It was produced by Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment[2] and stars Evan Rachel Wood, Michael Angarano, and David Gallagher.

The film follows Emily (played by Wood), a 14-year-old aspiring violinist who runs a secret-keeping booth in her neighborhood, offering the other children advice when they confess their secrets to her.

A proponent of family-oriented media, Treu wanted to make a grounded and character-driven film with a positive message, something he felt contemporary Hollywood was lacking.

Little Secrets was shot on location in Salt Lake City in the summer of 2001, with local child actors rounding out the supporting roles.

Emily, a 14-year-old aspiring concert violinist, spends her summer practicing for an important audition to get into the local youth symphony orchestra in Salt Lake City.

While helping unpack, Philip accidentally breaks one of his father's valuable chess pieces and is caught by Emily as he attempts to hide it in the garden.

Emily invites Philip over for afternoon tea and they bond over having a shared secret after they accidentally break two expensive china teacups.

David, Philip's 15-year-old brother, returns home early from tennis camp, having been expelled when he and other campers were involved in a car accident after having a few beers.

She goes to retrieve her violin that she left on the roof, but loses her balance and falls, necessitating a trip to the hospital and causing her to miss her audition.

Feeling guilty, the brothers go to the audition on her behalf and manage to get Emily a place in the youth orchestra by showing the panelists a tape of her playing the violin.

[6] He believed that films like Little Secrets fill a gap in the market by appealing to a segment of the population that contemporary Hollywood has neglected.

"[5] Treu wanted the plot to be grounded and character-driven, and at the crux of the story is Emily grappling with the emotional weight and consequences of keeping so many secrets.

While he acknowledged that many of the film's young audiences were probably rooting for Philip to "get the girl" at the end, Treu felt it was more realistic that Emily would choose the older David.

[10] Wood described her character as passionate, especially in her dedication to the violin; while Treu said that Emily "likes to be in control" and "really enjoys being involved in the lives of her younger neighbors".

[7] Gallagher was cast as the "hunky" David,[12] with Treu stating that the actor personified the "red-blooded all-American young man" and had a natural charisma that drew girls in.

Treu favored this particular neighborhood due to its unique setting that consisted of newly built houses surrounded by old-growth trees, resulting in what he felt was a "magical quality".

[17] It was released on VHS and DVD by Columbia-TriStar Home Entertainment on February 4, 2003,[19] with bonus features including outtakes,[12] a commentary track by Treu and Barondes, a "making-of" featurette, and the film's soundtrack on a separate CD.

[23][24] The News Tribune's Soren Andersen and The Indianapolis Star's Bonnie Britton were both full of praise for Wood, but noted that the plot was too contrived at times.

[23][24][25][26] In a negative review, The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck found that the storylines play out in such a lazy and uninspiring manner, and that Wood's performance was the only noteworthy highlight in an otherwise boring film.

[27] Similarly, Variety's Scott Foundas commended Wood for "bringing as much charm and subtlety to the part as the one-dimensional script and clunky direction will allow".

[29] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times bemoaned the superficial, idyllic world the story was set in, a trend he felt was all-too-common in the family genre.

[30] David Sterritt of The Christian Science Monitor concurred that the characters and settings were unrealistically wholesome, giving the film a sitcom-like quality.