Eunice Olsen

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Eunice Olsen
Eunice Olsen MSU2011.jpg
Born
Eunice Elizabeth Olsen

(1977-10-24) 24 October 1977 (age 43)
Singapore
OccupationActress, host, musician, model, businesswoman
Years active2000–present
Websiteeuniceolsen.com

Eunice Elizabeth Olsen (born 24 October 1977) is a Singaporean actress, host, communications trainer, producer and business woman. She is a former Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) in Singapore for two terms, a speaker, and an advocate for women's empowerment.

In 2000, Olsen took part in the Miss Singapore Universe pageant and won the pageant.

In November 2004, Olsen was appointed as a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) in Singapore by President SR Nathan,[1] making her the youngest nominated NMP at the age of 27[2] at that time. In 2006, she was conferred the Singapore Youth Award for her dedication to the community, youth work and being an inspirational role model.[3] In 2008, Olsen was awarded the ASEAN Youth Award[4] and is a Young Global Leader representing Singapore at the World Economic Forum.[5] In the 2010 Youth Olympic Games held in Singapore, she was one of the Flag bearers for the Singapore Flag.[6] She is currently a Goodwill Ambassador to the Embassy of Sweden.[7]

Since winning Miss Singapore Universe, she had hosted TV shows for Mediacorp Singapore including Wheel of Fortune,[8] and Rouge. She has worked in regional television on AXN's lifestyle show The Duke and made her acting debut in Red Thread, Channel 5's long form English drama, and acted in Chinese drama serials. She also co-produced, researched and acted in the film 3.50 in 2013,[9] the first Singapore/Cambodia production, which explores the issue of sex trafficking. In 2019, she presented BECOMING SINGAPORE.[10] In 2020, Olsen also hosted a web documentary series to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the China for Mango TV.

In addition to her entertainment work, she is an advocate for women's empowerment, gender equality, sustainability, people with disabilities, the environment, human trafficking and youth at risks.

In 2013, she founded Eunice Olsen Media[1] (formerly House of Ou Studios), which focuses on social impact storytelling and through that, helps organisations to strengthen and communicate their brand position in the areas of sustainability. Olsen is a communications and media trainer. She's also the creator of WomenTalk.com, a program that celebrates extraordinary everyday women. In its debut season, it was nominated for an International Emmy Award (Digital Non-Fiction), and more recently awarded an Official Selection for Best Web Series[11] at the Raindance Film Festival.

She has been engaged to speak globally on a wide range of topics from women's empowerment,[12] leadership, resilience, authentic communication and various social issues.[13][14]

Early life and education[]

Olsen was born in Singapore. She is the only child of Alice Yap and Francis Olsen. A Eurasian Singaporean, her mother is Chinese and her father is of Swedish and Portuguese descent, and she communicates fluently in English and Mandarin. At the age of three, her parents enrolled her into Yamaha music school where she developed her love for music and performing. She attended Woodlands Primary School, Singapore, St. Margaret's Secondary School and Anglo-Chinese Junior College. She completed her degree at the National University of Singapore where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Philosophy.

Career[]

Miss Singapore Universe[]

In 2000, Olsen took part in the Miss Singapore Universe pageant and won the pageant.

Social causes[]

Her work at the Toa Payoh Girl's Home and Andrew and Grace Home spurred her to seek out other opportunities in youth activities. In 2002, she became a member of the advisory council for the People's Association's youth movement T-Net Club (Teens Network Club). She was also a member of the Kebun Baru Youth Executive Committee since 2001. Olsen has also worked with many organisations including the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre and as a Youth Ambassador, Beyond Social Services' BABES program for pregnant teenage mums,[15] Awareness for Cervical Cancer and the Singapore Red Cross, blood program to actively promote the importance of donating blood.[16] She has also been a goodwill ambassador for Worldvision, Habitat for Humanity[17] and the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Singapore.

She created an event All Smiles Day in 2013 as a day of respite for caregivers of the Rare Disorder Society, and has been an ongoing event.

Olsen works with rural communities especially in Cambodia, where she built toilets and improved sanitation for evicted communities, and girls in school. She also co-produced a movie about sex trafficking 3.50, which she also uses for advocacy talks on trafficking.[18]

She also developed a feminine hygiene program Project Precious for education in rural communities. Using video and flip charts, this program has been adapted and used in communities in Cambodia, India, Nepal and the United States.[19]

Olsen is currently a goodwill ambassador for the Embassy of Sweden in Singapore.

Media[]

In 2002 Olsen was selected to be the co-host of Singapore's version of the TV game show Wheel of Fortune.[20] She then went on to co-host 3 seasons of FRONT, an Arts Central production that took an edgy look at the arts scene in Singapore. In 2007, she was a judge on Channel 5's International Emmy Award nominated youth debate program The Arena, and hosted Rouge in 2008, an award nominated talk show that had themes and trends concerning Singaporean women and featured a mix of celebrity interviews and real-life stories.[21] Olsen made her English acting debut on Channel 5's first long form English drama Red Thread[22] and co-hosted a men's magazine lifestyle show on AXN, The Duke.[23] She also went on to star in several feature films in Singapore and the United States.

In August 2013, Olsen founded WomenTalkTV, an online talk show featuring extraordinary women from all over Asia whose stories are inspiring and empowering. It aims to use online media to celebrate and advance the social empowerment of Asian women. WomenTalkTV was also nominated for an International Emmy Award in the Digital Program: Non-Fiction category in 2014. She hosted Channel NewsAsia's Becoming Singapore, the flagship documentary for the Singapore Bicentennial in 2019. In 2020, Olsen hosted a web documentary series, Mundane Glory, which celebrates the 70th anniversary of China for Mango TV.[24]

Olsen had represented many brands such as Omega,[25] Motorola Electronics,[26] Goldheart Jewelry,[27] Redken,[28] Nescafé Gold,[29] Shell Petroleum Fuel Save Ambassador,[30][31][32][33][34] BlackBerry Messenger,[35] Cosme Decorte AQMW,[36] Physiogel,[37] L'Oréal Lancome Genefique[38],The Body Shop[39]

Politics[]

In November 2004, Olsen was appointed as a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) in Singapore. Her main role as an NMP was to highlight issues pertaining to youth and volunteerism. In the course of her term she touched on issues like access to public transport for the disabled, legislation for child sex tourism, enhancing supervisory guidance for Voluntary Welfare Organisations and sex education in schools. In the parliamentary debate on Integrated Resorts in 2005, Olsen called for stronger measures to address social problems of compulsive gambling, including mandating a loss limit for casino patrons and to require the casino operator to provide responsible gambling counselling services.[40] She also called for the captioning of the Channel 5 English news programme. She championed for inclusivity for people with disabilities. Olsen served two terms and remained an NMP until 2009. She did not apply for a third term in parliament.[41]

Advisory boards[]

Olsen is an advisor to Space for Humanity, a non-profit organization headquartered in Denver, Colorado.[42] Olsen is currently a member of the National Museum of Singapore's advisory board, and a management committee member of Club HEAL.

Author[]

Olsen published a children's book I'm a girl. See what I can be! in 2018. The book is a series of poems written by Olsen, featuring 10 women from the video series, WomenTalk. Inspired by the lives of the extraordinary women she has interviewed, the book features stories of courage and inspiration based on the real life stories of these 10 outstanding women. The book is illustrated by 10 Singaporean artists with autism, and designed by HATCH design. It was successfully crowd funded on Indiegogo, and achieved 125% of the original targeted funds.

Training and consultancy[]

Olsen developed a media training programme called "Authentic, hence Effective Communication", which focuses on finding the participants' authentic voice, making values a part of the communication experience, harnessing strengths and overcoming weaknesses, making every training session a bespoke experience.

Speaker and moderator[]

Olsen has been engaged to speak globally on a wide range of topics from women's empowerment, leadership, resilience, and various social issues. She is a keynote speaker, and has spoken at International events such as the Cartier Women's Awards, the United Nations, LH Forum in France, in educational institutions around the World such as Harvard, and universities in India, various parts of South East Asia including Vietnam, Philippines and Singapore.

Olsen had also moderated various forums, and high-profile individuals such as Helle Thorning-Schmidt, the former Prime Minister of Denmark, and panelists from the Swedish Embassy's Disability Forum.

On 6 May 2020, Olsen moderated an online webinar for Médecins Sans Frontières or Doctors Without Borders titled "Live Chat on COVID-19: How MSF Responds to a Pandemic".[43]

On 31 October 2020, Olsen co-hosted the first digital edition of The Purple Parade, which was streamed live on Facebook.

Music[]

With a grade 8 in practical and theory for piano, Olsen started playing at the age of 3 and teaching at the age of 17. In university, she was part of a hostel band and was president of the Electronic Music Lab at the Centre for the Arts.[44] In 2004, she released an album in South Korea entitled Believe .

Olsen was part of a duo called 7 States . She was joined by music producer and sound designer Rennie Gomes[45] of Yellowbox. Together, they have written a Christmas song, produced a kids album and scored a short film for one of Singapore's most acclaimed film directors, Royston Tan, titled Anniversary.[46] 7 States has also written a song titled Light which they dedicated to the athletes of the Singapore Youth Olympic Games in 2010.[47] 7 States recently performed, featuring Humaa Rathor, at the "From Singapore with Love" Benefit concert 2011. This was in support of World vision's earthquake relief work in China, Myanmar and Japan.[48] In 2018 she performed at Sunburst: The Business Times - Capital and Fundraising Concert where students from School of the Arts (SOTA) and members of the Muscular Dystrophy Association (Singapore) (MDAS) come together to perform, united by personal stories of strength and resilience.

Personal life[]

Olsen discovered through a TV programme, My Roots that her great great grandfather Oskar Pontus Olsson was born in Röra, Orust in 1862. He became a sailor on ships that travelled back and forth to England. He eventually settled in Malaya around 1885, and lived in Malaya for 54 years. On 20 November 1928, he was naturalised, as Oscar Olsen, a British citizen in Singapore.[49]

While filming a bicentennial special program Becoming Singapore, she also learnt that her grandfather from her mother's side, Yap Swee Kang, was an auxiliary fire serviceman volunteer after World War 2.

Olsen is a Catholic.[50]

Filmography[]

Year Title Role Notes
2002–2003 Wheel of Fortune Co-host TV series
2003 A Child's Hope Dr. Joanne Su[51] TV series
2003 No Place Like Home[52] Felicia[53] TV series
2006–2007 FRONT Co-host[54] TV series
2007 The Arena Judge TV series
2008 Rouge Host[55] TV talk show
2008 ShowU Are The One Judge TV series
2008 Fourplay Host TV series[56]
2008 Sing to the Dawn[57] Herself, voice talent Animated film (SG)
2009 The Duke Co-host TV talk show
2009 Red Thread Carol Chong TV series
2010 Hunting Tales Grace Short film (SG)
2010 The Smartemizer[58] Felicia Short film (SG)
2010 Before I Was Awesome Vivi TV series
2011 Beauty First Host[59] TV series
2011 Red Numbers (红字) Number 8 (8号的妈咪)[60] Feature film (SG)
2012 Ghost On Air Pauline[61] Feature film (SG)
2013 3.50 Rebecca Wilson[9] Feature film (Cambodia)
2013–Present Womentalk TV Host[62] Talk show
2016 The Last Night Inn Miriam[63] Feature film (US)
2019 Becoming Singapore Host[64] Documentary
2020 Mundane Glory (闪耀的平凡) Host Web documentary series

Bibliography[]

  • Olsen, Eunice (2018). I'm a Girl. See what I can be!. Eunice Olsen Media. ISBN 978-981-11-7524-4.

Awards and accolades[]

  • 2000 Miss Singapore Universe[65]
  • 2006 Singapore Youth Award[66]
  • 2008 ASEAN Youth Award[67]
Year Ceremony Category Nominated Work Result
2014 International Emmy Awards Digital Program – Non Fiction WomenTalk TV Nominated
2016 Hollywood Independent Documentary Award Women filmmaker WomenTalk TV Winner[68]
2016 Hollywood International Moving Pictures Film Festival Documentary Short WomenTalk TV Winner[69]
2016 Hollywood International Moving Pictures Film Festival Women filmmaker WomenTalk TV Winner
2016 Los Angeles Independent Film Festival Awards Documentary Short WomenTalk TV Winner[citation needed]
2016 Best Shorts Competition Women filmmaker WomenTalk TV Award of Excellence
2016 Best Shorts Competition Documentary Short WomenTalk TV Award of Excellence
2016 Indiefest Film Awards Documentary Short WomenTalk TV Award of Merit[70]
2016 Raindance Film Festival Web Series WomenTalk TV Official Selection[71]
2016 Best Shorts Competition Humanitarian Award WomenTalk TV Award of Distinction
2017 Best Shorts Competition Women filmmaker WomenTalk TV Award of Merit
2017 Taste Awards Mini Film or Documentary Tripvid Official Selection[72]
2019 Independent Publisher Book Award Independent Spirit Award I'm a Girl. See what I can be! Winner[73]

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External links[]

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