2008 Woodie Awards
Chris Masterson Pays a Visit
Kelly McNoldy
Issue date: 4/7/06 Section: News
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Masterson, who plays the eldest brother on the hit Fox network TV show "Malcolm in the Middle," has been acting since he was two years old. However, that is not when him and Peterson met, which was actually two years ago. "We met on Myspace and we were trading music - which now is illegal and wasn't then," said Masterson. "He said 'I have this cool idea for a movie' and actually it was written by Nick's friend Hanson and it was a really cool script… I liked it for so many reasons, and the main reason is it gave me the main type of character I have always wanted to play. This was the first time I could do something so far from what I really am."
It was not just Masterson who decided he was going to play the part of Paul, a paranoid inventor, but Peterson as well. "When I first met Chris," said Peterson, "because I had never met him before project, and one of the reasons that I was convinced that he could do this part so well was…he actually creates characters with his performances and for this film in particular, that's what I really needed."
For Peterson, getting Masterson to play the part of Paul was just a small step when it came to preparing for and making the film. "Even before shooting, the DP and I compiled a book which was like three inches thick where it literally mapped out every single camera placement," said Peterson. "So it's already pre-thought and it's not so much going on the set and figuring out what I'm doing next, it's more the execution and making sure it's executed the way you planned."
Masterson also agrees that planning is very important when it comes to making a film, but if someone is an aspiring filmmaker or actor, he advises that they just go and do it. "I know so many people who have spent the last five, ten, fifteen years on this movie that they're going to make at some point," said Masterson. "They just know that as soon as it gets made they'll be the biggest thing in the entire industry - but it just has to get made and they just need that break. And then I look at all the people who are working directors and the difference is that they just went and did it, and if they didn't get the money they just shot it for less or rewrote it and found a way to do it," said Masterson.
"Intellectual Property" is about an inventor in the mid 1960's whose father sold off all of his inventions when he was younger. "So as an adult he's extremely paranoid of everything and everyone around him," explained Peterson, "so he kind of lives this life of absolutely seclusion and is actually kind of hiding from the world." That is, until a tragic event happens in Paul's life. "So [the event] kind of throws him out into the world and everyone starts noticing him and he kind of goes insane," said Peterson, "and he thinks everyone's out to get him - mainly the Russians… and it's not till the end of the film that you finally see what's behind the curtain of the film."
When asked how he liked working on independent films compared to huge sitcoms such as "Malcolm in the Middle," Masterson laughed a bit and said "I love them both pretty equally. I wouldn't want to have to choose between them forever." Yeah yeah, we know which one he likes better.