You'd think 13-year-old Jonathan Lipnicki would be peeved when asked about the weight of the human head.

In the eight years since his acting debut as the cute brainiac kid in Jerry Maguire fans have not allowed Lipnicki to forget his classic line, coaxing him to repeat it over and over.

"Yes, the human head weighs eight pounds, obviously I know that," he said. "But it doesn't get really annoying - I'm happy people liked the movie."

In fact, Lipnicki's persona somewhat mirrors that of Ray Boyd, his precocious character. Although he stood at least a foot below the reporters who interviewed him at a Newport International Film Festival press conference Saturday afternoon, he fielded questions and shook hands like a seasoned diplomat, keeping unwavering eye contact and never coming up short for words.

He was most eager to talk about his latest film, When Zachary Beaver Came To Town co-starring Eric Stoltz, which showed Saturday as part of the film festival. It is Lipnicki's first independent gig, and has taken him to film festivals all over North America, from Texas to British Columbia, to promote its release. But only on the weekends, of course.

Lipnicki, who lives in his native Los Angeles, has more pressing business during the week - attending public school, playing on a recreational basketball team, taking drum lessons, and preparing for his upcoming bar mitzvah at Hebrew school.

"Besides acting, I'm a completely normal kid, with normal friends I've known forever," he said. Indeed, if seen on the street, free from curious reporters, he could easily pass for the kid next door. His blond hair is spiked up with copious amounts of gel, his T-shirt and blue jeans are in the latest baggy fashion, and his braces flash in the sunshine when he smiles.

Lipnicki takes some comfort in the fact that most young kids who recognize him nowadays see him as George Little, his part in the 1999 film Stuart Little and not as Ray Boyd from Jerry Maguire.

"I think most people have pretty much moved on from that role, as I have," he said.

Although his career started with glitzy Hollywood fanfare, Lipnicki said he has developed a keen appreciation for independent film after shooting When Zachary Beaver Came To Town.

"With Jerry Maguire and Stuart Little there's like a $100 million budget, which gives you lots of time. You can get away with shooting a half a page of lines every day. This time, it was more about the effort, working with people who are striving really hard to accomplish a film in a short period of time. I really enjoyed that aspect of it," he said.

Since shooting When Zachary Beaver Came To Town two years ago, Lipnicki completed another independent film, and he may head to Mexico to shoot yet another one.

In When Zachary Beaver Came To Town Lipnicki plays Toby Wilson, a 12-year-old who comes of age with two close friends during a hot summer in small-town Texas. The film deals with fundamental life lessons all adolescents learn, most often with a little heartache and confusion along the way. While shooting the film, Lipnicki was also coming of age in a much more literal sense.

According to his mother, Rhonda, Lipnicki's voice had deepened significantly by the later parts of filming, so directors had to tell him to purposefully make his voice higher to match its previous levels.

Rhonda Lipnicki is her son's traveling companion and career adviser. She is the taskmaster who makes sure he remains down-to-earth and keeps his priorities straight, with school and family always first.

But as much as she tries to maintain normalcy, slips are sometimes unavoidable. "I'll never forget when he had to wear that huge suit for Jerry Maguire and he had preschool the same day. I had to take him to class wearing that suit so he could be on time. It was a riot," she said.

Instead of controlling Lipnicki's movie choices, as many parents of child actors try to do, Rhonda works together with her son in picking roles. "It's what keeps it fun," she said.

Lipnicki's eyes light up when he talks about his next pet project - which he devised with his mother. "My mom and I are working on optioning this great teen novel called Ghost Boy by Ian Lawrence," he said. "It should be pretty exciting."

Recently, Lipnicki got to play a part in one of his favorite TV shows, Family Guy which is set in Rhode Island.

"It's a special episode where Lois inherits a mansion in Newport," Rhonda Lipnicki said.