Young Nashville actress, Bella Higginbotham, was hard at work in the hot Louisiana sun in the summer of 2018. There, alongside a wish list of all-star actors – Academy Award winners Viola Davis and Allison Janney, child luminary Mckenna Grace, and comedians Jim Gaffigan and Mike Epps – she filmed her first movie.
When shooting wrapped, Bella knew she had made wonderful memories and lifelong friends among the cast and crew. What she didn’t know was when, or if, the film would reach an audience.
Now, after many months of waiting, her moment has arrived.
Last night, Bella walked the red carpet at the Pacific Theaters at The Grove in Los Angeles for the premiere of her first feature film, Troop Zero, an Amazon Studio Original. The film opens to audiences worldwide on Amazon Prime Video this Friday, January 17th.
Troop Zero tells the heart-warming story of Christmas Flint, a 9-year-old oddball who loves space and dreams of making contact with aliens. When Christmas learns that the winner of the 1977 Birdie Jamboree will get to record her voice on NASA’s Golden Record, she assembles a troop filled with misfit kids determined to win the talent show prize.
Bella plays Anne-Claire, a shy young evangelist recruited for the troop.
When I first interviewed Bella in 2017, she was a “nervexcited” 11 year-old gaining steam in the Nashville Theater scene.
Three and a half years later, she is an official teenager sporting stylish glasses, a cute bob haircut, and a disarming smile that will light up a room.
When I asked about her experiences filming Troop Zero, she kept coming back to the fun times she had with her young castmates. “We went through a very strong team building experience,” Bella said.
“The thing I most remember is shooting our last scene in the forest,” she recalled. “It was in City Park [New Orleans] and it was really fun, and funny because we stayed up really, really late. We were all slap happy, and like, ‘I love you guys! Y’all are great!’”
Watch Troupe Zero this Friday, January 17th on Amazon Prime Video.
