ELLE > QUOTES

"After Somewhere came out, people started to recognize me more. Whenever I was walking down the street, they�d be like, �Oh, wow�are you Elle Fanning?� Before Somewhere, they asked me if I was Dakota Fanning, because we looked alike, and I�d say, �No, I�m her younger sister.� And they�d say, �Oh, okay.� But now I think they are starting to realize I�m my own person."
(On Somewhere changing her life, age 13)

"I like New York. I used to only go there for work and stuff, and so now that my sister has moved there, �cause she�s going to NYU, I feel like I can go there just for fun, just to visit her, you know? So that will be better. But I like the feeling you get there."
(On her favorite place, age 13)

"I try to add belts to the high-waisted pants. I actually got these really cool �80s khaki pants�I think they�re men�s, so they�re super big, but they look cool when you pull them up really high with a belt. Last year all the girls got in trouble for their short skirts, and it�s sort of happening again, so I�m trying to do the opposite and I�ve decided that the longer plaid skirts look sort of cuter in a weird way. If you wear them a tad longer it makes them look, like, super school-uniform. So I like it."
(On accesorizing her school uniforn, age 13)

"Since I do a lot of artsy stuff outside of school�ballet and singing and stuff like that�when I�m in school I like to be super studious. I like science. That�s my favorite subject."
(On her favorite subjects at school, age 13)

"Yeah! I take French at school but I�m only in French B, it�s like 2nd year. It�s OK. I wanna learn it. I�m trying really hard! It�s such a pretty language. So girly. I can understand people better than I can speak it. I feel sometimes embarrassed to say it to people �cause you feel like you�re totally screwing up the language and you sound awful."
(On taking another language at school, age 13)

"I�ve recently gotten really inspired by the �60s. I don�t know if you know her, but Sylvie Vartan is a French singer from the �60s and she has platinum blonde hair and she wears her hair in pigtails sometimes. She�s super cute and I just discovered some of her music. It�s in French so I don�t really know what she�s saying, but it�s still pretty cool! [Laughs] And I like the way she dresses. If you look her up online you�ll see some of her pictures. She�s cute."
(On things that influence her style, age 13)

"Every year I get a new Barbie calendar and there are all these old Barbie dolls on the calendar, and I�m very obsessed with schedules and everything, so I love writing in different things that I have each day on it. So that�s one of my favorite things in my room. I also am obsessed with Marilyn Monroe, and I went to an auction and got her face cream and powder. Her actual one!"
(On her favorite keepsakes of her bedroom, age 13)

"Oh my god, it�s so good! It�s my favorite movie."
(On her favorite movie, The Virgin Suicides, age 13)

"My parents have no acting genes at all, no one in my family so it was funny when we got into acting because we were supposed to be like Venus and Serena [Williams], tennis players, so it was sort of mad that it worked out that way."
(On both Dakota and Elle being actors while her parents being athletes, age 13)

"I love everything vintage and am already planning to be a flight attendant for Halloween this year."
(On watching the show Pan Am, age 13)

"It's not a super actors school, which is good. I like being around people who are just kids."
(On her school, age 13)

"Cheerleading isn't for me"
(On taking ballet classes in the afternoons, age 13)

"In Seventh grade, it was sort of a big deal to have a boyfriend...You are not in elementary school anymore, and you feel a lot older. But you can't do anything. Your mom has to drop you off! It's sort of awkward. You're sitting here, and the parents are over there. I don't know--not for me!"
(On dating in middle schoo, age 13)

"I remember the first time Dakota asked me for fashion advice about what to put with what. I was like, My big sister is asking me?"
(On her relationship with Dakota, age 13)

"I never really pull from experience. I just sort of make believe. That's why I like acting. You can create or imagine anything. It's not like I've fallen in love but I've had crushes and things."
(On her acting method, age 13)

"Me and my friends saw Crazy, Stupid, Love, and we were freaking out. "Everyone falls in love with him after that."
(On her crush on Ryan Gosselin, age 13)

"Some people do piano lessons after school; I do movies."
(On acting while in school, age 13)

"I always feel like they're just a name�like they're not real at first. Then once you get to know them, you're like, That's Scarlett and Matt! It's not, like, Matt Damon."
(On working with big name celebrities, age 13)

"[I] had never been to Italy, and I had been told that Milan is the fashion capital of the world, so I was excited to go. I liked visiting the places that were from another era � and the pasta and pizza were so good! Many of the crew there didn�t speak English, and I don�t speak Italian, so we had to get someone in to translate. It felt like we were always playing the game of Telephone; you�re telling someone what to say, they�re repeating it..."
(On shooting Somewhere in Italy, age 12)

"I was excited. I had started learning for another movie, but [in that one] I didn�t have to be that good; for this, I learned to skate backwards. Now I can show off to my friends."
(On learning to ice skate for Somewhere, age 12)

"I just do; I put myself in the character�s place. Acting is making believe, then being natural � and going with whatever happens."
(On how she prepares for emotional scenes age 12)

"[I] was never nervous, never felt rushed. If you had something to say or an idea, you could tell Sofia and she would listen to you. If Stephen and I had an inside joke or something, we�d ask her if we could incorporate it into a scene. She�s one of the nicest people I�ve ever met, and she doesn�t put pressure on. She gets things done without yelling."
(On working with Sofia Coppola, age 12)

"[Somewhere is] a movie where everything felt real, including Cleo�s relationship with her dad."
(On Somewhere, age 12)

"Stephen and I have a lot in common. He went to the same school that I go to. We both bite our nails. We�re both from Georgia, and we both like our food well-done � really crispy! We now have a father/daughter-type relationship outside of the movie."
(On screen dad Stephen Dorff, age 12)

"She's the nicest person I think I've ever met. I felt like I was her real daughter and we had that bond definitely. She's such a real person and she doesn't even seem like she's acting."
(On screen mum Felicity Huffman, age 10)

"One boy made fun of me because one day, I had really curly hair, and I wear glasses normally, and I also bite my nails. I feel like everyone is different in their own way, so, people shouldn't try to make them feel bad because of that."
(On how she relates to her outsider character Phoebe, age 10)

"We don�t really talk about movie stuff at home. It's more about sisterly stuff. I like singing, dancing, sketching and we draw together. It's fun."
(On how she spends time with Dakota, age 10)

"I woke up in the morning and was like, 'Oh, I get to go to set!' I was so excited. Daniel, Felicity, Patty and Bill were all so much fun to work with. I got to meet so many new people. It felt like a big, big family."
(On filming Phoebe in Wonderland, age 10)

"Phoebe has such a creative mind and unique personality. She has such a unique spirit that I feel like no one else could ever have, yet other people are like her. She has things that you can relate to, and then some things that are just hers."
(On her character Phoebe, age 10)

"She deals with the hard times in her life, she copes with those problems with Alice in Wonderland. When she goes into that world she feels like everyone understands her... I'm sort of like Phoebe in a weird way, because I bite my nails, I have a fear of elevators, I'm sort of like that. I feel like everyone is like Phoebe but you shouldn't be afraid to be yourself and you shouldn't be afraid that people are going to make fun of you for being yourself."
(On her character in Phoebe in Wonderland, age 10)

"I'm reading the first book right now, and I saw the movie, so yeah."
(On whether she's a fan of Twilight, age 10)

"Well, everyone likes Bella the most."
(On her favorite character in Twilight, age 10)

"It's the normal ballet music, but they just add words to it. It's a musical, but it's the same story. It was really good. I sing a solo with Nathan Lane, so it was great."
(On Nutcracker - The Untold Story, age 10)

"I got to wear a long, red wig, and vintage clothes. I loved it!"
(On the best bits of filming The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, age 10)

"But the 'untold' part is a secret. You'll have to go see it.�
(On the plot of her film Nutcracker - The Untold Story, age 10)

"I loved the script, too, and I just loved Phoebe. I thought that she was just funky and weird -- but in a good way, a good way weird. And I just thought that she was so fun, so I just loved everything about it."
(On why she wanted to be a part of Phoebe in Wonderland, age 9)

"Well, me and Daniel went and met with some kids that had Tourette's and we asked them questions about how they felt having it. And they said they were on medication, but it didn't really work that much. It made them cry for no reason, and so it doesn't really work. They really wanted to be normal ... I mean, I could be friends with them. I'd be friends with them any day."
(On researching her part in Phoebe in Wonderland, age 9)

"They didn't really give me any advice on the set, and they probably don't know that they gave me this advice, but they're just such nice people. I just learned to be nice like them so that was it for me."
(On Felicity Huffman and Patricia Clarkson, age 9)

"Yeah, I sort of am a little bit like Phoebe in a way because she can be a lot of fun sometimes, but she can be sort of angry because she doesn't want to do everything that she does, but she just has to in a way."
(On whether she's like her Phoebe in Wonderland character, age 9)

"My sister! Dakota, yeah."
(On who she patterns her acting after, age 9)

"Oh well I think she's just really imaginative, and she's really creative and uhm.. she's just very artistic in a way. So I just think she's.. I want to be like Phoebe! I think everyone should be more like Phoebe"
(On how her character in Phoebe in Wonderland deals with her issues, age 9)

"[She's] spunky and weird, weird in a good way."
(On her character in Phoebe in Wonderland, age 9)

"We're just normal sisters. We both go to school and we just play together."
(On her relationship with Dakota, age 9)

"I was just more quieter, then after the scene ... I was all energized up. After being quiet all day, I was just laughing and more normal."
(On her preparation for an emotional scene in Phoebe in Wonderland, age 9)

"See the opening of my movie!"
(On what she plans to do at Sundance, age 9)

"I think it's a really, really great thing to do."
(On supporting Picabo's Ski Challenge charity event, age 9)

"I love Picabo."
(On the her ski instructor at the Sundance Film Festival, age 9)

"Charlie. He's the prince and at the end when I wake up from my dream he's the shy boy. But he's actually the prince, but he's a boy that's Uncle Albert's nephew I think. So then we all go ice skating, me and Charlie in the end."
(On the her Co-star in Nutcracker: The Untold Story, age 9)

"I dream the whole adverture that, everything. I dream this! But it's very dark, and it's light. "
(On the her role in Nutcracker: The Untold Story, age 9)

"Every Christmas in every school, they always put on the Nutcracker Ballet, always. Every, every single Christmas so it's really big."
(On The Nutcracker ballet, age 9)

"I was so excited. I had played piano, but then I stopped. When this movie came along with my character playing piano, I started up again and now I want to keep doing it."
(On playing the piano in Reservation Road, age 9)

"[The Learner Family is] trying to get back on their feet again, and trying to heal. I learned a lot from Joaquin and Jennifer; I would get into my mood and my character and do it as real as possible. Terry always knew exactly what he wanted, but he would let you put your word into it too."
(On her experience filming Reservation Road, age 9)

"I play Noelle.. and I can't speak, so I do sign language throughout.. my part."
(On her character in The Nines, age 8)

"Just working. I feel weird when I'm not."
(On her favorite thing about shooting a movie, age 8)

"Really fun. I get to see, you know, I get to meet all my actors, who I'm going to work with. And I get to just see the set and everything, it's really fun, [to] meet all the cast and crew."
(On what her first day on set is like, age 8)

"Peter is one of the nicest people I've ever met. He talked to me all the time and would always open the van doors for me when we would go to set. He reminded me of my real dad. We talked about our scenes together. He made everything fun."
(On Peter Krause, her Lost Room co-star, age 8)

"I love that one, it's fun to watch."
(On her favorite episode of Fear Factor, age 7)

"Making this film was such a special time for me. I learned so much and had a great time. I feel really lucky."
(On her film Babel, age 7)

"Now, what they're doing right now is they're putting fake sweat on me, to make me look really hot. But I don't think they really should do it, because I'm probably gonna be hot anyway, but I know they have to."
(On working conditions in the Sonora Desert, age 7)

"He's getting in the mood."
(On her Babel co-star, Nathan Gamble's method acting, age 7)

"If you tell me a really sad story about my family..."
(On what would make her cry for a sad scene in Babel, age 7)

"Yeah it was great, it was so much fun! Kids were talking to us in Spanish and we were like 'what?', and I'm like (nods uncertainly) 'yeah?'"
(On language differences while filming Babel, age 7)

"Hi. Thank you for everything, I had a great time here and I'll miss it a lot. And, I hope I can come back someday. Thank you!"
(Elle's speech to Mexican extras on the last day of filming Babel, age 7)

"I love it. I just love how you get to be different people and have different names."
(On acting, age 6)

"I'll do anything. There's nothing I don't want to do."
(On acting, age 6)

"What's the best part of a movie? I love to know what my name is. It's just so fun. That's the first thing I ask. It's just fun because you have a different name in every movie."
(On the fun parts of showbiz, age 6)

"I'm going to call it Elle's Cookbook. Dakota would be in the audience. She's not allowed to be on the show because it's not her show."
(On her plans for a future cooking show, age 6)

"I'm glad they picked me to be Ruth."
(On her role in The Door in the Floor, age 5)

"Jon is cute and nice. Kim is so pretty and so fun to be with. She gave me a bracelet. Jeff is wonderful, he gave me a book for my birthday with blank pages so we could color in it."
(On her Door in the Floor co-stars, age 5)

"When I get home at the end of the day I'm just worn out."
(On working life, age 5)

"Her boys died, and she had me, and she doesn't want to love [Ruth] too much because she's afraid that something's going to happen to me."
(On Kim Basinger's character in The Door in the Floor, age 5)

"I can see it when I'm grown up, like 30 or something."
(On The Door in the Floor, age 5)

"Every day [my character] is just depressed, depressed, depressed. You don't really do anything. You don't smile, you don't laugh. You think how Ruth would really feel."
(On her character, Ruth, in The Door in the Floor, age 5)

"I just remember them. We do all the scenes that I'm in, and then we're done."
(On learning her lines, age 5)

"We love playing, like she's the mom, and I'm the daughter."
(On playing with her big sister, age 5)

"Not really. But sometimes we do, when we're at home."
(On whether she gets to play with Dakota very often, age 5)

"I love playing with Barbies. I have, like, 40. I collect Care Bears. I have 10."
(On her passions, age 5)

"I love to see what your voice, what character you're playing, I love... your dress, and what you wear."
(On making My Neighbour Totoro, age 5)

"We dot the eyes with blue icing and make blonde hair with yellow."
(On making her gingerbread family, age 5)

"When we make brownies I'll leave some of them out for him (Santa), too."
(On special treats for Santa, age 5)

"I like stirring in the chocolate and putting in the chocolate chips. Sometimes I get to lick the spoon! When you mix them with the chocolate chips, they're so good."
(On her bake time favorites, age 5)

"Dakota is my favorite actress."
(On her special favorite, age 5)

"We were asleep one night, and Flounder was in his fishbowl. He flipped out of the bowl and died."
(On the loss of her pet goldfish, age 5)

"At the day care center, her mother, my mother in the scene, gives me a pink cell phone around my neck, to call her if it has a problem."
(On her first scene in Daddy Day Care, age 4)

"Oh I guess jumping in the flowers, and the water scenes, cause we got to be in bathing suits and, swim in the water, and in the water fountain."
(On her favorite scene in Daddy Day Care, age 4)

"I just love working with Eddie Murphy. Eddie Murphy's so funny!"
(On her Daddy Day Care co-star, age 4)

"My first time was when I worked with my sister in I Am Sam. So, I think I did... one movie, and this is my, you know, two movies."
(On her role in Daddy Day Care, age 4)

"He can take his finger off. Really!"
(On Eddie Murphy, age 4)

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