my life as a teen movie
okay, this is completely self-indulgent, but i was racking my brain for other things that i could cast/recast, and it hit me: DUDE, THE MOVIE OF MY LIFE. it was a really fun project for me (and i would encourage everyone to try it). but for those who don't know me at all - which is like 99% of you - you could just think of it as basically my teen movie dream cast.
my life as a teen movie
ANNA
(that's me!)
quiet, sarcastic, a nerd, a loner.
also, very short - that's important.
ellen page
OK, the weird thing about me in high school - i was somehow self-assured and yet totally insecure at exactly the same time. i can't even explain it, but i know ellen could act it, 'cause i think juno macguff was the same way. and though ellen is way prettier than i am, she's short, and she has kind of a big forehead like i do... just dye her hair red and slap some glasses on her.
DAD
(daddy)
loving, inquisitive, a nerd, a teddy bear.
oliver platt
oliver platt was the first and only person i thought of to play my dad - initially because my first criteria was "chubby" (sorry, dad, but it's true). but then i thought more about him, and i remembered him in pieces of april, and he played a (mostly) really sweet dad just like mine. and he does actually look quite a bit like my dad.
SHAWN
(boyfriend)
funny, sweet - too sweet, a dork, a pushover.
paul dano / rupert grint
paul dano's my first choice. i love paul dano. and he definitely has this shy, awkward, kind of pathetic, lovesick look about him - at least in those pictures there - that the character requires (i was pretty much a total bitch to him and he just took it). and rupert grint i chose because he can obviously pull off funny and awkward really well, plus he's a ginger like my (now ex-)boyfriend, and because i thought paul dano might be a bit old for ellen page.
(also, i feel like the easiest/most obvious choice here would've been michael cera, but i'm getting really sick of him playing these sweet, dorky boy roles. i want him to pull a michael pitt and play, like, a serial killer in his next movie.)
MEGAN
(best friend #1)
kooky, adorable, an ingenue, a clown.
alexa vega
i actually haven't seen alexa vega in anything, but i came across these pictures and i was like, "whoa." particularly in the one of her in the orange t-shirt (which megan would probably find hilarious), she reminds me sooooo much of megan. then i watched some clips on youtube and decided: she's it.
FAITH
(best friend #2)
headstrong, sarcastic, a dork, a punk.
I KNOW NO YOUNG KOREAN ACTRESSES.
faith is korean-american, and i would definitely want to stay true to that. so we'd have to get an unknown.
SASHA
(former friend, turned nemesis)
charming, arrogant, a beauty, a punk.
olivia thirlby / kat dennings
these girls are fierce. sasha was pretty fierce, which wasn't always a good thing for me. she was also really pretty before she punched a bunch of holes in her face.
DENISE
(sister)
passionate, stubborn, a hothead, a fashionista.
jordana brewster
my sister was probably the hardest person to cast. she's rather excitable, and she has these very specific mannerisms that i can't really explain, but i think jordana could pull them off. i think she has the right kind of attitude. plus she's tan and skinny and beautiful like my sister, who obviously dominates with the good genes.
MOM
(mother)
feisty, flaky, a dork, ... a mother.
julia louis-dreyfus
julia louis-dreyfus has always reminded me of my mother. on seinfeld, the way she talked sometimes, especially when elaine thought something was funny, and the way she laughed - i would see and hear my mother in her. so there was really never any other choice for me.
DOC
(favorite teacher)
warm, nerdy, a genius, an inspiration.
sam waterston
doc! yes, "doc." he had a Ph.D., so he was a doctor, and we called him "doc." THE BEST TEACHER I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE. i can't even convey... he was just wonderful. he wrote us an intro packet for our english class with a list of writing tips like:
"poor, overworked 'to be' is another verb that is overused if anything is.... it is a good idea not to be using too many 'to be' verbs. if it is a question of 'be or not to be,' don't.... also, as a general rule, if anything is inappropriate to end a sentence with, it is 'is.' clear?"
see? he's adorable. and he's brilliant. he taught us "logical fallacies," which are pretty much the best, most useful things i have ever learned in my life. and sam waterston, what a find. he's perfect. have you ever watched law & order? jack mccoy is brilliant. and just look how adorable his smile is!
wow. and now i miss high school. i never thought that would happen.
my life as a teen movie
ANNA
(that's me!)
quiet, sarcastic, a nerd, a loner.
also, very short - that's important.
ellen page
OK, the weird thing about me in high school - i was somehow self-assured and yet totally insecure at exactly the same time. i can't even explain it, but i know ellen could act it, 'cause i think juno macguff was the same way. and though ellen is way prettier than i am, she's short, and she has kind of a big forehead like i do... just dye her hair red and slap some glasses on her.
DAD
(daddy)
loving, inquisitive, a nerd, a teddy bear.
oliver platt
oliver platt was the first and only person i thought of to play my dad - initially because my first criteria was "chubby" (sorry, dad, but it's true). but then i thought more about him, and i remembered him in pieces of april, and he played a (mostly) really sweet dad just like mine. and he does actually look quite a bit like my dad.
SHAWN
(boyfriend)
funny, sweet - too sweet, a dork, a pushover.
paul dano / rupert grint
paul dano's my first choice. i love paul dano. and he definitely has this shy, awkward, kind of pathetic, lovesick look about him - at least in those pictures there - that the character requires (i was pretty much a total bitch to him and he just took it). and rupert grint i chose because he can obviously pull off funny and awkward really well, plus he's a ginger like my (now ex-)boyfriend, and because i thought paul dano might be a bit old for ellen page.
(also, i feel like the easiest/most obvious choice here would've been michael cera, but i'm getting really sick of him playing these sweet, dorky boy roles. i want him to pull a michael pitt and play, like, a serial killer in his next movie.)
MEGAN
(best friend #1)
kooky, adorable, an ingenue, a clown.
alexa vega
i actually haven't seen alexa vega in anything, but i came across these pictures and i was like, "whoa." particularly in the one of her in the orange t-shirt (which megan would probably find hilarious), she reminds me sooooo much of megan. then i watched some clips on youtube and decided: she's it.
FAITH
(best friend #2)
headstrong, sarcastic, a dork, a punk.
I KNOW NO YOUNG KOREAN ACTRESSES.
faith is korean-american, and i would definitely want to stay true to that. so we'd have to get an unknown.
SASHA
(former friend, turned nemesis)
charming, arrogant, a beauty, a punk.
olivia thirlby / kat dennings
these girls are fierce. sasha was pretty fierce, which wasn't always a good thing for me. she was also really pretty before she punched a bunch of holes in her face.
DENISE
(sister)
passionate, stubborn, a hothead, a fashionista.
jordana brewster
my sister was probably the hardest person to cast. she's rather excitable, and she has these very specific mannerisms that i can't really explain, but i think jordana could pull them off. i think she has the right kind of attitude. plus she's tan and skinny and beautiful like my sister, who obviously dominates with the good genes.
MOM
(mother)
feisty, flaky, a dork, ... a mother.
julia louis-dreyfus
julia louis-dreyfus has always reminded me of my mother. on seinfeld, the way she talked sometimes, especially when elaine thought something was funny, and the way she laughed - i would see and hear my mother in her. so there was really never any other choice for me.
DOC
(favorite teacher)
warm, nerdy, a genius, an inspiration.
sam waterston
doc! yes, "doc." he had a Ph.D., so he was a doctor, and we called him "doc." THE BEST TEACHER I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE. i can't even convey... he was just wonderful. he wrote us an intro packet for our english class with a list of writing tips like:
"poor, overworked 'to be' is another verb that is overused if anything is.... it is a good idea not to be using too many 'to be' verbs. if it is a question of 'be or not to be,' don't.... also, as a general rule, if anything is inappropriate to end a sentence with, it is 'is.' clear?"
see? he's adorable. and he's brilliant. he taught us "logical fallacies," which are pretty much the best, most useful things i have ever learned in my life. and sam waterston, what a find. he's perfect. have you ever watched law & order? jack mccoy is brilliant. and just look how adorable his smile is!
wow. and now i miss high school. i never thought that would happen.