How To Direct Luke Benward --by Bob Dolman

A newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee, recently asked Bob Dolman some questions about directing Luke Benward, the star of How To Eat Fried Worms. Here’s what he said:

Q: What was it about Luke that made you want to cast him?

A: A big factor was his age. Often in movies older kids are cast to play young parts so that they, as actors, will have more experience or audience recognition. We wanted Fried Worms to be composed mostly of a cast of ten to eleven year olds, and Luke at the time was ten. He brought ten-year-old innocence to the part. He also had (and still has) an easy-going charm mixed with appropriate doubts that made him right as the reluctant hero of our story.

Q: How did he do in his first lead role?

A: Luke had to carry the movie on his shoulders. He’s in almost every scene. He was there on day one and still there on the day we wrapped. He had more lines to learn than anyone else. He worked hard in the midst of dozens of adults giving him instructions. The result is a full character on screen whom audiences cheer for. He’s believable, brave, vulnerable and funny. How’d he do? I give him an A-plus.

Q: How would you describe him as an actor?

A: He was sometimes distracted by things such as: other kids, swimming holes, video games, food, silly jokes, and buckets full of earthworms. Now and then I would lose my patience with him and then remember he was ten. When I was ten you couldn’t have got me to stand still for five seconds, let along repeat a “take” again and again and hit my mark each time. His favorite scenes were ones in which he had a stunt to perform. He laughed a lot, treated all props as toys, made weird faces into the camera when I called “Cut!” and often broke into song and danced. What kind of actor was he? A CHILD actor.

Q: How does he compare to other child actors with whom you have worked?

A: I haven’t worked with too many child actors. Fried Worms was a new adventure, that’s for sure. And let me add an important piece of the puzzle: Luke’s mother, Kenda Benward, coached her son during every day of our shoot, and I am not sure how I could have directed this movie without her. She kept Luke focused and rehearsed, and often I turned to her for help when a scene was floundering. Film-making is a team sport, and when there are children in the cast, the parents of those children are a vital part of the collaboration.