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Q:
How much time did you get to spend with
the lion?
Osment:
It was around the set really frequently
but the producers weren’t too excited
about me jumping into the cage with it
as much as I wanted to. But I figured
I was one of the least afraid of that
thing on the set, but still they were
a little worried. You sort of forgot that
it was a dangerous animal. It acted like
a kitten.
Q:
How did this film compare to the others
that you’ve worked on?
Osment:
It was very different. Every film should
be different, the experience as well as
the characters you’re playing. Shooting
in Texas, we just had a comfortable environment
on the set. You knew everybody really
well. Having Michael and Robert there
really changed things too. Learning different
things from them than you would from other
actors.
Q:
You specialize in these roles that make
audiences weepy. How do you reach out
and bring that emotion across to the audience?
Osment:
I guess the key is being believable. You
make sure that you connect to [the audience],
make them want good things to happen to
you as the film goes on. Whatever experience
brings the character to that level should
bring the audience there as well, I guess.
Q:
Can you play a role if you can’t
connect to it?
Osment:
You have to be able to connect at some
point. Some characters will be more difficult
to relate to than others, just because
– For example, with AI, it’s
hard to find anything in that character
to relate to, it’s all about imagination.
If you can’t find any personal experience
you can relate to that, you have to imagine
it. If you aren’t sympathetic as
a character it won’t be believable.
Q:
So many young actors have run into problems
by your age, whether it be drugs or other
scandals. How do you stay so grounded?
Osment:
It’s all about having a good family
base. It’s important to have if you’re
going to be in this business. It helps
you to concentrate on the acting and not
get carried away with all the outlying
factors.
Q:
You shot this film with these two amazing
actors. Did you get a chance to spend
time hanging out with them?
Osment:
Oh yeah. Much like Hub and Garth they
would sit in their directors chairs and
tell stories whenever we would have a
camera break or something. I would always
try to just be near that to hear what
they had to stay. They had some incredible
stories. A lot of people don’t know
that Michael fought in the Korean War,
for instance. It’s similar to a lot
of things with his character, going through
battles and things, and Michael had gone
through that. As a personal experience
it related to his character and it was
just really interesting to hear about.
And then of course just the stories of
them working on the classic films they
did.
Q:
What kind of stories did they hear from
you?
Osment:
[laughs] Oh man, it wasn’t usually
me telling the stories. I was always just
trying to listen as much as possible.
Q:
Do you still live at home?
Osment:
Oh yeah, my home life is still really
normal. I go to a regular school, hang
out with friends. Spending time with my
family is really important.
Q:
A regular school? How do your peers treat
you?
Osment:
I’ve known most of them for a long
time now, so it doesn’t really change
their opinions of me, no matter what happens
with the movies.
Q:
Were you intimidated working with people
like Caine and Duvall?
Osment:
I don’t think there was a lot of
intimidation. It was mostly the excitement
of being on the set with people like them.
Intimidation is a negative thing, when
actors who are more experienced than you
separate themselves. Michael and Robert
didn’t really do that, they didn’t
separate themselves from anybody. They
just took the time to connect with the
whole crew and cast and be kind and open
with everyone.
Q:
Is a film on this scale really different
for you as an actor than a megabudget,
huge film?
Osment:
The pace was quicker, and the shoot was
shorter than say, AI, which took almost
6 months. That isn’t always directly
related to how comfortable a set is, because
AI was a lot of fun, but it’s different.
It’s not because of the money involved
in the picture, it’s the type of
shooting. On AI we had a lot of different
locations and a whole other scheme of
factors that weren’t really a part
of Secondhand Lions, which was pretty
much one location and three characters
who were in every scene. You’re still
devoting the same amount of energy, but
it’s a different pace.
Q:
Is your age affecting you professionally?
Osment:
Age is definitely a factor at this point
because at this age you get very age specific.
As a younger kid you can play a wider
variety of ages I guess, because the voice
hasn’t changed and there’s a
physicality that progresses as you get
older. Now you can’t play a 17 year
old when you’re a 15 year old. But
when you’re ten you can play 8 or
even 12. You stretched it. The good part
is that, especially with this movie, the
changes that I am going through are within
the context of the character. So people
know where I am, agewise, at this point.
And that’s the great point of this
movie, showing people where I am.
Q:
The cliché has always been that
of the child actor who never makes it
into the adult acting world. What steps
have you taken to ensure that doesn’t
happen?
Osment:
It’s consistently doing roles that
get older. And that process started back
at a young age, too. You wouldn’t
just play the younger kids anymore. It’s
keeping that consistent progression going,
with films like Secondhand Lions, where
the characters do make big transitions.
When you get older I think the complexity
of those transitions is accented more
in the scripts. As characters get older
it opens up new areas of personality and
the reality of who people are gets more
complex. In looking for older roles you’re
going to see more scripts that have transition,
because people are always changing. And
in aging, you’re always discovering
new things about yourself.
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