Ali Chapman answered an on-line ad seeking an African-American little person to act as a body double in the Will Smith movie "I Am Legend."

Ali Chapman, 34, is carried by Will Smith in "I Am Legend."

It was right before the holidays, so Imauri "Ali" Chapman, 34, was skeptical of an online message board seeking an African-American little person to be a double in a feature film.

"Usually this time of year all they are looking for are little people to play elves or clowns," said Chapman, who at 3 feet, 7 inches weighs about 55 pounds.

But a follow-up e-mail asked if she was willing to ride in a helicopter. Shortly afterward, Chapman was flown to New York City to shoot the movie "I Am Legend," a sci-fi film starring Will Smith as Dr. Robert Neville, the last man on Earth.

Chapman was the photo- and body-double for Smith's real-life 6-year-old daughter, Willow, who plays Marley (Smith's movie daughter). Chapman worked on location from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily from Jan. 18 to Feb. 2.

"They had a car meet us at the airport, and the whole time we're riding to the set I kept thinking 'Someone is going to do something bad to me. This isn't real,'" said Chapman, who took her mother, Brenda, along.

Chapman, a graduate of North Central High School, took one drama class and pursued a degree in fashion merchandising. She held various retail positions before her current job in apartment leasing.

When she was born, doctors told Chapman's parents that she probably wouldn't live. They later said she would eventually be blind and deaf. "There are 200 types of dwarfism. I don't fit neatly into any particular type, so I don't think they really knew what to expect," said Chapman, who has had surgeries on her hips, but has otherwise been healthy.

"I have people see me from behind all the time and think I'm a child. People are always coming up to me and wanting to pick me up and hug me," said Chapman.

In the movie -- her first -- Smith does pick her up. In an evacuation scene, he carries her through a crowd.

"What woman doesn't dream of being swept away in the arms of an actor? It kind of changed my thinking when I was playing the part of a little girl," she said.

In another scene, she was strapped into a child's seat in the back of a Ford Escape, with Smith and his on-screen wife, (Salli Richardson) in the front.

Most of the film was shot outside at South Street Seaport, with the Brooklyn Bridge as a backdrop. Throughout the shoot, Chapman dressed the same as Smith's daughter -- in a red hooded coat, multi-colored scarf and curly wig.

"Initially it was a little strange, and I didn't feel like a woman. But then I realized I was doing a job," she said.

For her, a bonus of the job was staying in a first-class hotel in south Manhattan.

"People were so nice to us and checked on me constantly," said Chapman. "Jada Smith was on the set and invited me in to their tent to get out of the cold. Willow was a doll, and just talked my leg off."

Chapman's work on the film earned her an invitation to join the Screen Actors Guild.

"Initially, I thought about doing more behind-the scenes work, but now I'm seeing myself representing little people in a positive way," said Chapman. "More and more actresses are playing themselves and showing people that we are just like them. We pay bills and have families. We're just small."

T.J. Banes / The Indianapolis Star