Casting calls search for acting's next child prodigy

In LA, the tiny stars come out

Hallie Kate Eisenberg: The Miracle Worker (2000) (TV) Beautiful (2000) Bicentennial Man (1999) Insider, The (1999) Nicholas' Gift (1998) (TV) Paulie (1998)

By Gloria Hillard
CNN Showbiz Today Correspondent

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Some stand at attention, their arms to their side. Others' arms have taken flight, twirling in a half-circle around their bodies.

All are grasping, in small hands, pictures of themselves. Some hold posed, professional shots, black and white and the size of a letter, with their names in the left-hand corner. Others grip smaller, colored images taken by the family camera.

They all have the same goal: stardom.

Welcome to the open call of the youth division of Cunningham-Escott-Dipene Talent Agency Inc. (CED), a Los Angeles-based broker of acting talent.

While mom or dad wait outside, children ranging in age from 3 to 10 are called in. Appearing in groups of five, they hand over their pictures, say their name and age and deliver one line of a "pretend" commercial.

Didn't Hallie Kate Eisenberg, Pepsi's capering pitch girl, and Jonathan Lipnicki, the bespectacled star of "Jerry Maguire" ( 1996) and "Stuart Little"(1999) start this way?

"His sister actually had the appointment to meet with us, and here comes little Jonathan, who just had this spark and charisma and personality," says Bob Preston, an agent with CED. "Within two days he was meeting with Tom Cruise and he was cast" in Jerry Maguire.

The same happened to Hallie Kate Eisenberg, at 8 a veteran of movies and commercials. "When my brother was switching agents I came along because I was really little, and they said, 'Oh, can we send her out on stuff?' and the first thing they sent me out on, I got the part," the child says.

Taylor Momsen in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"

Not since Shirley Temple tap-danced her way across the screen decades ago have we seen a comparable combination of curls, cute and dimples in films. Now, she finally has some competition: Taylor Momsen, the blonde second grader who won the part of Cindy Lou Who in "Dr. Suess' How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (2000).

Attending a press junket for the movie and wearing a red dress from one of her "favorite designers," Momsen recently told CNN: "There were many auditions -- like, a thousand kids auditioned. And they narrowed it down to three or four. And I'm not quite sure why they chose me. I'm sure all the girls were fabulous."

Another success story is Haley Joel Osment, who was 11 when he was nominated for an Oscar for "The Sixth Sense" (1999). At a premiere for "Pay It Forward"( 2000), he navigated the red carpet and paparazzi with as much aplomb as his adult co- stars.

Director Robert Redford cast first-time actor J. Michael Moncrief to star in last year's "The Legend of Bagger Vance." Moncrief was 12 when he answered an ad his aunt saw in the newspaper.

"So we go to South Carolina and there are hundreds of boys, and I thought we might as well go home," Moncrief recalls.

He didn't. It was the right decision.

He was called back to meet the casting director, then received another call. "The next time they called me back I read in front of Mr. Redford, and they called me and said, 'You got it,'" he says.

Bob Preston, a talent agent, describes what he looks for in a child actor ... 176K wav

Fourteen-year-old Jamie Bell made his screen debut on the critically acclaimed "Billy Elliot"(2000). Since the film came out, "it's all been a little bit surreal," he says, "but it's nice when big stars come over and say, 'Great job.'"

Talent agencies' job is to look for that certain child who has the capability to hold his or her own with older colleagues, says CED's Preston.

"I look for kids that are confident, kids that have that spark, kids that listen," he says.

They also need a certain fire in the belly.

Eight-year-old Robert, the picture of confidence in a Hawaiian shirt, has it. He wants to act.

Why? Robert offers a simple, childlike answer. "You get to see yourself in the movies," he says.

Review: Ooey, gooey 'Legend of Bagger Vance' stuck in the sand
November 2, 2000
Review: 'The Little Vampire' never comes to life
October 27, 2000
Star of Tomorrow: 'Billy Elliot''s Jamie Bell
October 25, 2000
Review: 'Pay It Forward' delivers gooey, teary message
October 20, 2000
Entertaining and funny, 'Beautiful' goes beyond skin deep
September 29, 2000
Jonathan Lipnicki knows that girls like him
March 2, 2000
Review: 'Stuart Little' a cheesy adaptation of White's story
December 16, 1999
Review: 'Sixth Sense' takes time delivering thrills
August 5, 1999

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