Fame is just a breath away

Fame, a remake of the 1980 Oscar-winning musical and touted as this year’s Mamma Mia!, wrapped up its filming in New York City late February, with 10 relative newcomers being launched by MGM and Lakeshore Entertainment.

Fil-Am Disney artist Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, granddaughter of Filipino showbiz icon Sylvia La Torre, is the youngest of the contenders hoping to join Hollywood’s big league when Fame is released in the US on Sept. 25, and then worldwide.

Anna Maria and her handlers are quick to admit they are eyeing Fame as a “springboard” for bigger Hollywood opportunities for the Fil-Am star of Hannah Montana and Camp Rock who just turned 18 last December.

Even her Camp Rock co-stars, the Jonas Brothers, and the Disney family have reportedly been rooting for her since it was announced that she landed her first full-length feature.

“The Disney people are so happy for me,” shared Anna Maria in a joint lunch interview with Conversations and Edmund Silvestre (of The Filipino Reporter) at The London NYC Hotel. “I’m so thrilled with the direction of my career. But no matter what happens after Fame, I will never leave Disney.”

Filmed in Los Angeles and New York and megged by 24-year-old Asian American Kevin Tancharoen in his directorial debut, Fame follows the struggles of a group of ambitious and talented students at the prestigious New York High School of Performing Arts. The original version, directed by Alan Parker, spawned a TV show and a musical that ran on Broadway and West End.

The remake — “Actually a reinvention,” said Anna Maria — gets a makeover with a new soundtrack and a new “faculty” cast that includes Kelsey Grammer (TV’s Seinfeld, Cheers), Megan Mullaly (TV’s Will & Grace, Broadway’s Young Frankenstein), Bebe Neuwirth (Broadway’s Chicago, TV’s Law & Order), Charles S. Dutton (movies Gothika, Rudy), and actress-director-choreographer Debbie Allen, the only original cast member now playing school principal in the updated version.

Conversations sent Edmund a set of questions for Anna Maria who was interviewed shortly before the cast’s four-page spread pictorial for Vanity Fair, and one day before she and brother King (a 25-year-old handsome businessman) left for Florence (Italy) to join their parents, Artie and Evelyn Perez de Tagle, on a four-city European tour. (Another brother, Miguel, didn’t join.)

How excited are you to be part of Fame?

“Very excited. Being part of something that is epic in scope is so cool and awesome. The cast is amazing. I’m very honored to be working with the legendary Debbie Allen.”

How did you bag the Fame role?

“I auditioned just like the others. I actually auditioned in West Hollywood with some of my friends. It was a six-month period of auditioning. After the first audition, I got a call back from the director, and then after that I didn’t hear from him for the next three months so I thought I didn’t get it anymore. But then I got a call later from the casting director for a screen test which was the very last audition. I went into the room like I already had the role because I wanted to be in this movie so bad. Then I got a call two days later from my agent and my manager, and together on the phone they said that I got it. I was very happy.”

How did you prepare for the audition?

“I watched the original film and then I worked with my acting coach, Dennis Lavalle, who’s really amazing. You can’t really second guess yourself in this role. They really looked around the country for this role of Joy. In the original, the role is named Joy Moy, but the new version dropped the Moy to avoid Asian stereotyping.”

How big is the Joy character?

“She’s the actress in the movie. She’s very outspoken and outgoing. I do a lot of acting and talking here but I also get to sing. You will really see the character develop in the film. She goes from being very ecstatic to being ladylike.”

What do you hope to achieve with Fame?

“That it’s gonna be like a springboard for more challenging roles.”

How is it working with the big names in the industry?

“I actually have a scene with Megan Mullaly; she’s very down-to-earth and the sweetest person I’ve ever met. Kelsey Grammer seemed so intimidating at first because he’s so big, but in our karaoke scene he’s next to me and we’re like buddy-buddy. I have a solo scene with Debbie Allen that’s very captivating; it was my crying scene and it was serious and dramatic. I was a little bit intimidated by these big performers, but it helped bring out the best in me.”

Things may be going well in your career, but people say you’re not yet in the league of your fellow Disney talents Vanessa Hudgens (also a Filipino-American) or Miley Cyrus.

“I really love those girls and they made a name for themselves. That’s what I am trying to do, to achieve success like them. But I am happy doing it gradually. People build to get to where they are and it’s so hard to find someone who can be a star overnight. You really have to work hard at it and they did, too.”

What does Disney say about you appearing in a non-Disney project?

“They’re very happy for me. When I got the role, they spread the word in the Disney Channel building in L.A. When I went up there, everybody knew and was so happy for me. They know that doing something other than Disney is also good for my growth as an artist.”

If Fame becomes a big hit, are you leaving Disney?

“No, no, no. It’s through Disney that I got into this business, so I would never leave Disney. I will stay with them for as long as I can.”

You turned 18 last Dec. 23. How cool is it to be 18?

“I got to work longer hours, like one time from 4 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. Prior to turning 18, I could work for only seven to eight hours. People look at you differently now because you’re 18. You can do a lot of things.”

Sometime last year, you told us you will be celebrating your 18th birthday with a debut party, Filipino style. What happened?

(Laughs) “I didn’t because Fame came. Maybe on my 19th birthday. But my mom got me a puppy (Yorkie Terrier) as a present and her name is Nicky. And now this European trip from my Dad. It’s always fun being in Europe.”

What do you think of people who resort to scandals, let’s say a photo scandal, to boost their careers?

“Personally, I don’t think I’d ever do that. I get fan mails, not only from kids in the US but also in the Philippines who are looking up to me. Of course, I feel like a role model for them and I’m trying to be a good one at that.”

Do you still get to watch your favorite shows in the Philippines? (Her family lives in San Gabriel, California, and subscribes to The Filipino Channel and GMA Pinoy TV.)

“When I’m home, I do. But since I was away doing Fame, there’s no Filipino Channel in the hotels. Before I left for New York, I was watching Tayong Dalawa. That’s an amazing drama and the acting is superb. I love Kim Chiu. Gerald (Anderson) and Jake (Cuenca), all adorable.” (Note: Anna Maria’s brother King said Kim and Sarah Geronimo are “very pretty.”)

What’s your Lola Sylvia’s take on your latest Hollywood feat?

“Mamacita is so happy. She’s always happy in anything that I’m a part of. Now that my face is gonna be on the wide screen, she’s even more proud. She really inspires me a lot and I’m proud, too, that she’s my grandmother.”

What’s next for you until the September showing of Fame?

“I will be shooting for Hannah Montana, and later this year the sequel to Camp Rock. I’m collaborating with songwriters and producers for my first album. I’m endorsing the clothes of Claudine Dumbel. Her shop is on 91st Street & Lexington Avenue in Manhattan called Caravan. Great clothes! I just recorded Part of the World (The Little Mermaid) for an upcoming Disneymania album.”

If Fame does not give you the break you’re hoping for, what’s gonna be next for you?

“I will continue auditioning for other movies or TV shows. I’m constantly auditioning. As an actor, you don’t just stop. I will continue working hard. But what’s cool about being part of this movie is that producers and casting directors of some independent films have contacted me and asked me to be in their films.”

And if you become a big, big star after Fame, are you ready to give up your privacy or be hounded by the paparazzi? Can you handle the pressure?

“I don’t know how it feels yet so I don’t know what to say. But I guess I will be ready. And that’s exactly why you have to keep your family close to you and keep your feet on the ground. My Filipino values are intact and I want to preserve my image just like Lea Salonga.”

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