Rewriting the Script: Q+A with Di Quon Wilms

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When Di Quon Wilms steps into a classroom or onto a set, she brings more than two decades of experience in front of and behind the camera—and a deep understanding of what authentic representation means in today’s industry. An actor, producer, and director with credits including Maid in Manhattan, Grown Ups, and the groundbreaking My Life…Disoriented—the first Asian American dramedy on television—Wilms has built a career defined by both artistry and advocacy.

Now in her second year as Assistant Professor and now the new Program Head of the BFA in Acting for Film and Media (AFaM) at Sands, she channels that experience into shaping the next generation of storytellers. Having navigated an industry that once offered few roles for women of color, she teaches her students that representation is both personal and powerful. “Every actor is an individual artist,” she says. “Guiding students to find agents and managers who see them beyond stereotyped roles and support them in how they want to be represented is essential.”

For Wilms, teaching is a continuation of her artistic work—a way to merge craft, integrity, and inclusion in an environment that reflects the real world of film and television.

We spoke with Wilms about her journey, her teaching philosophy, and how Pace is preparing artists to thrive in today’s entertainment industry.

Pace University: The BFA in AFaM takes a conservatory-style approach to on-camera training while encouraging students to write, direct, and produce their own work. How does that comprehensive, hands-on structure transform the way students think about storytelling?

Di Quon Wilms: We are far from the days when actors had exclusive contracts with studios. Today, actors often create the stories they perform in. Many are also writers, directors, producers, and entrepreneurs. With so many streaming outlets, content is a commodity; being able to create stories that support their talent not only provides another income source but also gives actors more control over their work.

Pace: The program pushes students to become “multi-hyphenate storytellers.” Why is that kind of versatility so essential in today’s entertainment landscape, and how do you see your students embracing it?

Quon Wilms: Being an actor is about using your body as the instrument to communicate a story. Many students come to this program because we intentionally extend actor training to include the work that surrounds film and media. Actors working in film and media must know how to film themselves for auditions, set up home voiceover studios, and many are content creators as much as they are actors. Our students write the stories they want to be in and see.

If you love acting for film and media, you often love and consume media in general, and allowing yourself to create it in different forms not only builds versatility, it provides another skill set that keeps you in the industry.

I do not believe actors should be waiters or baristas (or have to have “survival jobs”) between acting jobs. I believe they should be filmmakers and producers between acting jobs, continuing their artistic endeavors.

We recently introduced new crew positions into our AFaM films. Our students can take on roles such as Script Supervisor, Assistant Camera, Associate Producer, and more if they are not acting in that film. They are embracing these opportunities to learn on set, and many discover additional creative passions. In the two years I have been here, I have watched students who love acting discover they also have talent and interest in other parts of the industry, and we support and cultivate that.

I expect that over the next five years, the number of graduates with significant successes will continue to grow.

Pace: With New York City as their playground, how do students translate what they learn in class into real-world experiences, whether on film sets, in voiceover studios, or through digital productions?

Quon Wilms: I love New York. When I taught Foundations for first-year students last year, I gave an assignment called “NY as Inspiration.” Encouraging students to go into the city and let it affect and energize them is magical. For our first AFaM film this year, we shot a scene in Times Square—iconic, and the energy is undeniable.

In the program, NYC offers our students professors and mentors who are at the top of their game. They also gain industry connections from within the program. Those gifts are in large part because we are in New York City.

Pace: What do you think makes the Acting for Film and Media program at Pace such a special place for young artists to grow, and what do you hope students take away from their time here?

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Quon Wilms: What is special about Pace and all of the Performing Arts programs at Sands is the dedication to allowing young artists to truly find themselves. We graduate students who are ready to enter the professional world.

In AFaM, students spend the first year discovering who they are as artists and developing their individual acting process. They grow dramatically as actors, artists, and people in the first two years because we guide them to embrace their individuality. Acting is a craft—it can be taught—but the artistry behind the craft is individual. It is not taught; it is guided.

One thing our students leave with is a piece of reel every year. The pièce de résistance is the Junior Film; they are cast in a festival-quality film with a guest director of note. The films are written with them in mind. Students leave with a reel that allows them to secure agents, managers, and roles. I personally want them to leave with a process and fully developed talent so they are ready to take on any role opportunity. And I hope they leave with a strong sense of self as artists, along with clear boundaries, desires, and a hunger for challenging work.

Pace: Students have opportunities to collaborate with industry mentors, including directors and producers with credits on projects like Ghostbusters and Orange Is the New Black. Who were they, and what impact do these partnerships have on students’ growth and confidence?

Quon Wilms: Our students make "films" every year they are here. And while NYC has many film schools where student filmmakers look for actors, I wanted to make sure their Junior Films were truly professional experiences. To achieve that, we bring in directors with meaningful professional careers—people who are truly working in the industry, both in front of and behind the camera. This year alone, we’ve collaborated with Fred Soffa, a first-call cameraman for major network news; Ivano Pulito, a producer and one of New York City’s go-to locations managers; Amanda Fuller, a lifelong television and film actress who’s now directing for major network television; and Mark Famiglietti, a multi-hyphenate whose most recent screenplay just premiered on Hallmark. Each brings a unique perspective to the process, and together they give our students an authentic, professional experience on set.

They all write, direct, and use these films to nurture and explore their artistic ideas. Working with industry veterans like these ensures an authentic film set environment with complex subject matter, script changes, schedule adjustments, and rigorous 12-hour shoots.

Pace: Students graduate with a professional reel that showcases their work. How does that process prepare them to step into the industry ready to work?

Quon Wilms: It baffled me that one could graduate from an acting program without anything tangible to show except a diploma. Yet I know a lot of students in programs do. Reels are one of the first things agents and managers ask for. They are also essential for online casting platforms.

The dedication that this program has for our students in this area is unparalleled. The process of making these reels—from Year 1 A/B scenes through Senior Showcase—gives them real experience. It’s not just the films themselves that prepare them; it’s the experience of working on set so they can walk onto any set ready to work, whether it’s a small co-star role or a feature film lead.

Pace: The program recently collaborated with MAC Cosmetics. Can you tell me more about that partnership? How do collaborations like that deepen the student experience?

Quon Wilms: In theater, actors mostly do their own makeup. But in film and television, actors do not, since there are makeup artists. Sands doesn’t have a makeup program, but this year one of our students, junior Aubrie Swaenepoel ‘27, who served as a Producer’s Assistant, in that position, secured a relationship with the NY Makeup Academy so their graduates donate time on our films for IATSE union qualification hours. Because experiential learning is embedded in their program, this made a natural fit.

Our program allows students to experience growth not only in their artistry through classes but also professionally through the films they act in, crew on, and develop, as well as through the opportunities they receive within and around the program.

MAC Cosmetics is a strong supporter of diversity and education. They have sponsored other projects I’ve done, so I wasn’t surprised when they donated makeup for all of our films. We also secure sponsorships with locations and food to keep the cast and crew nourished during 12-hour shoots: Kesté, Zucker’s Bagels, Variety Coffee, Grandaisy Bakery, the Meat Locker in New Jersey, and others.

These collaborations mirror real professional partnerships, aligning with brands that represent you as an artist. Often, these relationships start authentically, through places our students frequent or even work at part-time.

The larger partnership I’m developing is with SAG-AFTRA, my union of more than 20 years. Many of our students are already union members. Since we model our films after professional sets, it’s natural that we become a signatory. We expect our spring Junior Films will be under a SAG-AFTRA contract, allowing student actors in them to become SAG-Eligible.

Pace: Can you share a few examples of recent graduates who’ve gone on to find success in film, television, or digital media, and what it was about Pace’s approach that helped them get there?

Quon Wilms: We’ve already seen incredible success stories from our graduates. Chris Briney, for example, has starred in Dalíland and The Summer I Turned Pretty and is also a talented writer, director, and editor. Grace Duah has made her mark on Gossip Girl, and Zachary T. Robbins appeared in the feature film Hard Miles.

But honestly, what excites me as the new head of the program is what I’ve seen in just the last two years. Our students aren’t waiting until graduation; they’re already working. During the summer, they’re acting in films and TV shows, creating their own projects, and channeling their artistic energy into building real careers. Some even come to us with professional experience from childhood, and AFaM helps them make that leap from being “kid actors” to fully realized artists, moving beyond instinct and developing a solid, repeatable process.

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Our program allows students to experience growth not only in their artistry through classes but also professionally through the films they act in, crew on, and develop, as well as through the opportunities they receive within and around the program.

This summer, we had a junior who had never professionally auditioned but was a fantastic actor doing wonderful work in class. I submitted him for a television pilot. He didn’t get the lead role he tested for, but he landed a heavily recurring role and a new agent. Many of our juniors and seniors get agents and roles directly through their professors and the guest artists we bring in.

I expect that over the next five years, the number of graduates with significant successes will continue to grow.

Pace: Sands College has such a collaborative and connected community. How do you help students build relationships with faculty, alumni, and industry insiders that continue long after graduation?

Quon Wilms: I believe a Sands College student’s career begins the minute they enter the program. Their professors may get them their first job or their first agent. We get emails from casting directors looking for specific roles, and we submit our students. Sometimes a student must step away from the program to shoot a series regular or a lead, but this past year, two returned to finish their degrees. It shows the value they see in their education here.

Acting is not something you study once and you’re done. It is a lifelong study.

We bring the industry to the students and instill the work ethic needed for a career. You cannot be late to a film shoot, so you cannot be late to class.

We also have a very noncompetitive approach in the program. You are competing only with yourself and collaborating with other students. Our mentors, faculty, and guests want to see our students succeed. In the last two years alone, professors have brought agents into class who signed students based on their classwork, and casting directors have cast students from recommendations. Those relationships continue long after graduation.

Some of our students who have worked on the Junior and Senior Films have been asked to join other projects by the professionals and mentors they met on set.

I believe a Sands College student’s career begins the minute they enter the program. Their professors may get them their first job or their first agent

Pace: Many universities teach performance, but few combine it so seamlessly with production and storytelling. What sets AFaM apart from other programs?

Quon Wilms: There are two important differentiators. First, we have a deep understanding of the specific challenges of filmed media, especially proximity to the audience. We teach students that in this medium, you have to be authentic, because the camera can tell if you are “lying.” The characters come to you, so self-knowledge is crucial.

The second is the integration of storytelling, hyphenation, and experiential on-set learning, not as an add-on but as a foundation of the curriculum.

This approach was established before I arrived by my predecessors including kA’RAMMU kUSH and by our current chair, Grant Kretchik, and both the current associate head Brendan Hughes and I believe in it wholeheartedly. Around the same time I was offered the position at Pace, I received a book deal with Routledge on this very subject: hyphenation and experiential collaborative learning on the film set.

Pace University and Sands College supporting the production of the AFaM films is truly what sets this program apart.