Alison Lohman Biography

ALISON LOHMAN

Date of Birth: September 18, 1979

A native of Palm Springs, California, Alison Lohman always wanted to perform, despite her lack of family showbiz connections. She took acting and dance lessons, and by the age of nine, landed her first professional role playing the youngest daughter Gretl onstage in The Sound of Music at Palm Desert's McCallum Theater. Two years later, she won the title role in the musical Annie and was awarded with the Desert Theater League's award for Most Outstanding Actress in a Musical.

Presented with an award from the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts upon graduation from high school, Lohman was given a scholarship to the New York University School of the Arts, but decided instead to move to Los Angeles and begin her career. Her first jobs were guest appearances on the television series Pacific Blue and 7th Heaven.

Her feature film debut came in the forgettable alien flick Kraa! The Sea Monster (1998), and the following year, she appeared in no less than three features—The Thirteenth Floor, The Auteur Theory and The Million Dollar Kid—as well as a guest appearance on the television series Crusade, and a continuing role in four episodes of the show Safe Harbor.

In 2000 Lohman landed a regular role on the new television series Tucker, as well as the lead role in a TV movie called Sharing the Secret, in which she played a teenager suffering from anorexia. Later that year she landed a able role in the feature Delivering Milo, alongside Albert Finney and Bridget Fonda.

The following year she appeared in Alex in Wonder (2001) as well as landing a recurring role as the teenage daughter on the TV series Pasadena. In 2002, she appeared in the forgettable White Boy, but also landed the plum role as Michelle Pfeiffer's teenage daughter in White Oleander (2002). Lohman delivered a heart-wrenching performance as the young girl who sees her mother arrested for murder, then goes through a variety of foster homes while still being manipulated by her imprisoned mother. The movie was her break into the big leagues, and she moved on to her next role in Ridley Scott's Matchstick Men (2003), starring opposite Nicolas Cage as a con artist's teenage daughter.

When she was hired to play a girl who loves horses in Flicka (2006), based on the classic novel by Mary O'Hara, Lohman was surprised at how difficult learning to ride turned out to be. In an interview with Tribute TV, she admits that she thought it would be fairly easy, but "it turned out to be one of the most difficult things I've ever attempted." During training prior to shooting, she pinched a nerve while on a horse, and called the director to tell him she couldn't do the film. He convinced her to stay, but says she was "very, very scared," during the riding scenes. "I was terrified of everything," she admitted. "Even petting the horse."

Lohman lives in Los Angeles, but travels home often to visit her family in Palm Springs. Her hobbies include ballet and playing guitar.

Filmography:

Gamer (2009)
Drag Me to Hell (2009)
Beowulf (2007)
Things We Lost in the Fire (2007)
Flicka (2006)
The Big White (2005)
Where the Truth Lies (2005)
Big Fish (2003)
Matchstick Men (2003)
White Oleander (2002)
White Boy (2002)
Alex in Wonder (2001)
The Million Dollar Kid (1999)
The Auteur Theory (1999)
The Thirteenth Floor (1999)
Kraa! The Sea Monster (1998)