She competed in the first season of the new "Star Search" (1983), hosted by Arsenio Hall, in the Young Singers category. She lost in a preliminary round.
Q'orianka translates to "golden eagle" in the Incan language of Quechua
Related to pop singer Jewel Kilcher.
Father is a Quechua Indian from the jungles of South America, and Mother is a Swiss native who grew up in Alaska.
Is part Quechua-Huachipaeri Indian, part Swiss-Alaskan.
Has a younger brother, Kainoa.
Mother is Saskia Kilcher.
Father's native land is Peru.
Speaks German.
QOrianka Kilcher Detailed Biography
Q'Orianka Kilcher (born Q'orianka Waira Qoiana Kilcher February 11, 1990 in Schweigmatt, Germany) is an American singer and actress, raised in Hawaii and later Los Angeles. Her father is from Peru and belongs to the indigenous Quechua-Huachipaeri culture, while her Alaskan-born mother is of Swiss descent.
At the age of ten, while performing on Santa Monica's 3rd Street Promenade, her sound equipment was stolen. The story made front page news in Los Angeles and shortly thereafter, Kilcher received new sound equipment plus an audition for the stage show How the Grinch Stole Christmas, in which she landed the role of a background chorus member.
She has little acting experience or lessons but her film credits include the live action version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and the starring role of Pocahontas in The New World (2005). In 2002, she also appeared on Star Search singing Adagio, but came in second place, with one of the judges, Naomi Judd, commenting that Q'orianka's choice of song could have been better.
After the release of the The New World, Kilcher has several projects planned including charity work, product endorsements, a line of clothing, and a CD of songs inspired by the movie The New World. She also has a full scholarship to the Hollywood Musician's Institute and has said she would like to direct films one day. She noted in a Canadian interview that she misses singing and would also like to return to the Third Street Promenade.
The film's romantic scenes between Colin Farrell, then 28, and the then-14-year-old Q'Orianka have raised some eyebrows. She admitted in several interviews that kissing Farrell during the filming of The New World was actually the first time she had ever kissed anyone.
She has appeared at private television movie and movie screenings and other entertainment events wearing clothing designed and sewn by her mother, Saskia.
