of my psyche and has been a long-heralded passion. Moreover, the way that I view the world is based on a musical exchange. Counterpoint, harmony and form are all aspects which add to the enjoyment and nuance to a great musical performance and these principles are inherent in every exchange we Humans experience. The notion of counterpoint as a dance between two individuals is both symbolic and actualized in our everyday lives, adding a tertiary person yields harmony and song form is synonymous to the inner-workings of business. So to give credence to the first question, what connects me to music is a visceral and philosophical understanding that everything around me is, in one way or another, musical. As for performing, I still compose and produce, but due to our current pandemic have not played a live gig in a while.
— Has your music been featured somewhere?
— I have had the tremendous honour to have had my music featured in films and television shows, along with having radio play.
— Among your activities you are a guitar player, do you have a band?
— In my youth I was the lead guitarist in myriad bands ranging the gamut from Punk to Soul, Funk to Jazz and everything in-between. However, I currently am not tied to a band, but rather freelance my musical prowess recording and playing on peoples’ records and live shows.
This nomadic ideology has afforded a litany of musical experiences and challenges which are not inherent in playing in a single band.
— So are the circus activities left in the past for you now, or do you still work as an acrobat? We can guess you may be in demand for movie directors for your complex acrobatic stunts. Does this influence the roles you are given?
— Acrobatics have been a great passion of mine for an age and as such is something both heartfelt and stubborn. Though I am no longer a performer in the circus, I still train and maintain a level of dexterity which enables me to “do my own stunts” in the film and television arena. I have done stair-falls, been shot, have done fight sequences and have fallen out of a building. It would be deceitful of me to say that I am not attracted to physical characters and the gravitas they embody on the screen; however, this has not influenced the roles in which I have been offered, at least not on a conscious level.
—How did you end up in the world of cinema?
— I have always been a performer and, as aforementioned, from the age of eight was playing classical guitar recitals and venue performances. This, subsequently, threw me headlong into the world of music and music videos. To add to the repertoire, I started dancing and flipping around for said music videos, which then paved the way to me becoming an actor. So, in a way, I got involved in the world of cinema through a backdoor of sorts.
— Please tell us about modelling field in your life, do you also participate in fashion shows or represent some fashion agency?
— Modeling is a profession and an arena in which I am an absolute novice. In the past I have had the opportunity to walk for designers and model brands, the most infamous being Calvin Klein, but I am ignorant as to trends or taboos. Furthermore, since I do not have a modeling agent, I have no insider liaison to draw reference from. With all of that said, I have always been a bit of a rebel adopting a mendicant, but focused, attitude towards the arts and I am paving my own path within the fashion industry.
— Of all these areas, which is the most important and priority for you now?
— Let me preface this next answer by saying that I feel that all of the arts have an inherent interdisciplinary aspect to them. Moreover, it is my belief that all of the arts share a common thread which allows crossover and cross-pollination amidst a culture where solid definition is heralded as King.
With that stated, I currently prioritize acting over everything else. Acting, and actors, have a mystique surrounding them.
A certain celebrity status which, for better or for worse, has afforded them a lifestyle and countenance which is revered in the mainstream conscience. I would be delusive if I were to say that the prospect of wealth and fame is not alluring and intoxicating, but that is not what is of importance. I live for auditioning.
For some, the audition process is tedious, heartbreaking, soul-destroying and, sometimes, embarrassing. I am not immune to these feelings and would extrapolate on them by saying that not only is the audition process all of those things, but is highly competitive and, ultimately, out of your control. With all of that said, I am inspired by the “room” and prioritize that preparation process above all.
— What are your further creative ambitions?
— As previously asserted, I am “paving my own path within the fashion industry.” This bold statement needs further explanation and validation. Rewind about six years, I was invited to a red carpet gala at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and wanted to wear an outfit by Pierre Balmain. I looked into having the item pulled, reached out to their corporate office and even tried contacting their PR company, but to no avail. Being that the outfit in question would have cost me close to $10,000, that was not a feasible reality. So in defiance (and perhaps a bit of copyright infringement) I took it upon myself to make a Pierre Balmain inspired outfit. This was a resounding success as myriad people asked me, “who are you wearing?” I continued to go about altering and creating pieces specific to certain events or galas, subsequently snowballing into me branding my designs. My fashion is very rock n’ roll, it has elements of Philipp Plein, Pierre Balmain and John Varvatos, has new school Hip Hop sensibilities with old school metal trends, but is unapologetically Peter Loung. So, to answer the question posed, a further creative ambition of mine is to release a clothing line.