Merrik Foune is chasing her dream of being an actress. At 13, the Richmond Hill Middle School student has found a way to compartmentalize and balance family life, school responsibilities, extra-curricular activities and an acting career.
Foune is an eighth-grader and is involved in soccer, track, softball and the Beta Club. Despite her busy schedule on and off campus, Foune sets high academic standards for herself and has maintained all A’s. In the fall she will start her freshman year at Richmond Hill High School and plans to pursue post-secondary education at Savannah College of Art and Design.
This may seem like a normal plan for a 13-year-old, but her current daily schedule is anything but normal. Foune wouldn’t have it any other way.
"I put school before anything. It is really important to me," Foune said. "The teachers at RHMS fully support my business and I can go work and come back and they always help me through it. While shooting ‘All Eyez on Me,’ I got lucky. It was over winter break, so I didn’t miss any school for this shoot."
"When she is at school it’s her job, when she’s at work she is focused there," her mother, Shannon Bocook said. "She will study over the weekend for school or her lines and find a way to make it all work."
Foune’s introduction to acting came at the age of 8, when she was introduced to theater. She discovered she had a love for memorizing lines, being with the crew and meeting new people. To date, Foune has 19 films under her belt, acting in lead, support or background roles. She has experience in television, commercial and voice-over work, as well as supporting and lead roles in theater productions held at the Emma Kelly Theater, GW Carver Theater and SCPS Theater.
And there are more auditions and work coming. Her efforts to grow her craft consist of an acting coach, acting lessons, private lessons and workshops.
In January, Foune launched her own slime shop business on Etsy, SlimeAddicts. She has five-star reviews and has shipped products all over the country. This is just an extension of her desire to work and create. Photography is also on of her passions, and she said she hopes to partner her acting with all her passions for future use to continue developing a platform that will enable her to help others and animals in need.
When it comes to acting, Foune said she draws influence from actors Chris Evans and Jamie Foxx.
"I saw Chris Evans working and it was so cool watching how serious he was on set and the dynamic of his personality off set. I can remember watching a role played by Jamie Foxx. He was so real. I observed how he made me feel and want to be able to do that for my audiences," said Foune.
Stay tuned for more from this young local talent.
"Rejection makes me thrive and want to do better. When I don’t get the role, I realize there is something for me to work on," Foune said.