After graduating from the University of California at Berkeley, Allan studied acting while he modeled for two years before he was offered the opportunity to become an MTV VJ (video jockey) in Taiwan. This was the first time MTV had ever invited anyone from the United States to the music channel in Asia. With very little knowledge and grasp of the Mandarin Chinese language, Allan had to quickly learn the language in order to work in the Mandarin medium of Taiwan, which he successfully mastered after an intense nine months of classes and private tutoring.