Elliot Page beams with pride at first movie premiere in six years while promoting new movie Close to You at Toronto International Film Festival following gender transition
For the first time in six years, Elliot Page walked the red carpet at the world premiere of a new film at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Page, 36, walked the red carpet for their new film Close to You on Sunday for its world premiere at the festival, months after speaking about being able to “reclaim his creativity” after coming out as transgender.
The last time Page walked the red carpet for a film was in 2017 for the Flatliners remake, before switching to Ellen Page’s Elliot Page in 2020.
Page hit the red carpet with co-star Hillary Baack and director Dominic Savage, with whom Page also co-wrote the screenplay for Close to You.
Page walked the red carpet in a black T-shirt with a long chain dangling around their neck.
Six years: Elliot Page walked the red carpet for the first time in six years at the world premiere of a new film at the Toronto International Film Festival
Last movie red carpet: The last time Page walked the red carpet for a movie was in 2017 for the Flatliners remake, before switching to Ellen Page’s Elliot Page in 2020
Director and co-star: Page hit the red carpet with their co-star Hillary Baack and director Dominic Savage, who Page also co-wrote the screenplay for Close to You
Page wore a brown vest over the black shirt and completed their look with black pants and black shoes.
The film centers on Page’s character Sam, “who has the opportunity to encounter an old friend on his way back home for a dreaded family reunion that forces him to confront long-buried memories.”
While Page and Savage wrote the script, the dialogue between Sam’s character and Hillary Baack was largely improvised, which Page explained in a recent article. Variety interview.
“This was absolutely exciting every day. Because of the process, I’ve never done anything like this before. The script has a description and exactly that. There is no dialogue,” Page began.
‘You walk into every scene completely bald. I found it incredibly intimidating leading up to the shoot. I thought, “I’m going to be such a disappointment to Dominic. What am I doing? I can’t improvise!” Page admitted.
The actor added, “Our longest take was 53 minutes. It’s like a dance. You really exist in it. It made me tired at times, but incredibly excited.”
Close to You reached an interim agreement with the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA, allowing Page to promote the film during the ongoing strike.
Page also admitted that they didn’t even have time to prepare or rehearse as the film was largely improvised, adding that this was a “fascinating” part of the process.
Elliot’s look: Page wore a brown vest over the black shirt and completed their look with black pants and black shoes
Elliot’s character: The film revolves around Page’s character Sam, ‘who gets the chance to run into an old friend on his way back home for a dreaded family reunion that forces him to confront long-buried memories’
Exciting: ‘This was absolutely exciting every day. Because of the process, I’ve never done anything like this before. The script has a description and exactly that. There is no dialogue,” Page began
Intimidating: ‘You walk into every scene completely bald. I found it incredibly intimidating leading up to the shoot. I thought, ‘I’m going to be such a disappointment to Dominic. What am I doing? I can’t improvise!'” Page admitted.
Longest take: The actor added, “Our longest take was 53 minutes. It’s like a dance. You really exist in it. It made me tired at times, but incredibly excited.”
“When we were developing it, Hillary and I discussed little things, but not a lot. I’m so used to approaching work in a certain way… very scripted and everything is prepared. So I thought, “How does Dominic do this?” Page said.
‘Before you know it, you have completely disappeared into the scene, as if you have stepped into another dimension. The nice thing about this style of acting is that it wasn’t just a two-minute take that we did a few times. They were very long, lived experiences,” Page said.
Page’s character Sam returns home for the first time since transitioning, with Page opening up about the kind of support friends and family should give to someone in transition.
‘For me it’s about people taking individual time to educate themselves. There are many resources available to learn more about transgender people and the realities of our experiences. A question is not always something negative, but there is a time, a place, a context and a tone,” Page said.