A Nanaimo teen is riding a roller-coaster of fame, thanks to a role in one of the most popular movies this year.

Cameron Bright, 16, plays the part of Alec, a Volturi vampire in New Moon, the second installment in the Twilight movie franchise, adapted from the bestselling young adult novels of the same name.

Bright donned a well-fitted suit and covered his signature blue eyes with red contacts for the role, filmed in Vancouver over 10 days with fellow Volturi – a clan of vampire royalty which keeps the bloodsuckers’ existence secret from humans – Dakota Fanning, who plays his twin sister, Jane, Jamie Campbell Bower and Charlie Bewley, among others.

Bright chalked up an impressive resumé since he began acting as a child, with roles in Godsend, with Robert DeNiro, and Birth, with Nicole Kidman. Working with actors his own age gave the New Moon set a laid-back feel, he said.

“I could just go and chill,” Bright said. “You’re never stressed out about your work because someone is always there to tell a joke.”

Much of an actor’s career is fan-base driven and a movie like New Moon, with its legions of ‘Twi-hards’, will help propel Bright to the top of the list when directors and producers need a lead actor to sell their project to theatergoers.

“People think, I know that kid from somewhere but I don’t know that name,” Bright said. “My name isn’t a driving force.”

The movie’s young stars travelled to film festivals and events around the world to promote New Moon, with Bright heading to Australia for a Twilight convention.

Kristin Stewart and Taylor Lautner, who play Bella and Jacob, respectively, went to Brazil and found themselves surrounded by police after thousands of fans broke into the hotel to find the pair, said Bright.

“At that point, I was like, what have I got myself into?” Bright said. “We’re learning a lot from this movie.

“It’s a totally different level for my career.”

At the premiere in Los Angeles on Monday, more than 700 female fans camped out for five days, hoping to get a spot on the red carpet. When they didn’t, they stuck around in hopes of glimpsing one of their favourite actors.

Bright, wearing a new Burberry suit and his signature shoe line from Ula’s on Bowen road, and Kiowa Gordon, who plays a werewolf, broke away from the red carpet to sign autographs for the dedicated fans, who told American news crews they were ecstatic to see the actors.

“I was happy to hear that,” Bright said.

But at the end of the day, the teenager is happy to return to Nanaimo and his somewhat normal life, he said.

“I’m glad I have the best of both worlds,” Bright said. “People [in Nanaimo] care but they don’t blow it out of proportion.”

Bright is completing high school online and is considering skipping ahead for his GED. The Screen Actors Guild requires its members under age 19 to be educated in some way, either through a tutor or online learning. Acting is what Bright wants to pursue as an adult, eager to take on any role.

“It’s not even really a job anymore – I’ve been doing it since I was like five,” Bright said.

He is also an avid gamer, plays paintball, football and soccer, having played youth soccer until he was 14. He saw the underfunding of soccer, with the lack of fields, rep teams and coaches, and is using his celebrity to help raise money for Nanaimo Youth Soccer Association and the Mid Vancouver Island Tenpin Association at the Island Kia Youth Sports Fundraiser Jan. 31, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., at Splitsville Entertainment.

Bright just wrapped filming for Eclipse, the third movie from the Twilight series, where he reprises his role as Alec. Nothing has been confirmed for the final novel in the series, Breaking Dawn.

In the meantime, he’s reading scripts and auditioning for roles with the help of several acting coaches.

“The next couple of weeks we have to wait and see what happens,” Bright said. “We just ride the roller-coaster.”

For information on Bright, please visit www.camfans.org or www.twitter.com/cambright.

New Moon opens today (Nov. 20) at Galaxy Theatre. Please call 250-729-8000 for showtimes.