Aria Mia Loberti

Aria Mia Loberti in 2021

Aria Mia Loberti is an American actress, disability rights advocate, and student of ancient rhetoric.

She will play the lead role of Marie-Laure Leblanc in Netflix's adaptation of All the Light We Cannot See. Loberti landed the part after a global search for blind and low-vision actresses. A fan of the book, she auditioned after learning about the search from a former childhood teacher.^[1][2] Despite no formal acting training, Loberti beat out thousands of submission to secure the role; it is her first ever acting role.^[3][4][5]

A PhD candidate in ancient rhetoric in the Department of Communication Arts & Sciences at Pennsylvania State University,^[6] Loberti received her Masters in ancient rhetoric with distinction in 2021 from Royal Holloway, University of London on a Fulbright Scholarship.^[7] She earned her bachelors degrees in 2020 in Philosophy, Communication Studies, and Political Science, with minors in Ancient Greek and in Rhetoric, summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from University of Rhode Island.^{[8] [9]}

Loberti has a rare, severe form of the congenital eye condition Achromatopsia, which includes high levels of photophobia, nystagmus, and strabismus. She is completely blind in moderate and bright lighting, and has some minimal, variable residual vision in darkened, dimmed environments. She described her childhood struggles with bullying, abuse, and discrimination in a TEDx Talk in 2018,^[10] and beyond.^[11] Her background and the challenges she has faced led her to become an advocate for disability equity. She has presented at several large forums,^[12][13] and began speaking out for disability rights at just four years old.^[14]

Loberti has a guide dog, Ingrid, a black Labrador retriever from the organization Guide Dogs for the Blind.^[15]

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