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Actress Di Quon makes her big screen debut in the Jennifer Lopez/Ralph Fiennes romantic comedy, "Maid in Manhattan." The film tells the Cinderella story of a hotel chambermaid (Jennifer Lopez) who meets and falls for her Prince Charming (Ralph Fiennes), a wealthy and handsome politician who is a guest at the hotel.

It can also be said that "Maid in Manhattan" (formerly titled "The Chambermaid") has its own real-life Cinderella story in the form of Di Quon. In a turn of events that would turn any struggling actress green with envy, it wasn't until very recently that Di Quon decided to delve into the acting profession. After the tragic events of 9/11, Quon reassessed her life and decided to take the leap into acting. She landed a small part in "Maid in Manhattan" that was later greatly expanded due to her charismatic presence.

In this interview, the up-and-coming actress talks about working on her first feature film, playing a friend of Jennifer Lopez's, and the importance of staying grounded:

DI QUON ('Lily Kim')

How would you describe "Maid in Manhattan?"
It is a modern day Cinderella story. It is so sweet. Originally it was written by John Hughes but I don't know if he's going to end up being the credited writer. It's like "Pretty in Pink" meets "Cinderella" meets everything that you think about as a little girl - that I think about, too - making all your dreams come true.

When I read this script, I smiled and said, "You could not have a better film." People need to feel that these possibilities exist.

Was making your big screen acting debut working opposite Jennifer Lopez intimidating?
It was frightening. It was intimidating until we actually started shooting. My very first day was my scene alone with Jennifer. I have one scene with just the two of us and that was my very first day on the set.

How many takes did it take before you got it?
Four. It was real good. They tried it four different ways so the four different takes are slightly different, so that they could figure out which one they'd want to use. She is wonderful to work with.

What is your relationship to Jennifer Lopez's character?
I'm like the 'help you get out of trouble' friend; everybody has one of those.

Since this was your first feature film, did Jennifer Lopez give you any helpful tips?
Actually nobody on the set knew this was my first feature. In fact, as they found out they were kind of flipping out a little bit because they would have never guessed - which is great for me.

She actually treated me like a peer and it was really flattering. When she came on the set, she treated like me a peer who had been doing movies for a long time. We came in, we rehearsed a couple of times, and then we shot. The director and her and everyone on the set treated me like I'd been doing this for 20 years.

Can you describe your character, Lily Kim?
Yes, actually it was a dream character. She's young, she's funky, she's a FIT student at night and she wants to be a fashion designer. During the day she works at this hotel and it gives her some experience because she gets to repair the different uniforms.

What was great about it was, in the movie, I actually get to help [Jennifer Lopez] wear an amazing, beautiful gown because she's going to go to a Ball. It gives Lily Kim, my character, this exciting boast of energy. In the film she's an exciting ball of energy because she's really young and this is the beginning of her life. She sees this as the beginning. A lot of the other characters that are chambermaids and in Security, this is life for them.

How does director Wayne Wang work on the set? Is he strict or does he allow improvisation?
He is an incredibly kind, wonderful person. He and I spoke about the character. He didn't come in and say, "Okay, she's a design student and you're 21 and this is the way..." He sat down with me and talked to me about the character. I kind of pictured her as a young student at night, a young fashion student, and he said, "Yes, exactly."

The scenes where Ty and I are alone, a lot of those lines were improv that I did in character. He said, "Let's have you guys talk a little bit about what's going on for lunch. What do you think Lily would say?" If it didn't work, then he'd say, "Maybe let's change it a little bit." He really gave us a lot of room to grow.

The original title was "The Chambermaid" and now it's "Maid in Manhattan." What do you think of the change in title?
There was an amazing team working on this film. Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, the executive producer, is a brilliant woman. I know that they didn't just change it. I kind of liked "The Chambermaid" because of the way that I got cast and the whole time I was doing the movie, that's what it was referred to so I kind of got close to that title. But "Maid in Manhattan" is so cute, how can you not love it?

How long was the shoot?
For me, I ended up shooting for six weeks. Originally they had me on hold for five days. It ended up being long enough that when the shooting was over, I was extremely sad.

How does it feel to play a role described as 'the fairy godmother'?
She's a fairy godmother in the sense that I'm the helpful person. They use the little Cinderella things a lot in the film. They say all the mice are waiting for her. But they didn't really know in the beginning what to do with Lily Kim. Originally I had five scenes - three that spoke, one that was off-camera, and one where I had no lines. But I think they really needed that positive energy - and maybe my wonderful acting ability (laughing). It made the character become more than just the smaller role that she played. She wasn't quite a mouse so she ended up being more like a fairy godmother.

Did getting so many extra scenes surprise you?
Getting added into scenes really surprised me. When they would call and say, "We're going to shoot Scene 156 this Friday and your call time is 10." I would look in the script and I would say, "I'm not in 156. Maybe there's an error." I asked them if there was a problem or a mistake and they said, "No, no, no. We thought Lily Kim should be in this scene. She would be at this party. She would be having fun and she would be dancing." I would be like, "Okay, I believe you. I think that's where Lily Kim should be too."

How many scenes do you think you ended up with?
At the end of the day, I ended up with nine scenes. We'll see how many end up in the movie. I know that one of them that wasn't planned ended up past editing because I did the voice-over last Thursday. It was great because it's a scene that I love. It's myself and the little boy, Ty, and it's such a cute scene because it's just the two of us.

You were on a vacation with your family when you got the call about this film. How hard was it to turn down the role the first time it was offered?
Oh my God, it ruined my trip. There was this dark cloud that came over Hawaii that no one expected. It was really a tough decision. I think the important thing is that even right now as my career is really taking off - I'm out here meeting with Warner Bros. and agents - it's important to know where your values are and at the end of the day, who really matters. After 9/11, nobody worked. It doesn't matter if you were a supermodel or Barbra Streisand, nobody worked because you realized what was so important to you. I think it is so important no matter what happens in my career to keep track of what are the core priorities in my life.

It kind of just shows that it was meant to be when I lost the part because of my priorities, and I got it back. I think that's a sign, you know?

What was the atmosphere like filming in New York after the events of 9/11?
First of all, there wasn't much filming in New York after 9/11. For me, getting that part was a huge achievement because every actor in New York was looking towards that film because there wasn't very much work. It was really valuable because it showed, "Look, we're going to actually film this whole movie in New York," and it kind of brought a sense of hope for the entertainment industry as well. Here's this huge film, it's going to be a blockbuster and people are really anticipating it, and they're going to do it all in New York.

Will this experience spoil you so that you'll always expect more scenes?
I feel blessed for everything that I get - that's just the kind of person that I am. I'm here in LA and I came out here petrified because nobody knows of my film. There's like 3 billion movies going on here whereas in New York, it was really special to be in that film because there weren't a lot of films going on. I came out here going, "No one is going to love me." I've been received so well and I just appreciate every single person that gives me an opportunity to meet with them, to read for them, to walk the red carpet for them - everything. A life span of an actor or anyone in the entertainment industry is so fast that you have to love that moment and appreciate that moment, and hold on to it as much as you can. That's what I'm doing.

I put myself through college by working in the music industry. I liked working in the music industry, I thought it was exciting and fun and I like music a lot. But I didn't love it. At the end of the day, it was a job. After 9/11, I thought to myself that all of a sudden my job meant nothing to me. I said, "Every day is a gift and what would I want to do knowing that a week from now, I may not be around?" I thought, "I want to act." I have always wanted to act. I've been too scared to try. So I put myself out there and it worked.

I'd say. This is really quick. You got a part in a Jennifer Lopez film the first time out?
Actually, someone said to me - a producer - that knew about the film that I'm in said, "You know, it's almost suspicious."

I'll tell you, in the film she's a Cinderella with a possibility that comes true and I feel my life is like that.

Lucy Liu has said that being Asian in Hollywood affects the roles she's offered or considered for. Have you noticed that?
I think it's such a challenge as a person of color to be offered a role where your color doesn't determine you getting the part. Which is why, again, I feel so lucky that this role - Lily Kim's role - is not a stereotype. She's young and fun and funky and she's All-American. The only thing that defines her as being Asian is her name.

A lot of the roles that Lucy Liu's - like "Ballistics" - they didn't write in the script, "Let's get an Asian woman." It's breaking those barriers. And Jennifer Lopez, I can honestly say, she's also been able to break through those stereotypes. That's kind of what I hope to continue with. I think that there's room now. The feeling I'm getting just being here in Hollywood, people do want that. They really want to show the diversity that exists in the world, on the screen. So for me not to be a Vietnamese prostitute or a delivery girl for my first film is just a blessing.

Let me add - and this is so important - that Wayne [Wang] is particularly sensitive to stuff like that. He's pushing that. Just by doing "Joy Luck Club" and "Chan is Missing," as a leading director in the entertainment industry, he really is one of the people who can push that through and I think he wants to.

I consider myself an activist before I consider myself an actor because I've been an activist much longer. When I came into this, because I've been an activist first, I can come into the entertainment industry and not be searching for what I want to say now that people are looking at me. I feel like I know who I am and I know what's important in this world, especially the opportunity that you get when people hear your voice. It's so precious to make sure that you use that spotlight in a positive way.