At the age of 7, a Santa Maria Valley girl is preparing to make her big-screen debut opposite stars Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman and Scarlett Johansson in the much-anticipated movie BThe Prestige.C

And the memories she?s taken from the experience go far beyond what it was like to audition and memorize a script.

BMe and Hugh Jackman had an argument,C said a very energetic Samantha Mahurin, beginning to explain her relationship with one of today?s biggest movie stars.

The argument was over whether horses pulling a carriage in one of the movie?s scenes were real or were people dressed in very realistic looking costumes. Jackman argued they were people, while Mahurin knew better and was sure they were real.

She cried when she had to say good-bye to Jackman, but he returned to the set for a final good-bye and to introduce her to his family. He came back with no makeup and wearing a beanie, so she didn?t immediately recognize him. He reminded her who he was by asking her if she?d told those people dressed as horses that shooting was over and they could go home now.

BHe broke her heart,C smiled her mother, Bunny Halopoff, adding that it wasn?t easy for Samantha to later watch BX-Men: The Last Stand,C especially a scene where Jackman takes a beating as he?s flying through a forest of trees.

Indeed, even at 7 years old, Samantha was treated as one of the cast. She was even the only child at the wrap party, and included in the rather adult gift Jackman gave to everyone in the cast: a flask, inscribed with a line from the film.

While on the set, Samantha taught Christian Bale to play the card game Uno 8 and she beat him. She rewarded him by buying him a set of Uno cards to share with his daughter. During filming, she remembers Bale shouting BUno!C from off camera to make her smile at a critical moment.

On Valentine?s Day, she took Valentine cards to everyone on the set.

BDo you know how long it?s been since I?ve gotten one of these?C her dad, Mark Mahurin, recalled Michael Caine asking when he opened his colorful three-fold valentine.

BMichael Caine kissed me on the forehead three times in one day,C Samantha interjected.

Samantha remembered almost losing director Christopher Nolan?s card when it fell out of her pile. He teased her that he was sure she?d forgotten him, but to Samantha?s delight the card was found and returned to its new owner.

Samantha didn?t meet Scarlett Johansson, but had a chance to interact with her through the makeup artist who worked on both of them. Samantha made a request for an autographed photo of Johansson that she could give to her older sister. In exchange, she left an autographed photo of herself for Johansson. To Samantha?s surprise Johansson left not just one but two photos, one for Samantha?s sister and one for Samantha.

In the movie, Samantha plays Jess Borden, the daughter of Christian Bale?s character. She is in 17 scenes, six of which include speaking lines. For those, Samantha had to learn an English accent, which she was taught by Hugh Jackman?s dialect coach.

To film her parts, Samantha spent about seven days in Los Angeles between January and April. Each day she was on the set, she was required to do school work for three hours. According to Mark, child actors can only be on a set legally for eight hours a day, and three of those hours must be devoted to school.

Mark and Bunny took turns taking Samantha to the set. Both got to witness the changes in the adults? attitudes toward Samantha. By the last day, they said, everyone there loved her. She had proved herself, not just as a fun and friendly kid, but as a professional actress, too.

Samantha?s first part was on BThe Young & the RestlessC when she was 4 years old. Bunny recorded the episode at home.

When she turned it on and Samantha saw herself on television, she asked, BDoes that mean I got the part?C

She?s come a long way since.

BShe turns on,C said Mark, who has more than once witnessed her business-like attitude that takes over when it?s time to get to work.

One day when filming BThe Prestige,C for example, Samantha had the flu. But once she was filming, no one there even knew she was sick. She spent the day filming her scenes without a complaint before collapsing in the car during the drive home.

BThey added a scene for me,C she said, emphasizing her skill on stage. BEven though I didn?t cry with real tears,C she added. Bunny said she managed to look pathetic enough that the director decided tears weren?t necessary.

And Christopher Nolan >s filmmaking proved to be an arduous task, too. According to Bunny, he films from several points of view so he has all the options when he eventually edits the film. He did 27 takes of one scene Samantha shot, for example.

She?s capable of learning at least a 12-page script in a day, which surprises her parents.

BI couldn?t do it,C said Bunny.

BI couldn?t, either,C agreed Mark.

Samantha takes film classes in Los Angeles on the weekends, and in a drama class she is currently working on building her repertoire of characters.

While BThe PrestigeC is her first feature film, she?s also had roles in television shows BDays of Our LivesC and BThe Young and the Restless,C as well an MTV pilot. She?s also been in several commercials.

In auditions, Samantha averages a 70 percent call-back rate, said Mark.

BHer job is to do well enough to get the call back,C he explained. When it comes down to who gets the part, it?s usually based more on physical characteristics, such as whether they want someone with blonde hair or brown hair, taller or shorter, older or younger.

While her parents are proud of her acting talent, they make it clear that it?s something she does because she wants to, and only if she keeps having fun.

After one of her first roles, in a Toyota commercial, the director sat her down and told her the most important thing for a child in the entertainment business was to have a good time. It?s something she often quotes, said Mark.

Johansson had better hang on to that photo. It might just be worth something someday, and perhaps sooner than later.

Emily Welly can be reached at 739-2220 or ewelly@santamaria times.com.