A former Dedham resident will be making his grand return to town on the silver screen. Ben Kurland has a role in one of the most critically acclaimed movies of the year. It’s not a speaking role, but none of them are.
The film, “The Artist,” is a silent film.
Raised in Newton before his family moved to Dedham, Kurland’s acting ambitions began early. At the age of 11, he was petitioning the Newton public access television station to do a variety show with him as the star.
Kurland also auditioned for the lead in “Almost Famous,” and got far along in the interview process. Ultimately, of course, the role went to Patrick Fugit.
Instead, Kurland immersed himself in roles in his school plays, including Neil Simon’s “Laughter on the 23rd Floor,” at Newton South High School and “Murder Most Fouled-Up” at the Fessenden School in West Newton.
Kurland went to Los Angeles to study theater at the University of Southern California in 2003, graduating in 2006. He has lived there ever since and has been through an exhausting number of auditions.
“Being an actor, you’re basically a professional interviewer,” Kurland said during a brief trip back to visit his family in Massachusetts over Thanksgiving. “You have to sell yourself.”
The audition for “The Artist” was somewhat different, however. The script was looser, with few lines and a lot of room for improvisation.
“It was a very liberating kind of experience,” Kurland said. “Usually they are very rigid. Mostly dialog is written in such a way that is often stylized and there is not much room for other interpretations.”
“When it comes to silent characters, everything is an exploration,” he said.
“The Artist” is about the film industry during the very end of the silent era, which is among the reasons why writer and director Michel Hazanavicius chose to create it as a silent film. Kurland has a scene with leading lady, Berenice Bejo, as the casting assistant who selects her for her first big break.
It was during filming of that scene that Kurland almost got in trouble with the film studio. He was improvising on stage and said, “That’s a rap.” Film crew thought that the order was coming from their superior and began to pack up.
“They were joking they were going to cut me out of the movie because I almost cost them so much money,” Kurland said.
A former Dedham resident will be making his grand return to town on the silver screen. Ben Kurland has a role in one of the most critically acclaimed movies of the year. It’s not a speaking role, but none of them are.
The film, “The Artist,” is a silent film.
Raised in Newton before his family moved to Dedham, Kurland’s acting ambitions began early. At the age of 11, he was petitioning the Newton public access television station to do a variety show with him as the star.
Kurland also auditioned for the lead in “Almost Famous,” and got far along in the interview process. Ultimately, of course, the role went to Patrick Fugit.
Instead, Kurland immersed himself in roles in his school plays, including Neil Simon’s “Laughter on the 23rd Floor,” at Newton South High School and “Murder Most Fouled-Up” at the Fessenden School in West Newton.
Kurland went to Los Angeles to study theater at the University of Southern California in 2003, graduating in 2006. He has lived there ever since and has been through an exhausting number of auditions.
“Being an actor, you’re basically a professional interviewer,” Kurland said during a brief trip back to visit his family in Massachusetts over Thanksgiving. “You have to sell yourself.”
The audition for “The Artist” was somewhat different, however. The script was looser, with few lines and a lot of room for improvisation.
“It was a very liberating kind of experience,” Kurland said. “Usually they are very rigid. Mostly dialog is written in such a way that is often stylized and there is not much room for other interpretations.”
“When it comes to silent characters, everything is an exploration,” he said.
“The Artist” is about the film industry during the very end of the silent era, which is among the reasons why writer and director Michel Hazanavicius chose to create it as a silent film. Kurland has a scene with leading lady, Berenice Bejo, as the casting assistant who selects her for her first big break.
It was during filming of that scene that Kurland almost got in trouble with the film studio. He was improvising on stage and said, “That’s a rap.” Film crew thought that the order was coming from their superior and began to pack up.
“They were joking they were going to cut me out of the movie because I almost cost them so much money,” Kurland said.
Having taken history of cinema courses in Newton, Kurland was thrilled to be working on a silent film being produced now.
“For me it is an opportunity to be a part of film history; this is about as rare as anything I can imagine,” Kurland said.
Jim Kurland, Ben’s father, moved to Dedham in 2001 and enjoys the community. Part of his son’s interest in acting and the arts was nurtured through Jim's mother Anita Kurland’s involvement with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Anita Kurland was involved with the Orchestra for 27 years and was executive director of youth activities, co-founding youth concerts at Symphony Hall in Boston with violinist and conductor Harry Ellis Dickson.
For the younger Kurland, Dedham was always the community where he would go to see movies growing up. While he mostly visited the multiplex cinema, the place where “The Artist,” will be playing is at Dedham Community Theatre on High Street, which will get the film starting on Christmas Day.
Staff writer Dave Eisenstadter can be reached at 781-433-8336 or deisenstadter@wickedlocal.com.
