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ANCHORAGE -- When Cedric Sanders attends future reunions at East High, he'll have a lot to talk about. Since graduating in 1999, he has honed his acting chops in college, New York and Hollywood.

On Monday, his career received a major boost at the 18th Annual NAACP Theatre Awards in Los Angeles, where he won the award for Best Lead Male Actor in an Equity production.

To get an idea of how big of a deal this is, last year Laurence Fishburne of "The Matrix" and "Event Horizon" won the award.

"It was like a roller coaster," Sanders said Wednesday on the phone from Los Angeles. "(I feel) very humbled but very anxious and excited," he said. "I was surrounded by most of black Hollywood, people I've seen in TV since I was young, and they were genuinely happy for me."

Sanders won for his portrayal of Johnson Whittaker, the lead role in the drama "A Matter of Honor." The play is about a black cadet who endured brutal treatment at West Point in 1877.

Sanders' career has spanned college productions, "Law & Order" appearances, small but substantive parts in major motion pictures like "American Gangster" and more. But his performance in "A Matter of Honor," has started a snowball effect.

Independent director Mark Young was so impressed with Sanders' performance that he cast him in a lead role in his upcoming film, "The Least Among You," opposite veteran actor Lou Gossett, Jr. The film also stars Lauren Holly ("NCIS") and William Devane ("24").

The role got him nominated for the major NAACP acting award and the chance to rub shoulders with celebrities he'd only seen in magazines, including Kimberly Elise ("Diary of a Mad Black Woman"), Malcolm Jamal Warner ("Malcom & Eddie"), Vivica Fox (an honoree for the night), Randy Jackson ("American Idol") and Barry Manilow.

Sanders remains modest about his continuing success. "You never want to talk about yourself, it's awkward," he said. So he hired a publicist do to it for him.

Now, when someone wants to hear how great he is, no problem. "It's someone else's job," Sanders said.

He still feels a tug of nostalgia for his alma mater, East High -- "I get e-mails from the faculty there, and it feels incredible" -- and his former community. His parents met in Anchorage, and he grew up singing in a Fairview church.

"A lot of people's hometowns don't do stuff. If you're from L.A., nobody cares because Johnny Depp and Denzel Washington are from L.A.," Sanders said with a laugh. "It's nice to have a town who backs you and supports you."

That includes his family, and his especially supportive brother Marcus, who has been a publicity dynamo in the Alaska media scene since Sanders' career began.

On the way up his career ladder, Sanders had some simple advice for those who want to follow their dreams.

"Go forward to the fullest in every single thing," he said. "You have to know how bad you want it. You need to find out what needs to be done, and work hard at it."

"It happens for some people overnight," he said. "But most likely it won't. Always be ready, make sure you're on your A-game."

"Something will happen if you really want it bad enough. It has to."

Sanders' new film, "The Least Among You", is set to hit the festival circuit late this summer and proceed toward theater distribution by the end of the year. Meanwhile, he continues to live and work in L.A. while reveling, just a bit, in his recent success.

"This weekend a few friends will do some celebrating with me," Sanders said. "I'm going to party it up."