From Shortland St to Disney royalty

Emily Robins is now enjoying international success. Photo / Supplied

Every week there seems to be a new Disney show touting the next Miley Cyrus. Miley herself was the next Britney Spears, who originally shot to fame through the Mickey Mouse Club.

But former Shortland Street star Emily Robins really could be destined for superstardom. The title character in the Disney Channel's latest tween hit, The Elephant Princess, Robins has a global audience of thousands as Alex, a regular suburban girl who discovers she is a princess in the magical kingdom of Manjipoor - and has her own elephant, Anala.

One of her co-stars has already been elevated to the status of Hollywood heartthrob, playing Cyrus' onscreen boyfriend in the blockbuster hit, Hannah Montana: The Movie.

Liam Hensworth played Robins' boyfriend on The Elephant Princess before landing the big screen role, which saw photos of him and Cyrus plastered across tabloids the world over.

Robins is more wary of jumping on the Hollywood juggernaut, however, saying she wants a lasting career, not just a one-off job.

"I don't want to become famous, make my money and then disappear. I want to keep doing little bits as long as I can."

It's that mindset which saw Robins accept the Disney role, forgoing the chance to star in the top-rating adult drama Underbelly.

"I'm 21 but I do look a lot younger. I think if you can do that, if you can play a younger role, then you'll have a longer career.

"I was up for a role in Underbelly and I had to make the decision, 'do I want to go down that track and do all the nudity and everything?' I just went, 'I don't want to make that leap before I have to.'

"There's no going back. I might as well do the young thing while I can."

Filmed in Australia by the makers of H2O: Just Add Water - another popular Disney Channel programme - The Elephant Princess began production in October 2007, months after Robins' character Claire Solomon was killed off from Shortland Street, the first of the serial killer's victims.

Producers had been searching Australia for a lead but came up empty handed. Extending their search across the Tasman, they found Robins and cast her just days before filming began.

"It was really last-minute," she recalls. "I was really lucky because they weren't even going to come to New Zealand. It doesn't happen very often. It was completely out the blue - right time, right place."

Robins had to leave her friends and family behind to move to Melbourne, where the first series was shot.

"It was really just another world. New Zealand does great and it's awesome but filming in Australia is just a completely different kettle of fish," she enthuses. "They've got the population to have bigger budgets so it is very different."

Shortland Street certainly doesn't have an elephant on the call sheet.

The elephant - Siam - is the real diva of the show, according to Robins. At 52, she is the only performing elephant in Australia and all too aware of her star status.

But though there were no elephants - or animals of any sort - on Shorty, Robins says it was the best apprenticeship she could have had. "That was my drama school," she explains.

"I was 15 when I got it and I was only supposed to be on it for six months. It kept getting extended and extended."

Robins remained on the show until after her 18th birthday, at which point she was ready to move on.

"It's always going to be scary because you don't know what's next.

"But I was definitely ready. It had got to the point where it was easy now, I could just learn my lines before I went on set, instead of going home and studying them.

"I was ready to take on the world somewhere else."

And now she is. Following the success of the first season, The Elephant Princess begins its second season shoot next week, at the Gold Coast's Movie World Studios - where Robins has her own personalised Princess golf buggy.

It's not quite Hollywood but it's a step closer than most. And proves there really is life after Shortland Street.

"For the lucky ones!"

Who: Emily Robins
What: The Elephant Princess
Where: Disney Channel, Sky Digital Channel 40
When: Monday, 4.30pm