Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with actor and director Josh Duhamel, as well as Michael Socha about their work on ‘Preschool’, the film’s tone, how Duhamel’s previous experience directing prepared him for this project, Socha’s character, what it was like being directed by Duhamel, and shooting the movie’s funniest scene.

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(Center) Josh Duhamel as “Alan” in Comedy, Family Film, ‘Preschool’. Photo courtesy of Republic Pictures (a Paramount Pictures label).

Moviefone: To begin with, Josh, can you talk about how your previous experience as a director prepared you to make this movie?

Josh Duhamel: Good question. I think that my previous experience gave me the confidence that I could do it. I think that first time out of the gates is very scary, but I knew enough to know that I didn’t have to know everything. You surround yourself with a great cast, a great crew, a strong editor, a strong production team, and strong department heads. There’s nothing more collaborative than making a movie or a TV show because all these super talented people from different walks of production must all come together. Part of the beauty of this is that it is all hands-on deck, and everyone’s here to make a great movie. We just had a fun time making the movie. Especially when you’re trying to make a comedy, you want it to feel creative, collaborative, and light because that transfers to the screen. So, this one was no different than the other two in that I knew that I just needed to surround myself with talented people.

MF: Can you also talk about the specific tone you were going for and how you were able to achieve that?

JD: It was originally scripted from Malibu, this preschool was sort of a new age, progressive preschool instead of this 400-year-old institution, which was kind of like Hogwarts. That changed the dynamic of what the film was going to be, but I thought for the better. There’s no shortage of tremendous talent in the UK and everybody, Michael, Anatonia (Thomas), Charity (Wakefield), James Cosmo, Fenella Woolgar, and all my day players, they are Shakespearean trained actors. These are very talented people. It was intimidating for me if I’m being honest. But tonally, it does change that. It became more of a collaboration of American comedy and British humor, and I love British humor. Thankfully, I had actors who really understood that and pulled it off.

(Top to Bottom) Josh Duhamel as “Alan” and Michael Socha as “Brian” in the Comedy, Family film, ‘Preschool’. Photo courtesy of Republic Pictures (a Paramount Pictures label).

MF: Michael, can you talk about what Brian is willing to do to protect his child’s education and could you relate to your character?

Michael Socha: The thing is with Brian, I understand him. I get it. Do you know what I mean? I’m working class myself. I grew up working class and I understand, I suppose, the preconceived ideas of what not being working class is. I know that a lot of the people I grew up with, they were always fighting to get out of the rut that they were in, assuming if they’re not working class, then life’s going to be amazing and they’re going to have everything they want. But that’s just obviously not the case. This film, I suppose, makes that quite apparent.

MF: Michael, what was it like working with Josh both as a director and a scene partner?

MS: Josh was wicked. I can’t fault him, I really can’t. He was a kind director and gave me all the time I needed. He’s a great actor to work with, and a definite team player in every sense. Honestly, I’m not just saying it. I thoroughly enjoyed myself working with Josh. So, if he ever wants to cast me again in any future projects, I’m available for you, Josh.

(L to R) Michael Socha as “Brian” and Director Josh Duhamel in the Comedy, Family film, ‘Preschool’. Photo courtesy of Republic Pictures (a Paramount Pictures label).

MF: Josh, can you talk about shooting the scenes with the fictional children’s band ‘The Wild & Crazies’? Was that all scripted or was there improvisation involved?

JD: It’s one of those things whereas you’re prepping for the movie, “Okay, we got ‘The Wild and Crazies’ coming here,” and then it’s like, “Wait a second, we have to actually create a kid’s show within the movie.” So, we really dove in on what drives me crazy about some of these kids shows, some of the creepiness, and the backstories of these characters. I decided that I wanted The Monkey to be sort of that Mick Jagger burnout who thought of himself as an actual rockstar and ended up accidentally in this kid’s band because he needed the money and then it turns into this giant thing. They’re smoking and drinking backstage, we don’t show it, but you can feel it. So, we really spent a lot of time, not only with their characters, especially The Monkey, but also their costumes. The kids think they’re funny, but the parents find them almost scary in a weird way because they’re so odd and strange. We had a lot of fun. This whole thing is just so weird.

MF: Michael, your character has a huge fight scene with ‘The Wild & Crazies’, what was it like shooting that?

MS: I remember just being knackered. I realized how unfit I was after probably by take two. I was like, “Oh no, I got to get back in the gym.” But it was great because they were stunt people in real life. Everybody except for Colin Carmichael, The Monkey, he was not a stunt person. So, they were just incredible and willing to take a couple of licks. Do you know what I mean? They took a couple of knocks. It was fun, but I realized how unfit I was.

(L to R) Fenella Woolgar as “Mrs. Lawrence”, Charity Wakefield as “Lauren”, Josh Duhamel as “Alan”, Michael Socha as “Brian” and Antonia Thomas as “Sarah” in the Comedy, Family film, ‘Preschool’. Photo courtesy of Republic Pictures (a Paramount Pictures label).

MF: Finally, Josh, was it challenging directing the children on set?

JD: It wasn’t so bad. The hardest part about directing kids is that you only have them for so many hours, so you really must be smart about how you schedule it. But they were both great kids and they were both willing to try all kinds of stuff. They were both also very athletic. The actor that plays Brian’s son was a Jiu-Jitsu artist, so we shaped a scene where he kicks my ass at their house and does the flip and the whole thing. This kid is an actual jiu-jitsu stud. He’s very good at it. Then the actress that plays my daughter in the movie is a gymnast, so I tried to incorporate as much of that as I could because the physicality makes it fun, but they’re also very good actors and actresses. They were both pros, thankfully, because that could have gone sideways quick.

‘Preschool’ will be available digitally on March 17th.

What is the plot of ‘Preschool’?

Two fathers (Josh Duhamel and Michael Socha) become engaged in a battle to try and enroll their children into a desirable preschool.

Who is in the cast of ‘Preschool’?

• Josh Duhamel as Alan
• Michael Socha as Brian
• Antonia Thomas as Sarah
• Charity Wakefield as Lauren
• Fenella Woolgar as Mrs. Lawrence
• James Cosmo as Joe
• Colin Carmichael as The Monkey

(L to R) Josh Duhamel as “Alan”, Michael Socha as “Brian”, Antonia Thomas as “Sarah”, and Charity Wakefield as “Lauren” in the Comedy, Family film, ‘Preschool’. Photo courtesy of Republic Pictures (a Paramount Pictures label).

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