All About Marieh Delfino

With leading lady aspirations and a world of experience behind her, actress Marieh Delfino will make her major TV debut this year in NBC's All About Us. The show revolves around the lives of four high school girls with Marieh playing Nikki, a popular but inwardly insecure girl sorting her life out with her friends.

The opportunity is a long way from Marieh's childhood. She and her sister Majandra Delfino (Roswell, Traffic) grew up in Venezuela dreaming of Hollywood stardom. Marieh in particular had the acting bug, telling her mother that she wanted to be a child actor just like Fred Savage. So when Majandra began winning auditions in LA after high school, Marieh packed her bags and joined her in Hollywood. Read on for an interview with rising teen star, Marieh Delfino.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Hi Marieh, can you tell me about your new show All About Us?

Marieh: This show is about four teenage girls in high school, best friends, and its basically about their growing pains and dealing with boys, parents, getting grounded, fake IDs, and getting into fights with each other. It's also about accomplishing your dreams and going for what you believe in.

My character Nikki is the most lost one. She's the most popular girl in school and gets every boy she wants, a new boyfriend every week, but she has a little problem pinpointing her dream because she has really wealthy parents who are never around. So she's the most difficult one out of the four.

What attracted you to your character, Nikki?

Marieh: She seemed the most three-dimensional because life was not perfect for her. When you first see her everything seems so perfect, she's supposed to be beautiful, so fun, so cool, but she really has a lot of things lacking.

So why did you get the role?

Marieh: That's what I asked! I actually tested for two different roles. I tested for Nikki and also the part of a basketball player who's a tomboy. I asked the creator and he said the second I walked in the door that he knew I was Nikki.

All About Us is starting in August. Have you filmed most of the episodes yet?

Marieh: We filmed most of the shows in January so we've had a nice long break. We'll continue filming into August and September.

You must be relieved that the actors' strike didn't go through.

Marieh: Very relieved. I was really happy about it because, like everybody, I didn't know what was going to happen.

What's the cast chemistry like in All About Us?

Marieh: Oh my gosh, it's wonderful. We get along beautifully and the four of us are as different as the characters we play. There's never been a fight, there's no competition, we're supportive of each other. We work with each other and hang out in our spare time on the weekends.

Marieh, I'd like to know why you decided to become an actress? I know that you and your sister Majandra came from Venezuela.

Marieh: I've always wanted to be an actress and was always one of those show-off kids. When I was little I'd put on shows for my parents and do choreographed dances. I told my mother I wanted to act when I was in the fifth grade, I told her I wanted to be just like Fred Savage from the Wonder Years. She said, "That's a horrible life, you'd go to these horrible things called auditions and you'd never get to see your friends and I'd become this horrible thing called a stage-mom." So, you know, she made it sound like a prison sentence. She also said it was impossible to get; it was like winning the lottery.

But my younger sister is friends with the kids of the Bee Gees and they got a band together behind my mom's back because she would have never let them. They started getting notoriety around Miami. From there the mothers of all the other girls decided they wanted to get their daughters agents. At this point my mother had seen the possible success of the band so she said, "Fine, you can get an agent for six months and if you don't get anything you'd better be concentrating on your studies." Then my sister got a small part in a movie and I was like, "Wait a minute, I've was wanting to do this way before her," so my sister said I should move out here. So I finished up high school and moved out here as soon as I could and got an agent right away.

How old are you now?

Marieh: I'm 22.

What sort of hobbies do you have?

Marieh: I play tennis, I horseback ride. I ride English-style but on Thursday all my friends and I are going on a trail ride. I write a lot, I'm one of those journal writers. Yeah, sometimes I'll write like three journal entries a day. I like trying a lot of adventurous things, I'll hike, mountain bike. My boyfriend and I are going to go whitewater rafting.

English-style? Is that like sidesaddle?

Marieh: They don't do that anymore. That was used back in the days when women weren't allowed to open their legs. It's a smaller saddle and you don't wear cowboy boots. It's much more technical than western.

Are you involved in music with Majandra?

Marieh: No I'm not. Acting has always been my first thing and its funny because my sister's was always music and then acting just fell into place for her. Because of acting she hasn't been able to get her record out.

What is your relationship like with your sister?

Marieh: We get along really well. We had really different groups of friends growing up and were into different activities. I was much more active, I was sort of a tomboy and she was shy and liked to draw a lot. She was more inward and I was out playing football or something. So during high school and middle school we didn't interact as much but then somewhere in the last four years we have just really clicked and get along famously. We have a very strong mutual respect for each other. I'm very surprised, it's almost mature, you know?

What other acting opportunities do you have right now?

Marieh: All About Us is really a full-time job right now and because of contracts I can't really do anything. I could do a feature but there really haven't been many opportunities because people were expecting a strike.

Do you and your family ever go back to Venezuela?

Marieh: Actually, I just got back. I was there for a week with my sister visiting our father. We used to go there twice a year but since we've been acting it has been a little more difficult. Whenever I go back it's such a comforting feeling because I can remember all these streets from when I was five years old when I go back to my old neighborhood.

Are you famous there? Do people know what you do for a living?

Marieh: Yes, people know what we do for our living but we're not really famous. Amongst our family they're like, "Oh, tell us about your show," and they get very excited.

Marieh what would you be doing if you weren't acting?

Marieh: I was getting a psychology degree but after my career starting taking off I didn't have the time for it. Would I have been a psychologist? I don't think so. I think I would have ended up being involved in the arts one way or another. I'm not an office person. My mom was a painter but I'm not sure what art form I'd be involved in.

What's your goal as a Hollywood actress?

Marieh: I have a lot of them. I'm always working on my craft. I always have two goals for the day and two goals for the week. I just want to be a serious actor; I don't want to be Hollywood fluff. If it's possible I'd like to be a leading lady and a character actress. It's just a matter of staying on top of your game and not lying to yourself. There's always room for improvement.

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