Friday, June 27, 2014
Thursday, June 26, 2014
John Green to be at LeakyCon 2014
John Green will be at this year's LeakyCon, being held July 30-Aug. 3 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.
There will of course be panels with the authors (among which is not only John but also Laurie HalseAnderson, Holly Black, Gayle Forman, Lev Grossman, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Scott Westerfeld, Malinda Lo, Varian Johnson, Lauren Myracle, Stephanie Perkins and Rainbow Rowel) and lots of awesome stuff, like:
· Kickoff panel to meet the authors and hear what’s going on during the show.
· Panel discussion on diversity in books.
· Clinics for amateur authors to get advice from bestselling authors on improving their writing.
· A behind-the-scenes discussion about how Tumblrand the reading community work together.
· A young adult version of Jeopardy to test attendees on their knowledge of Young Adult literature.
· A discussion about the process of having your book made into a movie.
· Top young adult authors read some of their early work from when they were teenagers.
· Fun and nerdy games with authors and other aspiring writers.
The attendees will also get to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando and check out the soon-to-open Diagon Alley and the Hogwarts Express. During that time the attraction will be closed to the general public and only open to Leaky Con attendees.
For more info, check out the offical LeakyCon site.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Ansel featured in GQ's July Issue
Ansel's featured in July's issue of GQ, modeling the latest in menswear fashion!
Source Via LadyofErudite
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Shailene Woodley talks to "Vanity Fair"
Source: Vanity Fair
The Fault in Our Stars, which took Woodley to Amsterdam (where she had gone backpacking at 18) and to Pittsburgh, is a beautiful modern love story about two teenagers, Hazel and Gus, with a heartbreaking twist. Director Josh Boone says, “I told the studio it’s like Titanic, except the iceberg is cancer.”
Woodley was so moved by Green’s novel—which has sold seven million copies worldwide and has been translated into 46 languages—that she reached out to the author directly. “She wrote me a long—very long—e-mail before the movie rights even sold,” Green says. “I remember being sort of overwhelmed by it, because it was so long and so positive, and she was so relentless in her certainty that she should play Hazel.”
Woodley also made an unusual impression on the director. “She was such a strange, interesting person,” Boone says of his first encounter with the actress. “She talks about health and is really passionate about what she believes; I wasn’t sure what to make of her.” At her audition the next morning, the director says, “she was the character Hazel. She wasn’t at all the girl I had met the night before, but over the course of getting to know her she is exactly who she is. I had forgotten how idealistic you can be in your 20s. I’m cynical, and she is really inspiring because she is so not.”
Check out the full article after the CUT!
Check out the full article after the CUT!
John Green talks TFIOS on "The Colbert Report" show
John talks about crying while writing TFIOS, how Esther Earl impacted the book, his vlogbrothers projects with Hank and sneaking into theatres to watch TFIOS and the fans' reactions.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Ansel featured by Visual Tales Magazine
Ansel covers Visual Tales Magazine.
Gorgeous shots by Ansel's sister, Sophie Elgort.
Be sure to check out the great article featured on Visual Tales Magazine site!
Friday, June 20, 2014
Exclusive TFIOS Premiere Blue Carpet Interviews
We had the distinct pleasure in attending the TFIOS blue carpet premiere in NYC. With our amazing spot on the carpet (thank you FOX!) we managed to snag some great interviews on the carpet. Below we've included the YouTube of the interview as well as transcriptions for each interview. Enjoy!
Wyck Godfrey - Producer
Note: We apologize one answer is cut short around 2:05 because technology
Transcription:
Q: You have adapted a lot of YA adaptations, what do you look for in adapting books?
Honestly I look for things that move me emotionally and that feel transcendent. I look at the specificity of the story but then I also think, what's it making me feel about life. And this was one of those books where when I read it, I closed it and I thought, "I wanna live a better life. I wanna be a part of this. I have to be a part of this." And so I called up the studio and I said, "This is the most transcendent love story I have ever read. I was floored by this. We have to do this." I think the key is to find things that will make other people feel the way you did and you hope you're right. Sometimes you're not, sometimes you love something that ends up being this big but good news, this one turned out to be a big one.
Q: If you had somebody you idolized and you met them and they turned out to be like Van Houten, what would you do?
I would probably try to manage my expectations going into it in the first place, but mostly I would step back and go, "You know everybody's flawed, everybody's human, we all have our shit and you can't expect people to be perfect, cause none of us are perfect.
Q: How has Josh compared to other directors that you've worked with?
You know the extraordinary thing about Josh is that he creates this atmosphere of calm on his sets where all the actors feel so comfortable with each other which allows them to give their most raw performances. I think he just puts them in a wonderful space and he lets his skill technicians and productions designing and DP do the things they've discussed a lot but then just focuses on the actors and the words.
Q: How has it been working with the screenwriters?
They were awesome. They wrote the script in three weeks and it was damn near perfect. They loved the book. Scott had just gone through losing his dad to cancer and he felt like he needed to write this for his own catharsis. Mike is very funny and brought something special to the table.
Q: Anything you can tease us about Paper Towns?
Nat is already getting ready. Nat's going into training.
Q: Are you excited to be working with Nat for another movie?
I love him, he's so cool. He's the best.
Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber - Screenwriters
Transcription:
Q: Can you talk a little bit about your collaboration, how you work writing together?
Michael: We live on opposite coasts, so Scott lives in LA, I live here in New York. We never actually write in the same room. It seems like the farther apart we are, the better it turns out.
Q: You're part of a lot of adaptations, what do you look for in your adaptations?
Scott: I think we love reading and when you read something that's amazing and someone might turn it into a movie, we jump at the chance to adapt it. For example with TFIOS, when we read it we were just fans, we loved it and said "how do we make the best movie version of this book?" and lucky for us, they trusted us and gave us the opportunity to do it.
Q: What has it been like working with Josh Boone?
Michael: Josh is great, so smart, hard working, he really brought to life the vision of the movie, so hopefully it lives up to the experience of reading the book.
Scott: A lot of pressure.
Q: Was there anything that surprised you when seeing the movie? Anything visually?
Scott: I think we had seen a lot of dallies and we had seen what the visual style was going to be. We really were excited about it and I actually have only seen cuts of it. Tonight will be my first time seeing the finished product.
Michael: Me too.
Q: If you had somebody you idolized and you met them and they turned out to be like Van Houten, what would you do?
Scott: Are you allowed to curse on Twitter? (laughs) I don't know. Hopefully I would be mature enough to say 'thank you for your time', walk out and leave, but I'm pretty sure that's not what would happen.
Michael: I don't know if I would want to meet my Van Houten in the first place, I think I would go in to that encounter assuming that it would not live up to my expectations so I probably rather think about what it could be than be disappointed.
Scott: They do always say not to meet your hero.
Michael: They do.
Q: How do you two balance with the projects you're working on? I feel like every few weeks we're seeing something else.
Scott: We love to work and we're so privileged to be in this sort of position where people like our stuff and want to read more of it and we're going to keep going and you know, pile it on. As much as we can do, we'll do!
Michael: A lot of times they just don't announce it till we're long done with it which is kind of funny. It's a crazy business and we're having a blast.
Q: What is it like to see the finished product with all these people?
Michael: I think it's great. I mean reading a book is such a solitary experience and now here tonight it becomes a shared one, so it's a wonderful thing.
Q: Do you think that the soundtrack blended well with the work that you've done?
Scott: All the songs I have heard are fantastic. I haven't seen it in the film so I hope it does. Oh, I'm sure it does.
Josh Boone - Director
Transcription:
Q: How do you go about choosing your projects?
Nat Wolff gives them to me and I'm like 'alright, I'll do it.' No, I mean, you just look for stuff that feels like you. I mean that's really the only thing you can do because I don't think it's going to work if you don't feel like there's a part of you in it. I went through personal stuff with the death of a friend and that book helped me to get through a really crucial time of my life and to have the opportunity to try to bring what that book made me feel like to other people like as a movie is just... I mean John's book is so incredible, I was just trying to honor and be as truthful to it as possible.
Q: What was it like working with Ben Richardson?
Awesome! It's funny, the way that Ben and I met was...so when I went to Fox, I brought a bunch of photographs by Ryan McGinley who is a brilliant, brilliant photographer and I said that this is kind of the idea visually of what it's going to look like. And then I went to go meet Ben for the first time and he brought a book of Ryan McGinley photographs and I was like 'I guess we're making this movie'. It was just like fate. That's how everything felt on this movie. Everything came together with such simplicity, it all felt so charged and there was purpose to it. I just feel really happy to have been a part of the ride, it's an incredible experience.
Q: Where does your musical inspiration come from?
I'm just one of those sad rock guys, like dead indie rock. Like growing up it was always "Bright Eyes" and "The White Stripes" (...) you know just bands like that. The Decemberist I love. Just back in the day I was just into that kind of stuff. That's just the kind of stuff I like. Getting Mike from "Bright Eyes" to score both movies is just really awesome.
Q: If you had your own Van Houten and he turned out to be exactly like Van Houten, what would you do?
I'd probably kick him out of my car. But I would read the lette...Hmm, spoiler (laughs).
I'm just one of those sad rock guys, like dead indie rock. Like growing up it was always "Bright Eyes" and "The White Stripes" (...) you know just bands like that. The Decemberist I love. Just back in the day I was just into that kind of stuff. That's just the kind of stuff I like. Getting Mike from "Bright Eyes" to score both movies is just really awesome.
Q: If you had your own Van Houten and he turned out to be exactly like Van Houten, what would you do?
I'd probably kick him out of my car. But I would read the lette...Hmm, spoiler (laughs).
Shailene Woodley - Hazel Grace Lancaster
Transcription:
Q: Hazel has a fear of hurting her parents after she leaves and that holds her back from living life to the fullest to an extent, have you ever had anything like that in your life?
Yeah I mean I think we all have fears but it's how you approach your fears. Nobody is fearless but it's about how you approach your fears.
Q: If you met your own Van Houten and he turned out to be as bitter as Van Houten is in the film, how would you react?
I'd probably give him a hug. Because he'd probably need one.
Q: How was it working with Josh?
Incredible. Josh is so collaborative and somehow he managed to capture the tone perfectly of John Green's book which seemed to me like an impossible feat but he did it.
Nat Wolff - Isaac
Transcription:
Q: We wanted to ask about that make-out scene with Emily Peachey. How was that having John there watching it?
Yeah, well I think John was jealous of me... no that's weird I think John was jealous of Emily... also weird. No it was great having John there in all the scenes because basically he'd just say at the end of the scene, "That's just how I imagined it", which is great. The make out scene is awkward, it's like the first time we've ever met but you know we did have a nice dinner where we created a fake history of our relationship and like got each other necklaces that said each other's names on it. We tried to be kind of romantic about it so then she could dump me and break my heart. And I could feel something.
Q: About your collaboration with Josh?
Yeah, Josh Boone and I are cinematic married for life. That's what Josh said a couple days ago. But yeah I'm lucky to have found sort of a partner at such a young age. We really wanna make movies with each other.
Mike Birbiglia - Patrick
Q: So I want to talk to you about the song you wrote. How did you come up with those lyrics?
That's a great question. I was on the phone with Josh, the director, and he was like, "The guy plays guitar, do you play guitar?" and I was like, "Sure I play guitar" and he goes, "You know you can write anything you want. We'll try to use it." I think the words go like, "Christ is your friend and he'll be there till the end" and they repeat over and over again. I don't know it's kind of... I wanted the song to be not insulting, if that makes sense? Because I was raised catholic and my family is very religious, my mom is very religious. I wanted to write the lines so it was a believable christian rock song, I didn't want it to be a spoof of one. That's sort of where "Christ is our friend" came from.
Q: What was it like working with Josh?
It was so easy and fun, it was not even like work. I felt that way about all the cast and the crew. Everyone was really just happy to be there. It's exciting when you have a script that everyone feels passionate about and everyone likes their part that they're playing. It's just very gratifying. And then to see this fan fare to it. It's too much. It's a little overwhelming to be honest with you. But it's great. That's exactly what you hope for a movie like that. It's a movie that takes on very serious themes in a way that is compassionate and humorous and true and not a lot of films like that go so wide and make it to be that popular. And whenever there is something like that happens it's a great human experience because we can all rally behind that.
Q: This must be a crazy experience compared to your comedy shows? What is the fan reaction?
I'm on a 100 city comedy tour right now. I just got back form Josh's home town. Those shows are great, I'm having a ball.
Emma Kenney from Shameless
Transcription:
Q: So can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I'm Emma Kenney, I'm fourteen. I'm an actor and I'm on shameless which is on Showtime. I'm really excited to see the movie.
Q: Are you a fan of the book?
It's literally my favorite book. John Green is my favorite author. I'm SO excited, I'm not even...
Q: Have you been following it since the casting and everything?
Yeah. I literally remember the day where they cast Ansel as Gus and I thought, "This is the exact Gus I wanted." I'm so excited.
Q: What part are you most looking forward to in the movie?
Probably when they're in Amsterdam? I love those scenes I love them all when they meet. It's so perfect.
Q: Have you listened to the soundtrack?
No, I've heard the Ed Sheeran song but I haven't heard the full soundtrack.
Q: What's next for you?
Well I go back out. In like 3 weeks we start filming the fifth season of Shameless so I'm so excited for that. And right now I'm in High School and finishing up the year and it's been really fun. I'm a freshman.
Ansel for Dazed & Confused Digital
Ansel sat down with Dazed & Confused Magazine to talk about having a leg double, Shailene's herbal tea and his childhood as the son of a world-famous photographer. Check out the article below
A long time ago – like, we're talking July last year – I called up the famous fashion photographer Arthur Elgort to chat about his trip to China with Linda Evangelista. Before hanging up, he said, "My youngest son is Ansel Elgort. He's going to come out in a movie soon that's going to make him big time." That movie was Carrie – the Kimberly Peirce remake of Stephen King's telekinetic thriller starring Chloë Grace Moretz.
Arthur Elgort was right. He did make it big time. "He believes in me," smiles Ansel when I tell him about our exchange. He's sat in the Soho Hotel, legs sprawled across the coffee table between us, munching on caramel corn. With only three films to date, the youngest Elgort is already girding his loins from the clamouring Tumblr 'shippers' (vehement fans who pair two people in a dream relationship). In The Fault in Our Stars, Ansel plays Augustus Waters: a cocksure hunk in remission who falls for Hazel Grace Lancaster (played by herbal hottie and homemade toothpaste guru Shailene Woodley). Together, they trek to Amsterdam to visit Lancaster's favourite author, Peter Van Houten. What really happens, though, is a deluge from the beginning of the second act when the floodgates burst. You'll sob in this movie, I swear. This acerbic account of young teenage love thriving despite being diagnosed with a terminal illness "says important things about sick people, shoots down the stereotypes," says Elgort. So for those of you that get this, bring tissues along when you go. Okay? Okay.
Did you ever get to use Shailene's herbal toothpaste?
Ansel Elgort: She offered it to me, the toothpaste, but I'm okay with Crest (laughs). She would give me stuff and I’d just eat it. I'm down for whatever, if you wanna give me something I'll drink your drink – the thing about it is if she's drinking it you know it's probably not bad for you.
And? How'd you feel?
Ansel Elgort: I wouldn’t feel bad, I never got sick or anything. The funny thing is that with Shailene if you ask her what things are good for, she'll like tell you for 95% of the things – the reason they're good for you is like, "This is good for digestion." It's like everything is good for digestion now.
How'd you guys first meet?
Ansel Elgort: It was during the audition for Divergent. There weren't sparks. We played brother and sister the first time we met. Shailene is a big presence, she dominates whatever scene she's in. If the actor she's with isn't good, she's going to dominate the shit out of them and it's going to be a mess. So it needs to be someone who's a strong enough actor. So you have to think about how can you beat her in that scene, because she's trying to beat you.
There're all these hilarious things on Tumblr which create entire narratives from out of context gifs. Are they creepy to you?
Ansel Elgort: They all like to 'ship' us (see Shansel). We're not a thing. I think that’s really helpful – that we weren't a thing. I'm really comfortable being open around her because I'm not like, 'Oh no, I have to watch my step. I don't want to date my co-star.' There's no pressure there. There's no sexual tension between us, it's all just friendship.
What was it like having a leg double?
Ansel Elgort: His name was Tanner Boatwright. Good kid. When you're crafting a character, it's good to have a lot of influences. I understood already that Gus (Waters) has a lot of confidence, but you always ask, "Why does he have this confidence, where does it come from?" And one of the reasons might be because Tanner is really, really confident. I think it's because he's overcome something. He still snowboards and climbs and hunts – that's how he lost his leg, in a hunting accident. Someone shot him in the leg, he was 16. You can go one or the other way – one way is to go around moping your whole life that you lost your leg, and the other way is being really strong about it, and almost overcompensating with confidence.
Where does Tanner's leg appear in the movie?
Ansel Elgort: The first time in the support group where I show my leg which is hidden. The other time is in the bed, when I'm on the phone, you see with me with my leg. And after the love scene they actually cut a hole in the bed and had me put my leg down to make it look not just like a knee. So it looks like it was cut off.
So all three of you are in the bed together?
Ansel Elgort: No. Tanner wasn't needed in that scene (laughs).
What films have you cried in?
Ansel Elgort: I cried for the first time during The Notebook. I cry a lot during films. I'm a big crybaby.
Do you think that this is the next generation's The Notebook?
Ansel Elgort: No, I think that they're just totally different movies. Nicholas Sparks and John Green are very different writers. I don't read Nicholas Sparks books. I'm not that big of a reader to be honest.
So what was the big clincher for this one? Why was this one the one you wanted to be a part of?
Ansel Elgort: Just who Augustus (Waters) was. That role is so special. And also the story in general. It's a beautiful story with important messages I think. Sick people in movies are so poorly portrayed, and even as an example – what Hollywood wanted to do for this film, when John first brought it to a studio, it wasn't Fox – they said, "Maybe we could bring in a different character who's not sick, and make it about her?" It's like, really? No! He said he couldn't believe that someone would suggest that. That's the problem with Hollywood and making movies about sick people, it's always about healthy people learning lessons from sick people. As if the sick people aren't important enough.
What was it like growing up with your dad (Arthur Elgort)? Did he ever bring people over?
Ansel Elgort: Yeah, I mean, I never knew. I grew up with Grace Coddington coming over to our house like all the time, but like she was just like the woman with the red hair.
She came over for dinner and stuff?
Ansel Elgort: Yeah! She was really nice. And the funny thing is people are always saying that she's so mean, but I've only ever known her as being very nice to us. If we saw her at a restaurant she might be doing her Grace thing, but then when she'd see us she'd be like, (endearing old lady voice) "Ohhh! Ansel, good to see you!" I was young enough at the time that seeing all these models I'd be like, "Oh, they're just tall girls." I wasn't really into girls yet. And then, now, I'm at that age it's like, "Oh, there's some pretty girls around in my dad's studio", but, you know, don't go over there…
Do you have any Adam Sandler stories from working together on Men, Women & Children?
Ansel Elgort: Yeah. He's really funny. I played basketball with him. More and more with him over summer.
Did you beat him?
Ansel Elgort: Here's the thing.
Oh no!
Ansel Elgort: So, you know what… no, I'm going to save that story until I'm promoting that movie. I gotta save it.
Oh, come on! You can't do that to me, it's my last question!
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Shailene runs Women's Health July/August Cover
Shailene covers July/August's issue of Women's Health Magazine.
More scans will be added as soon as they arrive!
Thanks to Shailene Woodley Brazil for the scans and screencaps! Video Source
Harpeth Hall talk to Cast & John Green in Nashville
Ava Boney from Harpeth Hall talked to Shai, Ansel, Nat and John during their tour stop in Nashville. Check out her interviews below:
Shai & Ansel
They talk about having John on set and filming tough scenes (such as the gas station scene) and they describe each other in 3 words.
Nat & John
John talks about starting and ending his novels and Nat talks about playing a (half-)blind character.
Don't miss the behind the scenes stuff as of 3:00 ;)
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Blue Carpet Interview Roundup
Quick interview roundup straight from the TFIOS NYC blue carpet premiere.
John Green on the unexpected nature of the premiere and about the story itself. Shai on how the story will change lives of so many people, on being at the premiere, and more. Ansel on the fans and valued lives.
More after the cut!
