Post by Galleria on Jun 5, 2006 23:41:18 GMT -5
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - No matter what name she goes by, Raven-Symone makes her professional decisions from the same place: her heart.
Determined to do projects that matter, the young actress has gone back to her full first name from her "Cosby Show" tenure in moving into drama, as she wraps up her Disney Channel sitcom "That's So Raven."
Debuting Monday, Feb. 6, the fact-based Lifetime movie "For One Night" casts her as a contemporary Louisiana teen who ignites simmering racial tensions by suggesting her high school's long-standing tradition of segregated proms be dropped.
As the prejudices of many parents quickly surface and the school principal tries to quash the idea, a New Orleans newspaper reporter (Aisha Tyler, "Ghost Whisperer") who grew up in the town brings wider attention to the controversy by making it the subject of an expose.
Jason Lewis ("Sex and the City," "Charmed") also stars as the assistant principal who was once involved with the journalist. Ernest thingyerson ("Juice") directed the film that covers events that actually occurred in Georgia.
"I was so excited to be a part of this," Raven-Symone says. "I'd always held out on doing a dramatic piece, because I didn't want my first step into drama being a superficial, thin story. I thought this was just thick enough to show people [what I can do]. I don't want to do pieces that don't make a difference, and this being a true story made it even more perfect for me."
"For One Night" may startle viewers by showing such prejudice still exists some places, but Raven-Symone maintains she isn't surprised. "I come from the South (Atlanta), and there's still racism there. A lot of people don't want to open their minds to the new world, and I never said that's everybody, and it's not saying I think their beliefs are wrong. They haven't opened their eyes completely. It's not stupidity, it's just ignorance ... not knowing the facts, not wanting to change.
"You get that sometimes, and you just have to walk away from the situation sometimes. Otherwise, you can get yourself in trouble and get your emotions tied in, then bad stuff can happen. If you can handle it responsibly, and you're smart and educated on the subject, you'll be OK."
Raven-Symone got firsthand confirmation by meeting the woman who inspired her "For One Night" character. "When I first heard the story," she recalls, "and what people did to try to bring her down and she just kept going, she has more guts than I do. I would have backed down a little bit, but her reasoning was just. What I call her 'war wounds' only made her stronger. She doesn't show any sign of pain; she's just moving on, and it's amazing."
"For One Night" may have been a bit edgy for Disney Channel, where Raven-Symone reigns as a superstar, but the actress maintains she isn't turning her back on the network that "put me here in the first place" by also working for Lifetime.
"Then again, I think a lot of adults look down on kids, but there's so much stuff on television that [young people] can't help but know about it. If you treat them with respect and teach them young, they will understand, and I think this story does that tastefully, while giving them a little jolt about what's happening in their world. And they're the only ones who can change it."
Raven-Symone is the only one who could change her name, and she explains that will vary with the project and where it's done.
"I think it'll stay Raven for Disney Channel purposes," she says. "Kids in that age range don't know how to separate the person from the character. They'll come up to me sometimes and ask, 'Did you have a vision?' (The title character in 'That's So Raven' is psychic.) For projects like the Lifetime movie and my music and other things as I get older, I will continue with Raven-Symone. That's my birth name, and I think people need to know it."
Some Raven ties to Disney Channel remain: She's now completing the final episodes of "That's So Raven," and she'll reunite with the musical Cheetah Girls for a TV movie to air this summer. However, she attests, "I do have to break away from Mother Bear and help myself. When that happens, people need to know who I am. Otherwise, my years in this business will have been null and void.
"We're reading a lot of scripts, and things will be going into production as soon as 'That's So Raven' ends. I think 2006 is going to be a very cool, prosperous year for me, but also a little scary. I'll no longer have the 'That's So Raven' cushion."
Still, Raven-Symone has gone into uncharted territory before, although she was quite young then. She was all of 6 years old when "The Cosby Show" ended in 1992, and she reflects, "I know this is going to sound bad, but I don't remember it that much."
She adds that she and Bill Cosby "are so busy, we don't really talk. I hear through the grapevine that he enjoys my show, and that's good enough for me. It's really cool how it's mellowed out, even though I wouldn't be here without him."
