Fab Magazine Interviews Amadou Ly

FAB: Can you tell fans a little about yourself?

Amadou Ly: My name is Amadou Ly. I am a Senegalese born actor living in Hollywood.

FAB: How did you get into acting as a career?

Amadou Ly: In 2006, I participated in a robotic competition and ended up winning the New York City regional Championship. However, I was undocumented and had been living on my own since 14. My story caught massive media attention and I started doing interviews.   I used to be very shy, so a friend recommended that I start taking acting classes.   After taking acting classes, I fell in love with acting and changed my major from engineering to theater. I fell in love with acting because I love making beauty out of pain. I know it sounds weird but as an artist I felt that there were certain things in my life that I can only express in acting because it was the only safe place.

FAB: How would you summarize this year for you, career-wise? What kind of recognition are you now getting that you might not have had before?

Amadou Ly: It’s been a good year career wise. I am definitely grateful for everything this year had to offer. Although I did wish I could have accomplished way more. (Laughs). That’s just my attitude but I can’t complain, I had a great time shooting Breaking Dawn in Baton Rouge and we shot for two and half months. I had the best experience on set from working with an Oscar winning director that inspired me early on in my career to working with fantastic actors that inspired me as an artist. But overall it was a year that definitely challenged who I am as a person.

Being in Twilight definitely opens a lot of doors professionally. And as an artist I sometimes take huge risks and now being in Twilight makes casting directors and directors more open with my character choices. And they trust me more.

FAB: Looking back at the start of your career, did you expect to achieve this much?

Amadou Ly: I knew hard work and blessings would get me where I needed to be. I’ve always been very confident about what I can achieve simply because I saw others that have done it. However, being in Twilight is definitely different from being in a regular blockbuster film simply because the whole world knows Twilight. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be in a film as BIG as Twilight, but I definitely had faith in me and I think this is just the beginning. As an artist there are a lot more characters I want to portray and I would like to start doing more indie projects.

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