Alexia Fast is quickly moving up the ranks in young Hollywood. The stunning Vancouver native plays a serious role in high school bully film Blackbird (in theatres now) and just finished shooting Atom Egoyan’s Queen of the Night, where she plays the kidnapped daughter of leading man Ryan Reynolds.

Born in 1992, Alexia Fast was a teen herself when Blackbird was filmed. She stars as Deanna Roy, the elusive redhead who is coveted by the high school jocks but has a secret soft spot for moody outsider Sean Randall (Connor Jessup). Sean doesn’t fit in to the small set of acceptable roles in the close-minded town. His goth attire and quiet demeanour make him an easy target. Taunted by thugs, he plots out a nasty revenge plan which he posts online. (NEVER DO THIS!) A harmless and naive creative outpouring becomes “proof” that Sean is the next Columbine shooter.

Unlike most teen films, Blackbird offers no retribution or sudden rise to fame. The plot is a painstaking story of injustice in a small town; watching the unravelling evokes sadness, fury and a sense of nausea, but budding romance intertwines with the touching story of two teens stumbling to find their identity. The performances are outstanding and Alexia had us mesmerized from her first moment onscreen.

The cast researched real-life horror stories to prepare, like Columbine, but Alexia admits that the real challenge came in trying to understand her character’s insecurities, a character that she describes as being opposite to her. “I didn’t have any experience with being popular,” says Alexia about her high school life. “I didn’t really care about fitting in. I wasn’t popular so I had to imagine that.”  Although she may have not experienced locker room mean girls at her alma mater, she admits to having been cyber bullied and has advice. “If you can’t say it to their face then don’t write it because it’s probably not appropriate.”

Residing in Vancouver but bouncing back and forth from LA, it’s been challenging for Alexia to balance school. When she can, she’s working on an English degree through Thompson River online university. Beautiful, genuine, talented and bright: we see a big future for this young lady.

Blackbird is now playing in theatres across Canada. Watch the trailer here.