Childstar (film)

Taylor Brandon Burns, who happens to be America's most famous child star, is in Canada to shoot a big-budget action film. Wanting to get away from his stage mom Suzanne and the pressures of show business, he runs off set with a fellow actress, Natalie. The film's producers, concerned with the money they are losing due to a delayed shooting schedule, enlist Rick Schiller, a down-on-his-luck indie filmmaker and Taylor's reluctant limo-driver, to find the boy.

{{Cast listing|

• Don McKellar as Rick Schiller
• Peter Paige as Tim
• Gil Bellows as Isaac
• Alan Thicke as J.R.
• Mark Rendall as Taylor Brandon Burns
• Jennifer Jason Leigh as Suzanne Burns
• Michael Murphy as Reed Harrison
• Brendan Fehr as Chip Metzger
• Dave Foley as Philip Templeman
• Wendy Lyon as Miss Kelly
• Kristin Adams as Natalie
• Michael Barry as Waiters

}}

Director and co-writer Don McKellar said he got the idea for the film when he was at an Oscars party and found himself talking to actor Haley Joel Osment, who was then hot off the success of The Sixth Sense.{{Cite web |date=2005-01-27 |title=Childstar director Don McKellar explores the lives of the rich and bratty |url=https://www.straight.com/article/childstar-explores-lives-of-rich-and-bratty |access-date=2022-11-04 |website=The Georgia Straight |language=en}} Said McKellar, "He seemed to perfectly encapsulate American stardom…He was preternaturally mature, extremely young but unnatural." McKellar said the encounter was a "a potent symbol...of my experience of Hollywood. He was an unnaturally precocious kid in a culture where kids act too old and adults act too young."{{Cite web |last= |date=September 12, 2004 |title=Childstar (2004) – Long Pauses |url=https://www.longpauses.com/childstar/ |access-date=2022-11-04 |website=longpauses.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2005-01-28 |title=Interview: Don McKellar, writer, director, and co-star of Childstar |url=https://www.showbizmonkeys.com/features.php?id=913 |access-date=2022-11-04 |website=ShowbizMonkeys.com}} McKellar envisioned a lighter take on a child star story and took his idea to [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1492832/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1 Michael Goldbach], then a writer at the Canadian Film Centre.{{Cite news |date=September 1, 2004 |title=Canadian style: Don McKellar talks about Childstar, Hollywood and fame. |work=Take One |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Canadian+style%3A+Don+McKellar+talks+about+Childstar%2C+Hollywood+and...-a0122765021 |access-date=2022-10-21 |via=The Free Library}}

Filming took place in Toronto from November to December 2003.{{cite news |title=McKellar cranks up Childstar |url=https://www.screendaily.com/mckellar-cranks-up-childstar/4016204.article |access-date=21 October 2022 |work=Screen Daily |date=November 23, 2003}}

Childstar had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2004. It was eventually acquired by The Sundance Channel, where it had its TV premiere in 2006.{{Cite web |date=2005-09-05 |title=Sundance acquires Childstar |url=https://www.c21media.net/news/sundance-acquires-childstar/ |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=C21media |language=en-us}}

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Childstar has an approval rating of 78% based on 9 reviews.{{Cite web |title=Childstar |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/childstar |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=Rotten Tomatoes}}

Ian Mackenzie of Exclaim! wrote the film "goes to great lengths to humanise and sympathise with its namesake, asking questions about mass media's consumption of child performers —rich and famous in a day, then tabloid-fodder for the rest of their lives", adding it "never misses an opportunity for a smart joke or a poignant observation at the expense of someone who thinks they know better."{{Cite web |last=Mackenzie |first=Ian |date=October 1, 2004 |title=Childstar Don McKellar |url=https://exclaim.ca/film/article/childstar-don_mckellar-2 |access-date=2022-11-04 |website=Exclaim! |language=en-ca}}

Writing for CinemaBlend, Rafe Telsch gave the film four out of five stars and praised McKellar for bringing a new perspective to the story of a child star.{{Cite web |last=Telsch |first=Rafe |date=2016-05-27 |title=Childstar |url=https://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Childstar-1131.html |access-date=2022-11-04 |website=CinemaBlend |language=en}} He also lauded the film's satirical commentary on American films that use Canada for filming locations.

Childstar received four awards from the Vancouver Film Critics Circle, including Best Canadian Film, Best Director, Best Actor for McKellar and Best Supporting Actor for Dave Foley.{{Cite web |date=2005-02-20 |title=5th Annual Award Winners |url=https://vancouverfilmcritics.com/2005/02/20/5th-annual-award-winners/ |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=Vancouver Film Critics Circle |language=en}}

It was nominated for five Genie Awards, with Jennifer Jason Leigh winning for Actress in a Supporting Role.{{Cite web |date=2005-02-09 |title=The best in Canadian film. Genie nominees announced. |url=https://screenanarchy.com/2005/02/the-best-in-canadian-film-genie-nominees-announced.html |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=ScreenAnarchy}}

The region 1 DVD was released September 13, 2005.{{Cite web |title=Childstar |url=https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/17832/childstar/ |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=DVDtalk.com}} The DVD includes an audio commentary track and a making-of featurette.

As of 2017, the movie has been released online for free on Canada Media Fund's Encore+ YouTube Channel.{{Cite web |title=Childstar |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iV221575oSE |access-date=2022-10-21 |website=YouTube}}

{{reflist}}

• {{IMDb title|0387117}}
• {{rotten-tomatoes|childstar}}
• [https://www.allmovie.com/movie/childstar-v312587 Childstar] at AllMovie
• [https://cfe.tiff.net/canadianfilmencyclopedia/content/films/childstar Childstar] at Canadian Film Encyclopedia

{{VFCC Award for Best Canadian Film}}

Category:2004 comedy films

Category:2004 films

Category:Canadian comedy films

Category:English-language Canadian films

Category:Films about actors

Category:Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles

Category:Films directed by Don McKellar

Category:Canadian independent films

Category:2004 independent films

Category:2000s English-language films

Category:2000s Canadian films

Category:English-language independent films