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'It's really surreal'18/02/2008
She may be Hollywood's latest 'It' girl, but, right now, Ellen Page is looking far from it.
Dressed casually in an orange and brown hoodie and Converses, the Canadian 20-year-old reveals that she's stunned by all the praise (not to mention the Bafta and Oscar nods) she's received for her portrayal of pregnant teenager Juno MacGuff in Juno.
Whether it was her honesty or her deft comic delivery that resonated with Oscar voters, Ellen's name will now forever be preceded by those weighty words - Academy Award nominee.
"To be honest, it's really surreal right now," says the actress.
"To have your name involved with a group of women, a group of people who you just have so much respect for and so much admiration for, it actually feels kind of wrong. I feel young and I feel like I just have a lot more I want to discover ... and just so much to learn."
Ellen has a lot to thank the character of 16-year-old Juno for.
"I just wanted to play this character so badly, and to be sitting here and knowing that it's actually happened is very bizarre because I so wanted to play Juno. I feel so grateful, it's ridiculous," she says.
"I love acting, and to be able to do what I love to do and make money at the age of 20 is absurd. I feel so lucky sometimes," she adds.
Ellen started acting at 10, getting her first break in a TV film. A spin-off TV series followed, which led to roles in independent Canadian films.
Her break-out role was in 2005's Hard Candy and she cemented it with X-Men: The Last Stand the following year. But it was Juno, where she stars alongside Superbad's Michael Cera, that has propelled her to international fame.
"This is one of the best scripts I have ever read, and it was in my life for a while," she says.
"I was just blown away. I read it and thought, all I want is to be that girl. It's unique and honest, and I think everyone's individual experience is like that. It's nice to have something that's different and explores a female character that's different from what we're used to seeing, but most certainly exists, you know?"
Ellen admits she got very involved with the character.
"The most fun part was getting emotionally connected to someone and noticing that the way you speak is changing and the way you talk with your hands is changing, and the way you walk," she says.
The role was also challenging in its own right, as Ellen came to terms with Juno's growing tummy and maturity.
"It was really intimidating at first. I didn't really think about it and then when we were about to shoot the movie, I was like, Oh my God, Juno is actually happening," she recalls.
"I started getting a little freaked out. But, in the end, the most important thing is that the character's still 16 and she's still hanging onto that, which I really like."
Ellen then shows her maturity, adding: "I think it's important not to get too carried away and get all heavy and do the actor researchy thing. I find that can often be contrived and silly, when really you should really be connecting with this."
After the Oscars, Ellen's next adventure will be a trip to Texas, where she is set to star in Whip It, Drew Barrymore's directing debut, as a teenager forced to compete in beauty pageants who finds salvation when she joins a roller-derby team.
© 2008 The Press Association Limited
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