Aria Mia Loberti Says Jodie Foster Praising Her Role in “All the Light We Cannot See” Was 'So Cool': 'I Died' (Exclusive)

Loberti stars as Marie-Laure LeBlanc in the Netflix miniseries, adapted from Anthony Doerr's bestselling novel of the same name

Aria Mia Loberti has had her fair share of pinch-me moments since her remarkable rise to fame last year.

Loberti, 30, made her acting debut as Maire-Laure LeBlanc in Netflix’s All the Light We Cannot See, a four-part series adapted from Anthony Doerr’s novel of the same name. After the series’ release in November, Loberti's portrayal of one of the story’s protagonists — a blind young girl living in France during World War II who forms an unlikely relationship with a German soldier — earned her critical acclaim, and scored her some A-list fans.

Jodie Foster was one such fan, and Loberti tells PEOPLE that she “spent [her] whole childhood looking up to [Foster] and admiring her,” so the actress’ praise of the series left her starstruck.

“I died,” Loberti reveals while at the 2024 Independent Spirit Awards Nominees Brunch in Santa Monica, Calif., on Saturday. She is nominated at this year’s ceremony for her debut role.

“I don't really remember what happened because I know I blacked out, but I remember her saying that she sat and watched the show and she enjoyed it," she adds.

She says of meeting the Nyad star, 61, “One of my producers introduced me to her and we had talked a little bit over the phone, but I had never met her and I didn't think that she would even remember me. So the fact that she not only remembered me, but watched my show…. It was so cool.”

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Loberti also shared her shock at her nomination at the 2024 Independent Spirit Awards, her first ever.

“I'm very excited. I think it's just one of those things that ... I didn't grow up thinking I could be an actor, so I can't really say that I spent my whole life dreaming of being at an awards show or anything, But I really feel as if my whole community is behind me."

She also admits that “nothing” in her life has stayed the same since the series premiered, and it’s “been very overwhelming.”

“I was always quite kind of lost and stuck. And for the first time, I feel like I have a purpose, and I'm glad that that purpose can bring joy to people. It's really special.”

She adds, “And I feel like for the first time, I'm actually happy, which is outstanding. I didn't know that this would be it, and I'm very grateful that it is.”

Related: Jodie Foster Says Turning 60 'Was the Best Shift of All' After 'Struggling' During Her 'Tough' 50s

The hit Netflix series’ director, Shawn Levy, previously told PEOPLE that adapting the bestselling novel was “a very different kind of storytelling for me,” as he admitted he never expected to do a sweeping epic period piece like All the Light We Cannot See.

“I loved the book, I loved the adaptation. And it connected to my prior work in that it is fundamentally — and unabashedly — emotional."

The Stranger Things director, 55, added of the show, "It looks unlike anything I've ever made. The performances have a very different tone than anything I've made. It's a straight-up period drama."

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While Foster was a big fan of Loberti’s work on the historical miniseries, she’s been open about her dislike of working with younger actors, as she told Deadline that Gen-Z costars can be “really annoying.”

Of the advice she said she’d give to the younger generation on how to improve their behavior in the workplace, she added, “They need to learn how to relax, how to not think about it so much, how to come up with something that’s theirs.”

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