Sahara Garey can be seen in the family film Akeelah and the Bee. A girl about to see herself on the big screen, Sahara shared with us all of her excitement. Down to earth, she has the perspective of someone who truly appreciates the good fortune that has come her way.
THE STAR SCOOP:
My name is Sahara Garey and I’m…
SAHARA GAREY:
14 [years old], a student in high school. I have a younger brother, and I just got a puppy. I’m pretty cool, you can talk to me about anything. I love shopping and hanging out, and listening to music all the time. I love to talk on the computer with all of my friends. I have a ton of friends on my messenger list, and I just talk. I also like to get outside. And acting of course. I have to do my acting.
THE STAR SCOOP:
You’ve got the role in Akeelah and the Bee. How’d you get involved?
SAHARA GAREY:
I started my acting; I started performing when I was really, really young. I lived in Texas. I did a lot of beauty pageants and talent things, and I was singing a lot. When I turned about 10, I said, I don’t want to do that anymore. I want to do acting. And my Mom was like, really? And I was like, yeah. So we moved out here and I got an agent. And then, for a couple years, I did a little bit of stuff, not very much, and then the audition came up and I auditioned for that. And they about a month later, they called me back and it took eight months to actually get the part, and I went through about six auditions, which is a lot.
THE STAR SCOOP:
What was the process like? Any nerves?
SAHARA GAREY:
In the beginning, I was really nervous because I really wanted the part. I loved the character so much. She’s fun loving, crazy, boys, out of her mind, you know? I was really nervous that I wouldn’t get it, but I kept getting callbacks. And then there were times when I didn’t hear something in forever, and then they’d call a little while later.
THE STAR SCOOP:
Who are you in the film?
SAHARA GAREY:
My character is Georgia. I play Akeelah best friend. She’s like the person in the beginning that was trying to coax her into doing the spelling bee. She’s just totally different, crazy, really fun. She’s not a lot like me, she’s so crazy and out of her mind. She wants to be a flight attendant when she grows up. I definitely do not want to be a flight attendant. She has a crazy style, the way she dresses, bright purple, that’s not me, I’m more laid back, though I do love color in my style. So she’s somewhat like me but not really.
THE STAR SCOOP:
Is this your first big movie role?
SAHARA GAREY:
Yes it is. You can’t even think of words for it, it’s like wow, almost like, you want me to be in your movie, on a huge screen? Oh my god, it’s crazy. I am kind of nervous, but I cannot wait [for it to come out].
THE STAR SCOOP:
Can you tell us about the movie a bit?
SAHARA GAREY:
It’s about a young girl, Akeelah, who is played by Keke Palmer. She learns how to cope by spelling, and she gets in a spelling bee. There’s so much going on around her, so it’s not exactly about a spelling bee, but about her community and everyone coming together as friends and family.
THE STAR SCOOP:
Why should we go and see Akeelah and the Bee?
SAHARA GAREY:
It’s so inspirational and it’s so cute, so much said. Just where you’re from or how old you are, that doesn’t matter, you can do whatever you want and you can be really good at it. You just have to work toward something.
THE STAR SCOOP:
What does the future hold for you?
SAHARA GAREY:
In the future, I’d love to see myself as doing a bunch of movies and just getting a lot better in my acting and working a lot harder. I’m so excited.