Published: November 03, 2009 11:40 pm      

Local teen to be featured in Nickelodeon holiday movie

Cartoon set to make its debut at the Paramount during Festival of Trees

ASHLAND — A movie featuring a local singer and a cast of famous movie stars will have its world debut at the Paramount Arts Center’s Festival of Trees.

Raceland-Worthington High School freshman Bronson Bush has a small speaking role and performs a song in the half-hour cartoon, titled “Elf Sparkle Meets Christmas the Horse,” which will be shown on Nickelodeon next year during the holiday season. A specific date has not been released.

The movie will premiere with a red-carpet-style entrance at 10 a.m. Nov. 21 during the Festival of Trees at the Paramount Arts Center. Bush will attend, along with some of the other stars of the cartoon, including:

—Ed Faulkner, who voices Elf Ziggy. A Lexington native, Faulkner appeared in many movies with John Wayne.

—Margaret O’Brien, who voices Miss Coyote. O’Brien won an Academy Award for the movie “Meet Me in St. Louis” with Judy Garland.

—Richard Chavez, who voices Buzznoose. Chavez had roles in “Predator” and “War of the Worlds.”

—John de Lanci, who voices Santa Claus. De Lanci portrayed the character Q in “Star Trek.”

They also will be at the Festival of Trees Preview Party at 7 p.m. Nov. 21.

In addition to Bush, musical guests and their songs in the movie will be:

—David Sloan, “I Believe”

—Blake Parker, “Santa’s Big Night” and “Big Red Sleigh”

—Marsha Ramirez, “I Can Fly”

—Linda Davis, “Waiting for Christmas Day”

—Donna Beauvais, “Christmas is Coming”

—Jessica and Eddy Harrison, “Christmas Ribbons,” “Christmas is Coming,” “Silver Bells” and “You Are Here.”

Bush, 14, son of Roger and Lori Bush, said he has a friend who lives in Nashville who told him about the project and told the project’s creator, Beth Roose, about Bush.

“I went to Nashville and sang for them and then it snowballed from there,” he said. “We had a blast doing it.”

He said the voice work, including recording the song, took about two hours.

“We also did a music video,” he said. It was shot in Bowling Green where the producer of the movie lives. Bush appears throughout the video, as well as gives the vocal performance.

Roose, creator, writer and producer of “Elf Sparkle Meets Christmas the Horse,” said after Bush’s mother contacted her about premiering the movie, she decided rather than take Bronson Bush to Hollywood, she would bring Hollywood to Bush and his hometown.

Roose of Bowling Green said she was thrilled to see the project completed.

“We are so excited to finally see the vision of this film come into fruition,” she said. “I have always thought that you must make each day count by making a contribution to the world. It’s important for all of you to have dreams, to have a vision, to know where you want to go and to reach for the stars. It took me 10 years to achieve my dream, and I couldn’t be more proud.”

Roose said she began getting interested in writing for children after doing some volunteer work with children, which spurred her to create characters that eventually wound up in some of her works.

“I just love making magic happen for kids,” she said. “That’s what Christmas is all about.”

She said she has written a series of seven in the Sparkle series. The first to be shown will be “Elf Sparkle and the Special Red Dress,” which is scheduled for February. The soundtrack of “Elf Sparkle Meets Christmas the Horse” and the music video, in which Bush stars, will be released this holiday season.

Roose said working with Bush was a joy.

“I loved his light, youthful approach and since this was targeted to children, I thought he would be a perfect fit for one of the folks singing,” she said. “He’s such a nice young man and a great role model for kids. He is awesome.”

She said music director Dan Drilling, who has been with the Grand Ole Opry for 20 years, was impressed with Bush.

“We were lucky to grab him,” she said.

The movie business appealed to Bush, who said he hopes to be involved in future projects.

“We had an absolute ball doing it,” he said. “I will be in some of the cartoons coming up in the next couple of years. I’ve written some music for them. Those are still in the works.”