Even the dark strike cloud hovering over Hollywood can't dampen the annual awards season excitement about certain projects and actors (Juno! Daniel Day-Lewis! Atonement!). Yet, there's one woman enjoying an equally exciting year who has remained characteristically low-key about it all: Sarah Polley.
Polley has been acting for years, from the TV series Road to Avonlea to off-beat films like Dawn of the Dead and The Sweet Hereafter, and recently she's turned her sights to writing and directing. Her feature length directorial-debut, Away From Her recently earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay. Julie Christie, the star of Polley's film, has already nabbed the Golden Globe and the SAG Award for Best Actress, and may just win the Oscar for her performance. Not too shabby for this 28-year-old's first time behind the camera.
There's more to love about this accomplished lady, however, so read more.
Accolades and serious talent aside, one reason I'm dedicating some space to this performer/filmmaker is how grounded and dedicated to her craft — read: not fame — she seems to be. This is particularly refreshing as she seems to have kept her head about her despite experiencing a high degree of success at an early age (I'm going to go ahead and admit here that I was addicted to Road to Avonlea when I was a little one). Doug Liman, who directed her in Go, spoke of her humility to the New York Times:
"I've offered Sarah a part in everything I’ve made since Go, including the female lead in The Bourne Identity, and she keeps turning me down,” he said. “She has a tremendous amount of ambivalence about this profession, but that makes her a better actress. She has no interest in seeing herself in a magazine, but she does have an acute sensitivity to real human beings. Even going out for lunch with her, it’s hard to scream, ‘Where’s my Diet Coke?’ when Sarah has just been incredibly kind to the waitress.”
Nice to waitresses? And she calls herself a movie star! Thankfully, despite her ambivalence toward show business, this multi-talented lady has plenty of projects in the works, and with all the attention her movie is getting this year, she'll have even more power to only work on what speaks to her. That can only lead to good things for all of us.
Penhaligon
Diesel
Bonprix
Thank you so much for recognizing Sarah Polley and all of her amazing talents!
Granted, I am biased because I grew up on "Road to Avonlea" but regardless, she is an amazingly driven person who has a lot to offer. I can't wait to see where she goes.
Thanks again for this little tribute! It makes me smile!
1I loved Road to Avonlea oh so much.
2I agree Buzz, thank you for a great post on a great young woman. I have enjoyed Sarah for years, and its so nice to see her continue her career in other directions.
you!
3Go Sarah, we
Even though I haven't watched all her films, I absolutely fell in love with her after watching "My Life Without Me." I can't wait to watch Away from Her when it's out on DVD. I'm going to put "Road to Avonlea" in queue.!
4i remember her from waaaay back when she did Ramona! she's been cool from the start!
5ktownpolarbear — Away From Her is on DVD now, thankfully! Here's the Netflix link, and here's the Amazon link.
6I met her at the vancouver film festival in 2006, and she was just super genuine and sweet. She was on the panel at new filmmakers day
7I love Sarah Polley. She was awesome in Go.
8she's so underrated, i grew up watching avonlea and tried to keep up with her movie roles. go was great but my life without me was incredible.
such a great talent.
9Great article, I loved her in "GO" and I'm definitely going to watch "Away from Her" at some point.
10Ditto for Go, great movie, great actress.
11I have liked Sarah Polley ever since the Ramona series that she was in.I loved the Dawn of the Dead movie even though I'm not a fan of remakes.I think she's a good actress.
12She was so good in "My Life Without Me!" And she seems to maintain a lot of integrity through her sucecss and the project choices that she makes.
13yay Sarah Polley!! woot! i love her in everything she does and i certainly do watch things just because she is in them. Road to avonlea is my favorite show of all time and her in ramona?! priceless. my life without me is a fantastic movie, also. i haven't seen away from her since i was out off on another continent for a year and it was no where to be seen - but i have it on request from the library! can't wait! buzz - you're amazing!
14yay Sarah Polley!! woot! i love her in everything she does and i certainly do watch things just because she is in them. Road to avonlea is my favorite show of all time and her in ramona?! priceless. my life without me is a fantastic movie, also. i haven't seen away from her since i was out off on another continent for a year and it was no where to be seen - but i have it on request from the library! can't wait! buzz - you're amazing!
15Aw, Sarah Polley! I've liked her since she played Ramona Quimby (my favorite books as a kid). I especially loved her in Go.
16Very nice feature, Buzz. Away From Her is simply amazing.
17I agree with everyone else -- she is awesome.
18I used to LOVE Avonlea in addition to Sarah's first gig as "Ramona" in the Ramona Quimby series!! Congrats on her nomination.
19she rocks!
20I love you Sarah Polley! Thank you so much for posting an item about her PopSugar! She is so beautiful and talented.
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