By: Jaime Rafferty
Look out Spielberg, there’s a new kid in town…literally a kid, and he’s right here in Owensboro.
When you look at Logan Starks you see a cute yet unassuming kid, who loves being goofy, playing Legos, super heroes, Kinex and video games. But upon further examination, Logan is much more. He is a 9-year-old boy who has made a movie, with help from Dad, called Into the World 2: A Toddlers Tale, an ode to his little brother Connor.
After speaking with Logan’s parents and watching their movie, it’s apparent he comes by his good nature and humor honestly. According to dad P.J. and mom Trina, Logan’s imagination began at a very early age and continues to be a source of amazement. He creates aliens with his Legos, can imitate a dinosaur with accuracy and now adds filmmaking to his repertoire.
Where exactly did Logan get his aspirations for movie making? Just as many families share hobbies and talents, Logan’s passion his stems from P.J.‘s affinity for the movie making process. PJ takes videos of his family as a way to incorporate them into something he loves. It seemed only natural that Logan would catch the fever.
The family already created a movie, however P.J. notes it is more of a collage of family videos that may not interest folks as much as Logan’s creation. In humor he says, “Unless they want to watch hours of home videos of my family.”
When asked how Connor became the subject of his film, Logan simply said, “It was a way to welcome him to our family.” Seems like a pretty excellent gift! Connor’s big brother thinks he’s pretty special.
The short movie captures this fun-loving family very well. There are moments you laugh at the simple trappings of daily life and moments you tear up as you view the interactions of two brothers.
Logan acts as narrator while P.J. is the very capable camera man, Trina and Connor round out the cast along with a few supporting characters. However, narrating wasn’t the only thing to Logan’s credit. He also directed his dad to what footage he wanted to share with the audience.
There is a point in the movie, a debate ensues among the Starks family and friends concerning the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Are they super heroes? A good debate was presented among those polled. However, Logan gets the final say. When asked, he replied, “Sure they are super heroes, they fight bad guys!” Indeed!
Logan is a terrific big brother and equally good filmmaker. Trina and P.J. plan to support all dreams that both their sons have as they are raising them to be kind and responsible young men.
Logan has received extremely positive feedback from his movie. He’s a little boy who is excited about life and his family and says of the movie, “I want to share it with the whole earth.” One would have to agree it’s certainly worth viewing.
P.J. and Trina are honored to be Logan and Connor’s parents and though they may have never imagined they would be asked to give advice to children (and their parents) who have such dreams and imagination as Logan they would say, “I would tell the kids to go for what they want no matter the challenges. It won’t be easy, so prepare to have to work hard for what you want. For the parents… sometimes we get so caught up in being adults that we forget how childlike wonder feels. Nothing can recapture that feeling like helping your child try to reach their goals, even if that goal is to be the next Iron Man.”
The Starks supply a beautiful example of supporting your children’s dreams and being a part of them. Though the movie may seem to be about their world, it’s an encouragement for all families to “go into the world,” be good to people and live those dreams…even if in movies.
So next time you are watching a movie, you might question whether an imaginative 9-year-old boy is seated in the director’s chair. Be sure to watch the credits for Logan Starks!