Anzu Lawson is a force of nature in many disciplines. Throughout her artistic life, she's enjoyed success in acting, music, stand-up comedy, screenwriting & directing. A true warrior when it comes to following her passions, which have led her on many creative adventures, each one adding another layer to the multi-dimensional artist that is Anzu Lawson. Born in Oregon-raised in Southern California, Anzu's mother kidnapped she and her sister Sophia during a long custody battle, to live and work as a teen J-Pop star in Japan at the age of 15. Beginning at age 7, Anzu's first taste for acting was opposite Academy Award-nominated actor, Mako in her first screen test playing his granddaughter, in an independent film. Then at 14, She was scouted to model in Tokyo, thus beginning her International career path. While modeling one summer, the stars conspired for her to meet YES's singer Jon Anderson, backstage at an INXS concert in Tokyo. It was a pivotal moment in her career when Jon discovered Anzu's musical talent. He prompted the beginnings of her first album, and two albums later, Anzu topped the Japanese Billboard charts with a number one hit on AVEX records. Her creative career as a singer-songwriter had begun. Her bold and unique vocal styling can be heard on many of Hans Zimmer's & Harry Gregson-Williams movie soundtracks; The Chronicles of Narnia, Spygame, DaVinci Code and Sinbad. As a young adult, back in Los Angeles, her acting career ignited when she landed the lead role in "American Yakuza", starring opposite Viggo Mortensen by casting director Don Phillips. Don Phillips is known for giving such talents as Forest Whitaker, Sean Penn, Viggo Mortensen & Matthew McConaughey their first film role. That film's director, Frank Cappello, commissioned her to write a song for his next movie "No Way Back" starring Russell Crowe and then cast her again, opposite Christian Slater in the Showtime movie, "He Was A Quiet Man", years later. After filming "'Til Death" & befriending comedian Brad Garrett, Anzu was inspired to explore the stand-up comedy world, and has now performed on such famous stages as The Comedy Store, Laugh Factory and The Improv Hollywood/Brea. The seed for writing her own material had been planted, and Anzu received her certificate in screenwriting at UCLA in '09, where she optioned her first script, The Seed Between the Stones. Anzu is collaborating with Cal State University Los Angeles & the 2018 John Lion's Playwright Festival in launching the second live workshop of her all original rock movie musical called "Dear John, Why Yoko?" aka "Rock and Roll's Greatest Lovers." This is a screenplay and musical she penned that was inspired by John Lennon's controversial and inspiring love for Yoko Ono. Anzu Lawson received her first Best Actress nomination in her portrayal as Yoko Ono in the 2014 Hollywood Fringe Festival. Anzu's production company Happy Hapa Films is focused on edgy screenplays that focus on challenging the stereotypes and bringing to light the untold stories of Asian American women throughout history. No one says it better than Nicole Force of The Examiner when she wrote: "Anzu Lawson is a consummate and multi-talented performer who represents the new triple threat in Hollywood-singer, actress and stand-up comedian. Anzu Lawson is an entertainment force who consistently delivers, regardless of the genre." - IMDb Mini Biography By: Amy Ball, Melody Jackson