The Big Picture

Six years after the release of Flatliners, Elliot Page returns to the feature film format with the TIFF 2023 selection, Close to You directed by Dominic Savage. In the film, Page’s character Sam returns home to see his family for the first time since his transition. While in Toronto for the festival, Savage, Page, and Hillary Baack discussed their experience making this fully improvised feature film.

It’s been about six years since the release of Elliot Page’s last feature film, but he finally returned to the big screen at TIFF 2023 and did so with an especially ambitious and impossibly sincere project — the fully improvised film Close to You.

Page plays Sam in the Dominic Savage-directed movie. Sam hasn’t been home to see his family since his transition, but now the time has come. After four years away, he ventures from Toronto back to his hometown of Cobourg for his father’s birthday. While Sam isn’t concerned about being outright rejected by his parents and siblings, the reunion does challenge Sam to figure out when to bear the weight of his family’s ignorance and when to put himself first.

While in Toronto for Close to You’s world premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, Savage, Page, and Hillary Baack who plays Sam’s friend from high school visited the Collider media studio at the Cinema Center at MARBL to discuss their unique approach to bringing this story to screen. Page and Baack revisit making an entirely improvised film under Savage’s direction, Savage discusses finding a cinematographer who could handle 50-minute takes, Page pinpoints some of his top priorities for his production company, Pageboy Productions, and loads more.

You can hear it all straight from Savage, Page, and Baack in the video interview at the top of this article, or you can read the interview in transcript form below.

Image via TIFF

PERRI NEMIROFF: Dominic and Elliot, I love talking about when two collaborators find the right creative partner in this industry. Can you tell me about your first meeting together and what you saw in the other that signaled to you, “You’re not just good at your own job, but you’re gonna help bring the best out of my work as well?”

ELLIOT PAGE: We first met, we had a meeting on Zoom and I’d seen Dominic’s work. The first thing I saw was the film he did with Samantha Morton that just completely blew me away. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I couldn’t stop feeling it. It was living in me. And Samantha Martin is one of my greatest inspirations, and the filmmaking was just so intimate and raw so it was so thrilling to then have a Zoom meeting and connect so deeply, and that’s really where it started. We really just connected – our love for certain film and art, and the process. I think we approach it similarly, and how we like to make things and create. And I just felt so grateful that Dominic was interested in having me be a part of his work, really.

DOMINIC SAVAGE: Immediately [when] we met, I just felt all of his humanity and passion. It was one of those meetings where you think, “This has to happen,” like, “I have no choice, this has to happen because this feels like such an important moment.” And also the sense in which I knew that Elliot was going to just throw himself into it. I just knew that. Because it’s quite scary working in this way, but I just knew he was gonna go for it, and so that’s really important. If you’re not sort of sure about it or if you think, “Hmm,” but not with Elliot. He was like, “Yeah!”

Many, many questions about the way you filmed this movie. Hillary, when you hear about the way they are going to shoot this film, what are some of your biggest burning questions for Dominic to make sure you feel confident jumping into it?

HILLARY BAACK: When I found out that the process was gonna be improvised, I was mostly just excited because it’s such a fun challenge, there’s so much freedom as an actor. I had a couple of Zooms with Dominic and we also really hit it off. I felt like I could trust him so much, which is so important with this process. When we met in person, that trust and connection just grew and I just felt a little nervous, of course, before, but once we got started, I fell into it and it was such a joy to get to be a part of this and I’m really grateful. Thank you.

Elliot, I’ll build on that with you. You said that at the beginning of this production process, you had never done anything like this before and you were nervous about it. I think the specific quote was, “How does Dominic do this?” So now, having gone through this process, can you answer that question? How does he do it?

PAGE: Dominic really leads with his heart. He leads with feeling, he leads with instinct, he leads with just wanting to find honesty and create something that feels real. How he manages to connect and cast all these unbelievable actors that make up the cast of this film, and how he works with crew and the collaboration and the trust I think we feel for him and the trust he feels for the people he works with, it creates this experience on set that really is unlike anything I’ve ever done. And so much of that is just, I guess, who Dominic is as a person and how he’s able to work with cast and crew who are obviously an integral part of creating something like this. We could do a 50-minute take and you’re thinking of Catherine [Lutes] holding the camera and sound and the boom operator. I’m not explaining it that well, but I guess I’m just trying to say, I think the answer is just who Dominic is as a person and his intentions.

I feel like in this industry we overlook that particular quality in a filmmaker too often, and it makes all the difference.

Image via Photagonist at the at Collider TIFF Media Studio

Dominic, I did want to ask you about Catherine and selecting her as your cinematographer here. What was it about her that signaled to you she wouldn’t just get the visual style right but she could do something like, what was it? A 53-minute take was the highest you got?

SAVAGE: It’s the same process, in a way. When meeting Catherine, it’s a sense in which you feel someone just really understands what you’re trying to do – feels it not just understands it but actually feels this thing, because so much of it is about what one feels when making the scenes. They unfold in a way where they start to just go deeper and deeper, and they get more interesting. You start to see truths that, actually, you could never imagine, even. But it requires love and patience and instincts, again, and I just knew that Catherine had all of those. But we actually just worked really well. You know that thing where you’re in sync with someone? And it’s almost like, what I liked, she liked, what she liked, I liked. It’s all that.

And I’ve had experiences, way back, where I didn’t – I think you develop an ability to have an instinct for people more and more as you grow. I remember way back having such a non-synced kind of camera person, and it was a nightmare. You can’t have that. It’s got to be that they’re totally in tune with everything, and Catherine was all the way.

It didn’t surprise me when I looked up the credits and saw her name as the cinematographer because I had just seen Swan Song and that’s yet another cinematography feat right there with how they felt into sync with the dancers on that film.

Elliot and Hillary, can you tell me something about the other as a scene partner that you appreciated and maybe helped you reach something in your own character that you wouldn’t have been able to without them?

PAGE: Well, Hillary is just – sorry, Hillary, but I’m gonna – is just astounding. We met years and years and years ago and did a movie together called The East, but we didn’t really have much to do in it together, but we just deeply connected. There was a scene that I don’t even think ended up in the movie where we were just looking in each other’s eyes. It was like an exercise in the group, and we just started crying together. [Laughs]

BAACK: I remember.

PAGE: And maybe that’s what sealed the deal. Something just connected and we’ve stayed friends and wanted to work together and have been trying to figure something out to do, and then this happened, which was amazing. Hillary is the most – I mean, again, talk about someone who leads with their heart, who is one of the kindest people I know. There’d be moments where I’d be feeling like, “Oh no, I’m feeling tired. Am I gonna be able to tap into this scene?” And then I’d be there with Hillary and everything just came out. So, she’s just such an incredible actor. Her instincts are so amazing, and there’s just days without her that I just don’t know if I’d be able to get there, and that’s a testament to her and her incredible talent.

BAACK: Thank you. That’s very sweet. I feel the same way about you. I remember that scene that we did together. I think it was the first day of filming, at least for me. I feel like it was the first scene we shot. It was amazing. Since then we’ve just had this very natural, deep, easy connection that was, of course, a part of working together now. I always knew, when filming this, as soon as the camera would roll that we were both just there, and you were so present with me and open, and it allowed me to go so far and to trust you and trust the moment and trust myself. You’re an amazing actor and just so, so real and transparent and beautiful, so thank you.

I needed these TIFF interviews so badly right now. It just fills my film-loving heart in a challenging time in this industry.

Image via Photagonist at the at Collider TIFF Media Studio

I’m gonna end with two big questions. Elliot, I’ll throw the first one to you because one of my absolute favorite things to see is when an actor with a big platform uses it to get the movies that they’re most passionate about made that maybe wouldn’t have been made otherwise. What does it mean to you to have that power and also what are some goals you have for yourself in the future in terms of how to use it?

PAGE: Wow. Gosh. I feel incredibly privileged, obviously, to be in a space where I could influence anything like that. To me, utilizing my privilege and my platform to tell stories I want to tell or with my production company, Pageboy Productions, to really get to be doing that in a more significant way now, it means the world to me. I’m here getting to do what I do now because of so many people before me, and I hope to, in whatever way I can, uplift. That’s a major goal.

You’re doing exactly that, and I have very high hopes you’re gonna keep doing it for many, many years to come.

I feel like this shouldn’t be the toughest question that I ask, but I do feel like many have a hard time answering this; in this industry, we tell each other good job all the time, but I feel like no one says it to themselves nearly enough, so for each of you, what’s something you accomplished on this movie that you know you’ll be able to look back on and say to yourself, “Damn, I am really proud of what I did there?”

SAVAGE: Oh, that’s hard, isn’t it?

PAGE: I’ll say, to be honest, going into it I was pretty scared shitless. As it was leading up, I was like, “What the hell? This whole thing is improvised? Was I kidding myself? Dominic is gonna be so disappointed.” And so I think, for me, just being able to step in with no dialogue, have this brand new experience where I think we did find and create some pretty beautiful scenes, which is because of also the incredible actors I work with. I think it does feel like an accomplishment to have made something in this way.

SAVAGE: Well, I think, actually, what was interesting for me was it was the first film I’ve made out of the UK. It’s the first film I’ve made in a completely new territory, and I came to it with just a really open mind and heart. That’s what I’m most proud of is actually starting completely from scratch with something and just building it and building it, and finding the great people that are in it to work with. And all of it was a completely unknown journey, which for me just really, really worked. I remember there were certain things that we did on certain days, and Elliot would text me and say, “That was something special,” and that meant so much to me because, you know, I knew he was feeling it, and I was feeling it, and that’s made the whole thing worthwhile.

BAACK: I agree. It was such a unique experience as an actor and as a human just being so immersed in the story and feeling so collaborative with the two of you and the crew throughout the whole process. I definitely came out of it and felt like, “Wow, what did we just do? That was really, really something.” And I feel like, “What if we can touch people and open those hearts and minds a little bit?” I feel incredibly proud to be a part of it. And I love, as a deaf actor, that I’m just in it and I’m a part of it, and it’s not a big issue – not that there’s anything wrong with those stories, but it’s exciting because it feels like progress where many, many different people can be involved with storytelling as humans. So I do feel very proud to be a part of it with both of you incredible artists, too.

Beautiful answers all around. I lied. One more really quick question just because I’m curious; the 53-minute take, what scene was it?

PAGE: A lot of it’s not in the movie. I mean, as you can image. It was the build-up to the sort of main kind of “argument.”

SAVAGE: There were a few actually, weren’t there? [Laughs]

PAGE: Yeah, there was a few.

SAVAGE: When Sam comes home and comes in and there’s the whole birthday celebration. That was long.

PAGE: The beach was long. Our walk on the beach.

SAVAGE: The pre-dinner discussion was long. [Laughs] But yeah, there were a lot of long takes.

PAGE: That 53-minute one where we played pool and I like happened to be sinking all of these shots, I was like, “Why is that not in the movie?” I was magically incredible at pool. I was like, “Are these acting gods or something? What’s going on?” [Laughs]

Special thanks to MARBL Restaurant for hosting Collider as well as additional sponsors Sommsation, a top wine experience brand and online shop, and Molson Coors’ Blue Moon Belgian White as the beer of choice at the Cinema Center. Additionally, Moët Hennessy featuring Belvedere Vodka featured cocktails and Tres Generaciones Tequila.