Actress Louisa So is a star of the Hong Kong stage. The glitzy world of movies beckons, but she tells us why she's happy just as she is.

IT'S NOT UNUSUAL in the giddy world of showbusiness to hear tales of untold greed, egos run riot and dissatisfaction with life. It's a cutthroat industry where actors and actress are subjected to the constant fear of being out of work, out of favour and out of the limelight. With these pressures it is possible to understand how some turn into divas during their five minutes of fame, but not Louisa So. An actress with a clutch of awards to her name – including being voted by the public as their Favourite Drama Artist at the first Annual Artiste Awards held last year and winning Best Actress in a Tragedy or Drama at the 12 th Hong Kong Federation of Drama Societies awards in 2003 for her role as the lead in the play Between Life and Death – she could so easily fall into the diva trap, but instead she prefers to keep her feet on the ground. A rarity in today's acting fraternity, Louisa has no plans to enter Hollywood or to be a movie queen. This doesn't mean that she is not ambitious, but Louisa is grateful for what she has already achieved.

"I feel very satisfied because I have done my best at every different stage of my life," says Louisa, sitting relaxed on a sofa and talking in her characteristically affable and polite way. "Growing up in a very typical Chinese family, crammed with my family in a tiny public flat, I didn't have big dreams, only the knowledge that I had to work hard on my studies. However, I feel extremely glad to have had a normal childhood with my parents and siblings. The most wonderful thing is that I have not missed any part of my childhood."

After leaving high school, Louisa worked briefly as a flight attendant before winning a scholarship from the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation to study drama at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. Her everyday good looks and talent for playing people from all walks of life helped her develop a career on stage. Among her major roles was playing opposite Tony Leung Ka-fai in the romantic theatre production Love in a Fallen City, which toured Beijing, Shanghai and Toronto after a successful Hong Kong run. She soon landed major roles in television, including her best-known role playing a greedy single mother in TVB's police drama Detective Investigation File, and occasionally film.

"When I started working in drama I didn't really want awards or to be a 'queen', I just cared about whether I had done enough work on my show. In the future, all the things that will happen won't be under my control, therefore, I am not going to make further plans, I will live as if every day is the end of my life. That is the reason why I treasure all the people I meet, the work I do every day, I don't think I need to change my period of my life, even if God granted me that wish," says Louisa.

Louisa is rare in that she is happy with her past, unfazed by the future and has a pragmatic view of life and success. "I don't think life should be only full of happiness. It should be a mixture of happiness and sadness. Only if you work hard can your life be amazing." This sense of equilibrium and contentment for Louisa doesn't mean that she has no idea of what to do in the future. "What more could I ask for? I feel cosy and enjoy life. Now I don't have to plug away at my work to buy food and clothes. The only way to have true wealth is the wealth of the mind" says Louisa.

Louisa prefers the simple lifestyle. For her, less is more. She gives an example. "I like driving cars, but that doesn't mean I need a car which costs a million dollars. All I consider is whether its functional aspects would suit me. Another example is that I may really like a handbag, but I would not spend 10,000 dollars to buy it. That is too much for me," says Louisa, who told her friends joining her last birthday celebration not to buy her any gifts because she has got too much already.

Louisa still has goals. "Imagine being stuck in traffic or driving the wrong way down a road, you can find your way out only if you have a destination in your mind," she says. Now, her destination is, "what can I can contribute for the art and film industry?" although she adds she has no desire to be a celebrity.

Louisa is such an optimist that she has no regrets in her life, believing any mistakes she has made in life were unique situations and that she can learn from them, including her acting about which she is a perfectionlist. "When I watch the films I made 10, five or even two years ago I definitely see parts that I now could have been done better. But I have no intention of doing them again because I could not get into the same mood to perform the role now. For instance, when I made Detective Investigation File, I had no worries and was very free to play the role. I think I am now a much better actor but I am not sure I could act that role again because I am a different person. That is why I don't ever look back, just forward."

Louisa is not worried whether she continues mostly on stage or finds herself making the transition to film, as long as the work satisfies her. "If you try your best, you can always be proud of yourself."