Sinakhone Keodara

Sinakhone Keodara is a multi-lingual actor, writer, director and producer who was born in Laos and immigrated to the United States in 1986 as a refugee seeking political asylum. His family settled in Atlanta, Georgia. During this time, Asians were a vast majority compared to other ethnicity and being Lao made him a minority among other Asians. Sinakhone spent a majority of his adult life trying to help his Lao American community organize, and eventually volunteered his time to help Legacies of War advocate for UXO clearance in his homeland, which has now transformed into a desire to help the Asian American community as a whole. Sinakhone moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to pursue a lifelong dream of acting. Since moving to Los Angeles, Sinakhone has become an accomplished screenwriter, director, producer and actor. He made his first national television appearance on hit television show "My Name is Earl" (2007), where he played a Transgender Hooker Prisoner of the 3rd Season's episode titled "Early Release." Sinakhone's first speaking role came in December of 2009 when he played Tiffany--a Thai ladyboy hooker-turned-heroine--in a short film NISA (2010). In July of 2010, Sinakhone did a scene with Colin Farrell as a featured background playing the role of Asian ladyboy masseuse on feature film HORRIBLE BOSSES (2011). Soon after, in August of 2010, Sinakhone channeled Andy Warhol's Latina drag Superstar, Mario Montez, a featured background in a recreation of New York City's 1970s drag Superstars Jackie Curtis and Candy Darling's hit theater show Vain Victory in HBO movie CINEMA VERITE (2011). In 2011, Sinakhone went back to school to study Film Production at Santa Monica College until 2013. During that program, he directed an adaption scene from the movie BLACK SWAN. Sinakhone is also the writer, producer and director of a feature length documentary entitled ROSES & RED ANTS about the U.S. "Secret War" in Laos during the Vietnam War-era. In April of 2013, he was invited to show the work-in-progress cut of his documentary at the 4th International Lao Studies Conference where he participated in the first-ever Lao Filmmaker's Panel that he helped organized, sponsored by the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Center for Lao Studies. In 2016, Sinakhone founded Asian Entertainment Television (AET), the world's FIRST and ONLY Asian American streaming service. He aims to provide a platform to improve Asian American representation in the media and normalize Asian presence in Hollywood. Sinakhone has been a crusader of social justice for decades. His passion for social justice has led to many battles in advocacy fights for the Asian American, Lao and LGBT communities. He has given of his time generously and consistently over the years to help organize, lead and build communities around issues he cares about.