HUMANS OF THE ISLANDS - SAM PUEFUA

SAM PUEFUA 

Actor 

Samoan 

.

Talofa lava.
My name is Sam Puefua and I'm an Actor. I currently live in Long Beach, CA., but I'm originally from American Samoan, specifically from the village of Pava'ia'i. I was raised there until the age of 9yrs and than moved to United States and here in the State of California is where I've been ever since.

How long have you been in the entertainment industry and do you have a highlight or favourite experience in your career so far?

I have been in the industry for a little over 10yrs now. Started pursuing my acting career right after High School and ever since, I never looked back!
I actually have a few favorite highlights in which one of those highlights I got to work with my uso (Taylor Wily) and my sis (Sisa Grey) on my very first TV show, Hawaii Five-O! Traveling, Exploring Hawaii, visiting my aiga and all the while doing what I love? I couldn't have asked for a better first experience. Second highlight would be when I got to work with some of my really close friends on a passion project, which I'm still really proud of, called Clandestine: Wolf. Third highlight would have be when I worked on Criminal Minds. I never had a Stunt Double before, but on this show I did! I got to meet a real cool bro name Marcus who was a constant professional and a cool brotha. Another thing, I had some of the coolest cast mates on this show!  Lastly, but not least, this year I got a chance to direct my first short film called MAMBA. I was truly honored to have the experience of directing and working with my friends, who were all true professionals, masters of their craft and hard workers.

What made you want to get into acting?
I've always been a little entertainer growing up and I think a lot of that has to do with my parents, especially my mom aka Momma. She had me in Choir, church plays, Polynesian shows, marching Band and she use to love to take me and my siblings to watch Broadways/Operas, to which I'm now really grateful that she did. What really solidify my decision on becoming an actor is this little Drama class I took, Second semester, in my senior year. Being in that class opened up my eyes to how fun creating and telling a story is.

What are some of the challenges you've faced as a Poly or Pasifika actor?

A few of the challenges that came with being of Polynesian decent is that Hollywood has a very 'Different' idea of what Polynesians look like, instead of what we actually look like or how we represent ourselves. Also, there weren't a lot of roles for Polynesians out in the beginning(or at least when I got started 10yrs ago), so I had to go in for other ethnicities such as Hispanic, Indian or Mid Eastern. Any role that was ethnic, that's who they submitted me for.
The cool thing now is that, because of those that came before me like Dwayne Johnson, Jason Momoa, Temuera Morrrison, Cliff Curtis, Rena Owen, and so on so forth, who help OPEN the doors for us younger polys coming up, we are starting to get more roles that represent our people and our culture.

How has your upbringing + culture shaped you into the man you are today?

Oh I know for sure my upbringing and culture had a very deep impact on the kind of man I am today!  Being raised in Samoa, O.C. and Long Beach taught me one thing, I can make friends anywhere lol.
What my Culture and Family taught me is Respect, to be Kind, to be Tough, Persistent and to have a Unstoppable Work ethic! I couldn't have gotten to this point without my family, especially my parents. I love my family to no end and everyone who knows me, knows that. Culture, I believe in this industry, is something you really need to hold on to. Because sometimes, I believe people lose their way and their selves in all these flashing lights and what not that Hollywood has to offer, but because the lessons that my parents and culture install into me growing up helped keep me grounded, I think.

Who are your biggest inspirations and why?

My inspirations are Daniel Day Lewis, Dwayne Johnson, Cliff Curtis, Denzel Washington and Tom Hardy.  Daniel, Denzel and Tom because of how deep in the character they go and type of roles they choose. And the roles that they choose are always so damage and dysfunctional at times and I like those types of roles. I think those roles are the intriguing ones. Cliff is my favorite chameleon actor (I first discovered Cliff's work in a cult classic called, Once Were Warriors).  And Dwayne Johnson because, not only is he a nice guy (from what I hear), but he's a dope action star!

Well my agent, Karl, sent me the audition. Funny story about this particular role. I actually auditioned for Peter Maivia in late 2021. It wouldn't be until a whole year later that I got the opportunity to audition for the role once again and ultimately landing the role of the High Chief.

What was the experience like and getting to meet the cast?

I didn't get to meet everyone as far a cast goes, but I did get to meet Aunty Ana Tuisila (Lia Maivia) who was just wonderful the whole time we worked and I got to meet Joseph Lee Anderson (Rocky Johnson) who is very funny and talented. They both kindly welcomed me to the show and made me feel at home.  Actually, I did get to talk to Stacey Leilua (who plays Ata Johnson) via message and, she too, gave me a warm welcome.

Did you get to meet The Rock or his Mom?  If so how was that?

Sadly, I did not. I really wish I did though. You know, I was stepping into the shoes of someone that meant a great deal to them. Who, was not only a Great wrestler, a Samoan Actor, Founder of Polynesian Pacific Pro Wrestling, but most importantly a grandfather and a father. So, it would've been great if I'd got to meet Aunty Ata at least and, if she was up for it, I would've politely asked her for some stories because she's probably the only person in this world that knows more about the High Chief, the great things he's accomplished and who he really is.  All and all, I hope they were happy with the performance and that I did some justice in portraying this extraordinary man.

You do a big fight wrestling scene I believe?  Did you have to train much for that - can you tell us about that? 

Yes, we did do a big hectic wrestling scene. That was a real fun day!  Spent the day in the ring and learned a lot from some stand up fellas we wrestled with who actually wrestle for living. That experience got me to really appreciate pro wrestling and the wrestlers themselves even more. The genius behind the whole choreo is the legend himself, Chavo Guerrero. I didn't have to do training for that scene. Chavo taught us the previz on the day and we ran through it a number of times before we were ready to shoot. I did, however, have some previous training from a wrestling series on STARZ that I worked on the year before. So, I did go in having some experience.  But with that said, I still went in with fresh ears and was ready to learn whatever I needed to. 

It was truly an honor and a very humbling experience for me to have walked a few days in the shoes of a man as great as the High Chief. He really did break down barriers and opened up doors for future generations of, not only wrestlers, but polynesian actors and athletes. Setting a strong example of not listening to the nay sayers, but listening to one's gut and  following your dreams. I think the best line that I read that relates to this is "We don't have to be just one thing."