interview: teo halm

Hollywood has opened its arms to up-and-coming film star, Teo Halm. Seven years ago, Halm was hating his first stint at theatre camp. Now fifteen, he’s found his passion in film, acting alongside a floating alien robot and James Franco in soon to be released block busters Earth to Echo and Bukowski. But what’s it like for a newcomer in Hollywood? We chatted to Teo Halm to get an idea.

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Is acting something you’ve always wanted to do?
It didn’t start out that way. I went to a theatre camp against my 8 year old will, and at first I hated it. Then I began to enjoy it and went back the next year.  Once I was too old for that camp I decided I wanted to keep acting. It wasn’t that I liked doing theatre so much, I don’t, but I was excited about film and TV.

You started your acting career by performing in theatre. Have you found working in film to be very different to this?
Theatre is really hard. I have crazy respect for the people who make it their job. In theatre you can’t retake a scene if you mess up; it’s one long take. Also you have to be more exaggerated onstage to get stuff across to the audience so a lot of the acting is very “big.” I think I’m gonna stick with film for now.

Can you describe what it was like on the set of Earth to Echo? What was the hardest thing about acting in the film?
The set was really cool because the movie is shot in POV. We each had to keep a hand on the camera as if we were filming the scene. The hardest part was playing my character, Alex, who is not like me at all. Alex is a foster child and is kind of quiet. He’s an observer. He doesn’t trust a lot of people. I had to stay in this mindset off set and on set during 5 weeks of filming.

Your acting career is about to really take off, with the launch of Earth to Echo and the upcoming Bukowski. How are you feeling about becoming a celebrity? Are you worried at all about the extra attention?
To be honest, I wouldn’t mind some recognition.  I haven’t been spotted on the street yet so I’m OK if that happens but to a certain extent my goal is that this movie helps me book other movies.

Here at Lip, we’re interested in how women are represented in films. Do you think the female character in Earth to Echo, Emma, is a good role model for young women?
I think Emma represents girl power with her wittiness and good instincts. In the movie she helps us out a lot.

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From our cushioned cinema chair, it is easy to let the phenomenon of Hollywood wash over us. Stars like Pitt, Jolie and Cruise frequent our screens often enough that their faces are permanent fixtures in our minds and inseparable from the idea of film itself; we forget that there were ever romantic comedies not starring Jennifer Anniston or Cameron Diaz.

Things might not be so easy for Halm, who is discovering what it is to make a name for yourself in Hollywood. He recognises the nerves that hit on a ‘busy set where producers put pressure to get things done’ and during auditions. But beyond all else, he ‘just wants to keep working’.

With an unbridled future stretching ahead of him, it’s unclear whether Halm will follow in the footsteps of his celebrity colleagues into popular consciousness. With the release of Earth to Echo and Bukowski, this burgeoning fifteen year old may well find himself getting recognition sooner rather than later. For now though, Halm is uniquely positioned between film stardom and a normal teenage life.

Oh, and for all those interested, James Franco is reportedly a ‘cool dude’ who’s ‘a lot of fun’ to work with.