Elliot Page on Improvising a 53-Minute Take for ‘Close to You’ and Finally Being Able to Wear What He Wants on Red Carpets
variety.comRebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Elliot Page conquered a new challenge for his first movie role in six years. In “Close to You,” an observant drama that premieres on Sunday at the Toronto Film Festival, there’s basically no written dialogue in the script, so everything that you hear in the movie was improvised by the actors on the day of shooting. “I’ve never done anything like this before,” Page told Variety in a recent Zoom interview prior to the film’s premiere. (“Close to You” has secured an interim agreement, meaning SAG-AFTRA has allowed the actors to promote the film while the guild is on strike.) “I found it incredibly intimidating.” In “Close to You,” Page’s character Sam hasn’t visited his family since his transition four years ago.
It’s not that he thinks his family isn’t supportive, but Sam doesn’t want to be treated like a different person — or have to bear the burden of their ignorance or discomfort.
On an eventual trip home for his father’s birthday, Sam has a chance encounter with an old friend (“Sound of Metal” actor Hillary Baack) that forces him to confront long-buried memories and reexamine the way he wants to live his life. “I orchestrated the film to allow for moments that aren’t expected,” says director Dominic Savage. “That’s when I get really excited.
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