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WHO'S WHO IN CHARLOTTE'S WEB
from The Winnipeg Sun, December 12, 2006
by Jim Slotek
There are so many things Dakota Fanning can consign to memory from the months she spent filming Charlotte's Web.

There was the daily sight of kangaroos, wallabees and koalas on the road to the location outside Melbourne.

But mostly, she'll remember her mom, Joy Fanning, crying when she tried on a certain dress.

It was the yellow dress that Fern put on "because she knew she would see the boys at the fair," as author E.B. White wrote.

"Mom cried when she saw me in that outfit," Dakota says.

"When I think of Fern, I always think of the yellow dress and red ribbons and when you get to bring that to life, it's really something. And my mom, she got all emoootional when she saw it," she says with a giggle.

And, of course, there were pigs -- about 50 piglets, stand-ins for hero Wilbur, each one losing its job after a few weeks of growth. (The producers say all the pigs were given stays of execution and ended up as pets).

"They were adorable," Fanning says, practically squealing. "We got the pigs when they were, like, four weeks old. They were good pigs, and were all really cute. And they don't smell. I think everyone thinks they do, but they really don't."

Fanning will be 13 in February and has been the world's most famous child actor for so long -- stealing everything from War Of The Worlds to The Cat In The Hat to I Am Sam -- it's surprising to find out she's not 20. When she talks about the book Charlotte's Web, it sounds like a distant memory.

"I've always been a fan of the book, it's so amazing and one I've read so many times, it means so many things to me. It says so much about life and friendship and being honest and living life to the fullest."

But though Fern discovers boys, Dakota says she's not ready to go there.

"Not in real life. I really don't even think about (boys). When I start thinking about that, I guess I'll talk to my parents about it. But I'm not even interested yet."

In the movie, however, she falls in puppy love.

"Definitely!" she enthuses. "His name is Julian O'Donnell and he's from Australia and he's really sweet.

"It was an important scene," she says of the handholding on the ferris wheel. "It symbolizes Fern growing up."

Of course, growing up in Hollywood means taking tougher roles. Some controversy surrounds her next movie, tentatively titled Hounddog, about a sexually abused girl in the South who seeks escape in the music of Elvis.

"It's a very dramatic story but it wasn't harder to play than anything else I've done."

Of the abuse scenes, she says, "That's part of acting, to be able to relate to things people go through without going through them myself. That's what I love about it."

Life on the home front, she says, is not that dramatic.

"This past year and a half, I did one film. It's important to have a balance," says the actress, who has a full-time tutor. "I play with my sister (Elle Dakota who's in Babel), or play the piano or play with the dog. We have a dog now, a schnoodle named Lewellen."

She says she has lots of friends, not all in the "biz," and "I go to movies a lot, but not a lot a lot."

Her favourite: The Devil Wears Prada. I love fashion and makeup. My mom won't let me wear it out.

"Y'know all the dresses I get to wear to premieres have been important to me, but I always try to dress my age. I don't want to be 18 right now."

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