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Have you seen Disney’s newest film the The Princess and the Frog yet? I love how the movie inspires young people, but especially represents a breakthrough of role models for African American girls.

Check out these interviews of Anika Noni Rose, who plays ‘Princess Tiana’, and hear what she thinks about the film and her role:

“…I think that the heart of the film is the thought that you should always follow your dreams, always. Whatever it is that your heart most wants and makes your pulse race faster- when you find it go for it…”

- Anika Noni Rose, who plays the Princess Tiana in Disney’s the The Princess and the Frog

Anika is a wonderful actress who has appeared on both Broadway and in films like Dream Girls. She says she also always wanted to play a Disney character. Here’s what she told young journalist Chris Yandek about her childhood dream in a recent interview (click here to listen):

“I dreamed of being a Disney voice. I did not have the aspirations to be a princess like actively, but I just wanted to be a voice. So I didn’t care if I was a kitten or like a leaf or shoelace. I just wanted to be in a Disney movie so badly from when I was very, very little, I was very – I feel like Disney has sort of been the soundtrack to my life. I can remember points in my life in the movies that are with that time or a situation or how I felt in the theater. Fantasia was my first movie…”

- Anika Noni Rose

Check out the cool videos below that give a behind the scenes look at Disney’s return to hand-drawn animation and more:
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(This was originally posted on my youth site www.DreamerENT.com). As a NFTE alumnus I’m really excited to see this film, and encourage everyone to see it as well. To find out more about how you or someone you know can take part in NFTE visit www.nfte.com.)

They’re bright, energetic, and blazing a trail of accomplishment by shooting toward their dreams… Check out the film Ten9Eight featuring a group of young passionate entrepreneurs…

“In America, a kid drops out of high school every 9 seconds… Imagine if they didn’t.” The upcoming documentary Ten9Eight explores this question, by telling the stories of a group of diverse young entrepreneurs from urban neighborhoods around the country who are overlooking their circumstances and starting their own businesses. The film, by award-winning filmmaker Mary Mazzio, follows the teens as they compete in an annual business plan competition run by the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE). The teens are selected from over 24,000 students from across the country, and compete in the final round in New York City for the chance to win $10,000 to launch his or her business.

Here are introductions to some of the young people featured in the film:

Anné Montague, age 17, Founder of Inamoratos Dance (pictured above): Anné does it all. She dances, choreographs, and takes full charge of her dance company, which she started at the age of 10. Anné was raised primarily by her father, Purcell Montague, a truck driver, as her mother suffered from drug addiction. Anné, a focused girl with a big attitude, requires her dancers to go to class and keep their grades up. Anné’s business is a non-profit, aimed at getting inner city kids off the street. Her motto? “No shirt, no shoes, no need. We dance.” Anné will attend Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University next year, majoring in business.

Rodney Walker, age 19, Founder of Forever Life Music and Video Productions: Rodney was put into the foster care system at the age of 5 and ended up homeless on the streets of Chicago. Almost becoming a statistic like many of his brothers, Rodney was able to chart a new future – and is now studying business as a freshman at Morehouse College.

Amanda Loyola, age 16, Founder of Eco-Dog Biscuits: Amanda’s father escaped from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, finding a job at Burger King in Brooklyn, New York. He inspired his daughter, Amanda, to think that anything might be possible in America. Amanda started her business, a vegetarian dog treat company, after her dog, Princess, died from cancer.

Anné, Rodney, Amanda are but three of several remarkably resilient kids featured in this film, all of whom are facing the most challenging of circumstances in the inner city – making their achievements all the more remarkable.

Descriptions from from the website Ten9Eight.com

Click here to read more of the teens’ stories and for more photos, and visit www.ten9eight.com to see if the film will be playing at a theater near you.

Watch the trailer for the inspiring film below:

Talk about dreams come true! 17-year-old singer Charice Pempengco recently blew away the audience of the Oprah Winfrey Show, and the world, with the performance of her first single “Note to God.” The performance was part of Oprah’s Talented Kids series finale.

Renowned songwriter Diane Warren, who wrote the song said “I thought that would be the perfect song, and you did way beyond what I had hoped for.”

Oprah told Charice, “You are a force to be reckoned with. That voice comes from something bigger than yourself. You’re pulling it up out of some place deeper than your little body.”

Click here or the picture below to see the video on Youtube. You can also see Charice’s interview on the Oprah Winfrey Show by clicking here.

Charice also has a role on the upcoming Alvin and the Chipmunks movie coming out on December 25, 2009.

Charice truly reminds us that dreams really can come true! See more facts about the young singer below.

For more about Charice, check out some facts below about how she got her start:

Dreamer Profile: Charice Pempengco

Charice began getting exposure through videos of herself singing on YouTube, gaining up to 13 million hits!

Born and raised in the Philippines, Charice was discovered at age 4 when her mother, a singer herself, noticed her daughter’s loud, rather enthusiastic version of “Happy Birthday” and decided to teach her proper vocal technique.

By age 7, Charice was competing in local contests and belting out songs by Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Celine Dion.

In 2007, a web-savvy fan began posting a series of Charice’s performances on YouTube. These included her performances of “I Will Always Love You” and “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going” from the “Dreamgirls” soundtrack – both of which were broadcast on the Filipino talent show Little Big Star. That led to a performance on the popular South Korean talent show Star King.

Once that appeared on YouTube, she became an authentic internet sensation. Charice soon attracted the attention of American TV shows and appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. Several months later, she appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show bringing Oprah and the audience to tears when she sang.

Charice has performed alongside such stars as Michael Bublé, Celine Dion, Andrea Bocelli, Katharine McPhee and Josh Groban.

After singing with Celine Dion at her Madison Square Garden show in New York City, Charice confessed, “It was a dream come true. She’s my idol. I felt like the luckiest kid in the world.”

What’s next for Charice? “I want to sing AND dance with Justin Timberlake,” she laughs, speaking of how she would like to branch into different genres such as pop.

Facts from Charice’s Official website