Little Miss Sunshine

Official Movie Production Notes

Finally, came the character who brings all the Hoovers unexpectedly together in her improbable dream to become "Little Miss Sunshine": Olive. To find Olive, the filmmakers set out on a big national search for a seven year-old with the maturity and talent to drive much of the film's comedy - while still being very much an ordinary little girl. It seemed to be an exceedingly tough bill to fill until they came across Abigail Breslin who made an auspicious feature film debut as Mel Gibson's daughter in SIGNS.
"We first saw Abigail in an audition tape and then we saw her on Jay Leno," recalls Valerie Faris. "What really impressed us is that she was totally unaware of the audience. She had this really intense focus that we knew was perfect for Olive."
In conversations with Abigail it soon became clear that even at her young age, she already had a lot of insight into what makes the Hoovers tick. "They're a family you don't really see all the time," says the seven year-old. "They're not the perfect family that you usually see in movies and magazines. But I think on this trip they learn things about each other that they never thought they would. And what the movie's about is that even though not every family's perfect, even the imperfect family can still love each other just as much."
Breslin even sported a child-sized fat-suit in order to portray Olive's plumpness, which becomes particularly apparent when the irrepressible Olive finds herself amidst svelte, preening miniature beauty queens in California. Along the way, Breslin also developed a lot of affection and even admiration for her character's ability to stay in her own world. She calls Olive "really brave." "You might not expect her to be a beauty queen but I think she's actually really cool," she says, "because she really believes in herself."
It was Breslin's ability to bring the character to life that also inspired the rest of the cast. Says Greg Kinnear of her performance: "Everything's seamless. It's like she's not even acting. She's just all honesty and truth coming through in every scene, and there's nothing better than that."

Little Miss Sunshine

Official Movie Production Notes

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