Image credit: Courtesy of Ledafilms Entertainment Group
Every generation has it’s iconic coming of age movie featuring a lion. Whether the lion or a human companion grows and evolves, there’s something about the majesty of lions that enthralls us all and leads to great storytelling.
Personally, I remember the original Born Free, featuring Elsa the lion. And when my son was young, it was the animated Lion King from Disney, for my daughter, it was Alex, the lion from the Madagascar series.
That’s why I was excited to learn about the new film, Mia and the White Lion, and I jumped at the chance to interview the young star, Daniah De Villiers. She was charming and it was easy to see how she was cast as Mia.
We chatted via Skype with me in New York, and her at home in South Africa.
Macaroni Kid: Before we dive in, tell us just a little bit about the movie, and your character Mia Owen.
Daniah De Villiers: The movie starts when Mia is 10 and her family moves from London to a lion farm in South Africa. Mia has no idea where she fits in and that’s how she her parents end up giving her Charlie the white lion to look after. And the film takes off from there.
MK: What’s Mia like?
DDV: She’s strong and independent, well at the end she is. At the start she’s a bit lost.
MK: And she’s courageous, right?
DDV: Oh, very. She has to rescue Charlie and they set off alone.
MK: Where does she find her courage?
DDV: She finds it in herself, but it also comes from Charlie. From her love of Charlie and the bond they have. She finds the courage to fight for what she believes in.
MK: That’s a central message of the film, do you think it comes across and children can learn from Mia’s journey?
DDV: For sure.
MK: Stepping back a bit, how long did you work on the film?
DDV: Well it took about a year to audition.
MK: Wow, that’s a long time, what happened during the year?
DDV: They auditioned hundreds of kids. As it got narrowed down, they had us play with the lions to see how we’d do.
MK: Lion cubs, right?
DDV: Yes, just some babies. It was wonderful. They had to make sure I like lions and could get along with them.
MK: Obviously you did. How did you get comfortable with Thor? (the lion who goes by Charlie in the film)
DDV: Once I got cast in the role, I started living out at the farm, my whole family had to move from Cape Town. Three days a week I’d spend time with Thor from the time he was a baby cub, so we developed a very close bond. I’d clean his pen, clean up his poo, feed him, brush him and just play with him. We’d go walking together in the bush. It was magical! Oh, and he’d sort of head-butt me as a greeting. I loved that!
MK: Here you are, 12 years old playing with lion cubs. I’m guessing you couldn’t post that to your Instagram?
DDV: No! It was all very secret. I couldn’t share any of it on social media. But my friends knew and at first they thought I was crazy. But then when I’d tell them about what I was doing they thought it was so cool.
MK: So you bonded with Thor and as he grew you two could be together. How was he with other members of the cast and crew.
DDV: For safety purposes, they couldn’t be near him since they didn’t have any special bond. All the crew were in filming cages. Kind of like shark cages for diving with great whites, but on the land.
MK: How’d you get Thor to act?
DDV: Well he didn’t really act. We just were together. I did use meat to get him to do things.
MK: And you worked with animal activist and “lion whisperer” Kevin Richardson. What was that like?
DDV: Awesome! I learned so much from him. About respect and trust for Thor. He taught me how lions see me a part of their pride, as a friend. That helped me relate to Thor and helped build our bond.
MK: And you spent 3 years filming so Thor could grow into an adult lion, and you also grew up quite a bit. How did the years filming and the film change you?
DDV: Working with lions builds character. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the film. I never knew how much I would actually love Thor. And how gentle he would be with me. He was so powerful, but he chose to be gentle.
MK: Does that relationship translate to the screen?
DDV: Very much! It’s why people should see the film. It’s so authentic. I still go visit Thor when I can and we still have that bond. It really comes across in the film.
MK: So who should we tell to go see the film?
DDV: Everyone! Really it’s perfect for families. The message is so powerful they’ll love it!
Mia and the White Lion opens in theaters April 12th.
