Brigid Igoe
Arapahoe Herald
Opal is the girl who finds her best friend in a dog called Winn-Dixie. Violet Beauregard is a bratty girl turned blueberry. Leslie Burke is the rejected new girl. Tara is an 11-year-old girl abandoned by her mother. Though these characters differ greatly from each other, they do have something in common—the actress, who portrays them, freshman AnnaSophia Robb.
Last May, word spread quickly that Robb was looking at schools in our area to attend for high school. Once it got out that she was to attend Arapahoe High School, Robb’s name was on everyone’s lips.
“We looked around at a lot of schools,” Robb said. “A bunch of my friends were going here everyone loved the school, and it was the only school that would work with my schedule.”
Robb also liked Arapahoe because of the use of homework blogs and e-mail to keep in touch with teachers—a necessity because of the frequent absences necessary for her career.
“The teachers were extremely flexible when I was out of town,” Robb said. “Kids are really good. I always try to look at the good and let the negative roll off.”
During the first week Robb noticed the whispers, saw the stares and tried to ignore the camera phones in action.
“People don’t think I know when they are talking about me, but I do,” Robb said. “I hoped it wouldn’t last long and it didn’t.”
Like every other freshman, Robb dealt with adjusting to high school and finding her place.
“It was difficult adjusting to school and finding out socially where you belong,” Robb said. “[But I found that the students] are down-to-earth. There aren’t cliques or fights. I’ve enjoyed everyone in my classes. There is a family. Everyone is accepted.”
But recently the buzz has started up again because Robb’s newest movie, a Disney production, “Race to Witch Mountain,” is going to be released on March 13, 2009. In the film Robb plays an alien escaping from the government. Her alien brother in the film is played by actor Alexander Ludwig and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is the cab driver who helps save them.
Robb began acting when she was eight. She got an agent and took classes. After numerous auditions, she finally landed her first role in a McDonald’s commercial.
“It was the most exciting thing ever that I got a commercial,” Robb said.
Since, Robb has been in nine major films including “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Because of Winn-Dixie” and “Sleep Walking.”
“I love acting,” Robb said. “Being able to meet new people and travel all over the world and sharing my stories with them brings a new perspective on life.”
For most of Robb’s films it takes about three months to complete; but it took six months for “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” because of how elaborate the film was. For an independent film like “Sleep Walking” it only took a month. Robb said that making every part of a film can take a lot longer than just filming it. Before they begin filming there needs to be an idea, than a script, than a director or producer who wants to take on the project. Then they can start the film process. “Bridge to Terabitha” was 20 years in the works before it was filmed. Because of the time commitment Robb missed a lot of middle school.
While Robb is working on a production, she still has school every day. She has a tutor who teaches her on set when she’s not filming. During the filming of “Race to Witch Mountain,” Robb and her co-star Ludwig had class together and shared each other’s tutors. Ludwig, like Robb, attends a public school when not acting.
“I wanted to be able to have that high school experience,” Robb said. “I try to maintain a normal life and have friends.”
Robb does live a normal life when she is in Colorado; it’s just a little more hectic than the average high school student’s life.
Robb said she has very little free time. She takes a full course load with honors classes and only two off hours. Robb also participated in cross country at the beginning of the year. A lot of Robb’s free time is devoted to her career.
“I get overwhelmed by high school sometimes,” Robb said. “But I just take every day one step at a time.”
Every Monday she and her parents have a meeting with her agents to look at movies and business together. Robb said she doesn’t have to audition much anymore because directors ask for her to be in a movie. Her agents find a script and Robb looks over it, which takes about two hours. Then she meets the director and hears the director’s vision for the film and she decides if she wants to do it.
Robb was born in Colorado and likes having the separation between life in Los Angeles and life in Centennial.
“Living in Colorado grounds me, it makes me keep perspective,” Robb said. “[When I fly to L.A.] all my problems in Colorado disappear and I start to think about work. I change positions. I only think about working stuff, and all of my stuff at school seems so small [and vice versa].”
For fun Robb goes to the movies with friends, shops, snowboards and reads.
“When [people recognize me] in public it is more uncomfortable for my friends than me,” Robb said. “I want to embrace my fans. My friends know me as AnnaSophia.”
Robb has also taken an interest in helping people in the world. Over the summer Robb went to India to see the Dalits, The Dalits are the name of the people who are in the lowest caste in the caste system. In India they are told that they are below human and are treated poorly.
“It was weird to see how little they have and how much we have to give them,” Robb said.
Robb plans on to continue to work with the Dalit Freedom Network, a group that is trying to abolish the caste system in India. Robb wants to raise money to build schools and hopes to get the school involved.
Few rumors have been spread about Robb, to her relief. But she did debunk a few. For example, Robb is allowed to try out for AHS theatre productions. She can act without getting paid.
“I love theatre and I believe it is a more difficult type of acting,” Robb said. “I won’t try out because of time, and it’s not fair commitment wise.”
Robb has to leave Colorado a lot and sometimes unexpectedly, so she doesn’t want to leave the production hanging because of that.
Other Rumors that have been floating around the school are Robb was not mobbed by paparazzi on Halloween; she had a normal one with her friends. She didn’t attend one of the Homecoming assemblies because she was at a family member’s wedding, not because she wasn’t allowed to. And Robb has a Facebook page, but it’s under a fake name. The one everyone is friends with is not really her.
Through acting Robb has been able to travel the world, work with Hollywood stars, record a song and attend premieres.
Robb has worked with stars such as Johnny Depp, Charlize Theron, Dave Matthews, Tim Burton, Mia Farrow, Hilary Swank, The Rock and Jeff Daniels.
Robb said that Johnny Depp is a really nice but quiet person. She also said that Tim Burton is a good director to work with. When he is mad, he just paces.
“Some people are scared of me, but I really am a nice person,” Robb said. “I am not going to bite them. I’m not more important than anyone else.”