Tani Lynn Fujimoto

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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM Tani Lynn Fujimoto will be part of the cast of the new TV series "29 Down."

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Isle teen could see
stardom on show

Tani Lynn Fujimoto has already
made a mark in local music

Will "29 Down," a television show that's been described as "'Lost' for the teen set," be Tani Lynn Fujimoto's springboard to national success in 2005?

Production on the show is scheduled to start this week and continue through March. The show is expected to debut on NBC and Discovery Kids either in April or fall.

Regardless of when "29 Down" airs, this will be a busy year for Fujimoto, a 16-year-old junior at Sacred Hearts Academy who also enjoys theater and who has had an active career as a local recording artist. Fujimoto's second album is scheduled for release in March.

Although an acting role on "29 Down" could be Fujimoto's road to fame, she's best known thus far for her singing. Fujimoto's debut recording at age 11, a track on Darryl Hill's "Brown Bags to Stardom 2000: Stars of the Millennium" compilation, was a karaoke-style remake of "Eternal Flame."

She was also included on Tiny Tadani's compilation albums, but came of age as a singer and songwriter in 2003 when she teamed up with Jason Lent and elan of Afterthought Entertainment to record a self-titled debut solo album. The trio wrote all but two of the songs and succeeded in tastefully emphasizing her maturing abilities.

A convincing performance as a teenage prostitute last fall on the short-lived cop drama "Hawaii" showed Fujimoto's potential as an actor, and a good video audition tape resulted in a role tailor-made for her on "29 Down."

So, Fujimoto is on the verge of following Hoku Ho, Yasmeen Sulieman and Jasmine Trias into the national spotlight.