'The friendships formed on Summerhood are lifetime ones'

Go to school or go to camp? The answer (camp!) was a no-brainer for Dartmouth actor Bailey Maughan in fall 2005 when he was cast in Halifax director Jacob Medjuck's coming-of-age comedy Summerhood.

The film, which centres on the first crush of a 10-year-old boy nicknamed "Fetus" (Lucian Maisel) and the reaction of his quirky band of friends, was shot for the most part on location at Camp Kadimah in Barss Corner, N.S. Bailey was accompanied on set by his mother Lynn Maughan, who says it was the experience of a lifetime for her son.

"The friendships formed on Summerhood are lifetime ones for sure. Bailey became really close to Toast (David McLean), Casper (Mason Young), and Flyball (Layne Greene) - all local actors. All the boys had an absolute blast. From day-one, they all connected. Every chance they got in between takes they would play shoot-em-up games with Toast's artillery of mass weapons. A lot of the crew joined in the fun and discovered traditional boyhood all over again."

Bailey's character is nicknamed "The Raincoat Kid" because he spends most of the time outfitted in full rain gear to combat the many, things the character is allergic to.

"It was such a fun part," says Bailey. "Because basically I got to be someone I never thought existed. I mean it was so dramatic to be a guy who's allergic to absolutely everything but who loves the outdoors and goes to summer camp."

At one point during the movie, The Raincoat Kid sheds his gear in a scene that Bailey found both challenging and hilarious.

"It was the first tighty-whitey scene in the movie," says Bailey, describing his costume. "I had to run around in my underwear with a big Superman symbol on my chest. I was a little nervous!"

There's plenty of swearing and toilet humour in the film, and although Bailey's character refrains from swearing, he's a little apprehensive about what his grandparents' reaction will be when they see the movie.

"This is a really funny movie for teenagers and adults, but there's parts in it where I'm going to leave or close my eyes," says the 11-year-old actor. "But I know my grandparents are going to be like, 'I can't believe Bailey was in that movie!'"

Bailey is also looking forward to the fall release of another film he worked on - the Sci-fi flick Outlander, which stars Jim Caviezel and was shot here in 2006.

Summerhood is the Atlantic Film Festival's closing gala. It plays at 9 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 20 at Park Lane Cinemas.

k-watson@ns.sympatico.ca