Just a Minute With: Alan Ball of "Towelhead"

By Iain Blair

LOS ANGELES (Reuters Life!) - Alan Ball may not be a household name, but his TV shows and films have made him an A-lister in Hollywood.

Now Ball, who created the Emmy Award-winning HBO hit "Six Feet Under" and won an Oscar for writing "American Beauty," has directed his first feature film, "Towelhead," which will start playing in art-house theaters this month.

The dark, controversial and often funny story of a 13-year-old Arab-American girl growing up in the suburbs of Houston, stars newcomer Summer Bishil as Jasira, a stranger in a strange land who has to navigate the confusing and frightening path of adolescence and her own sexual awakening.

Ball, whose credits include "Cybill," "Grace Under Fire" and his new HBO series about Vampires, "True Blood," spoke to Reuters about why he wanted to make the film.

Q: What made you want to adapt Alicia Erian's novel "Towelhead" into a film?

A: "It's a great story that reached out and grabbed me. It horrified me. It made me laugh. It really moved me, and ultimately, although I've read books that explore similar terrain, it felt incredibly fresh. Also, I loved the fact that it wasn't just another tale of victimhood."

Q: Did you worry about being able to capture the point of view of a 13-year-old Arab-American girl?

A: "No, because I felt Alicia had done that so well. It's all there on the page, so I didn't need to bring anything to it except an understanding of film as a storytelling medium. If it hadn't felt so complete, sure, I would have been really worried. But it all felt so keenly observed and so true."

Q: Casting Jasira must have been critical.

A: "Totally. I was looking for a girl who looked to be of Middle-Eastern origin, and who looked 13, although I knew she wouldn't necessarily have to be 13 -- and believe me, I saw some 13-year-olds who looked 30! The thing (Summer, who is 18 years-old) brought to the role, that's so amazing is this innocence. You just love her and identify with her. Her face is very, very expressive."

Q: How hard was it finding the right girl?

A: "When we began, I assumed it'd take a miracle. There's not a huge talent pool of 18-year-olds who look 13 and Middle Eastern who can carry a movie. I just assumed we'd have to scour the globe (but) Summer was living in Pasadena!"

Q: Aaron Eckhart plays her dirty old man neighbor. Did you have to twist his arm to take the role?

A: "No, and I think a lot of actors would have said, 'No, no, I'm not going to do anything like that.' But we did have a long conversation in which he was very frank with me. He said, 'I don't want to play a pedophile,' and I said, 'I don't believe this character is one.'"

Q: This film goes to some pretty dark places. How important was the humor?