Aimee Dunn, standing, is a native of Kosciusko County and appears in Grace Unplugged, a movie now playing in area theaters. (Photo provided)

Grace Unplugged is the story of Grace Trey, the ideal Christian teen who also happens to be a phenomenal singer and the daughter of a former rock star. But at just 18, she gets the music break of a lifetime that will test her faith.

“I feel the message of this film is to follow your dreams, but make sure you are doing it for the right reason,” said Aimee Dunn, a Kosciusko County native who appears in the Indie film.

Aimee Dunn grew up near Silver Lake. “Warsaw was where I went for primarily everything from grocery shopping, movies, dinner, Wagon Wheel theatre, hanging out with friends, etc.,” she said. Her parents, Luther and Annie Bailey, still live in the Claypool area.

In Grace Unplugged, Dunn plays the role of Donna, the mother to Michael Welch’s character. Many may recognize Welch as Mike Newton from the Twilight series. Although it is a small role in the film, Dunn’s acting resumé is growing.

Already to her credit, Dunn has played a teacher in The Vampire Diaries, a tennis player in What to Expect When You’re Expecting, and she was a stunt double for the TV show Final Witness because the lead actress did not know how to ride a motorcycle. Dunn has also done stand-in work on Meet the Browns and can list extra roles in Tyler Perry’s movies such as Madea Goes to Jail and The Family that Preys.

“I’ve played a detective, a drug addict, a maid, a soldier, a counselor, a martial artist, and lots of mom roles. The mom roles are easy because I am a mom. But, I prefer the more extreme characters,” she explained.

For Grace Unplugged, Dunn, who now lives in the Atlanta area, said, “My first audition for this film was for a different role. I have a small studio at home that I typically tape my first audition in for a particular role. This gets sent to my agent who passes it along to the casting director.”

A few weeks after her first audition, Dunn received a callback and went to Birmingham, Ala., where she met with the director and one of the producers. She read for the role of a recital announcer, but she explained, “After I did the audition, they told me that they had messed up and really wanted someone more southern for the role. They then asked if I would like to read for the role of Donna, who was more of a Midwestern character.

“I stepped out into the hall and had 10 minutes to work through three pages of script. A few weeks later my agent called to tell me I got the role,” she added.

Dunn said, “I always wanted to try acting, but especially growing up in Indiana without a strong film presence, I didn’t know where to start. After living in Atlanta for several years, I started taking some acting classes at my community theatre and then went on to do a few plays there. I then found an acting school that focused on film and TV and signed with my first talent agent.”

When she is not auditioning for work, Dunn likes to work on independent films, also called Indies, like Grace Unplugged. While most of those films typically play only at film festivals and go directly to DVD, Grace Unplugged is actually playing in one Fort Wayne theater now.

Of her Grace Unplugged experience, Dunn said, “It was a wonderful … I worked with AJ Michalka from the singing duo Aly and AJ, Michael Welch from the Twilight series and Tony Reynolds from The Hunger Games. Everyone involved with this project was very humble and excited to make this film in the hopes of changing lives. I would highly recommend it, especially to those with teenagers.”

The faith-based film about a teenage girl struggling with her faith and the pursuit of her dream to become a performer is now playing at Carmike 20, 3930 E. Dupont Rd., Fort Wayne.