Today the 38^th BFI FLARE: LONDON LGBTQIA+ FILM FESTIVAL 2024 welcomed actor, producer, writer, and director Elliot Page to BFI Flare to talk about his career and his latest film, our Special Presentation feature Close to You.  

Written and directed by BAFTA-Dominic Savage and starring, produced and co-written by Page, CLOSE TO YOU received its European premiere at BFI Flare as a Special Presentation feature on Thursday 14 March with Elliot Page, Hillary Baack and Dominic Savage in attendance.   

Based on a story by Dominic Savage and Elliot Page, simmering apprehensions surround a family get-together in CLOSE TO YOU, as Elliot Page’s Sam returns home for the first time since transitioning, in this highly collaborative feature.  Sam moved to Toronto from his small town on Lake Ontario, Canada and finally decides to return home to visit his family for his dad’s birthday as the grown-up children are gathered back into the fold. On his journey, Sam has a chance encounter with a close friend from high school, Katherine (Hillary Baack) with whom he had lost touch, a moment that sparks old feelings. It is on this trip home where Sam can finally confront long-buried feelings, a first love that was never properly resolved, his relationship with his family, and a newfound love and confidence in himself.  

Elliot Page made his screen debut in PIT PONY (1997), followed by his feature debut in MARION BRIDGE (2002). But it was his standout performance in the provocative chamber thriller HARD CANDY (2005), playing a teen who entraps a suspected sexual predator, that he scored his first international breakthrough. Page’s standout central performance in JUNO (2007) was not only regarded as one of the best of the year, it saw him receive an Independent Spirit and Genie Award, and nominations for BAFTA, Oscar™, Golden Globe and People’s Choice Awards.  

Further success came in Drew Barrymore’s roller derby comedy WHIP IT (2009) and as an aspiring dream architect in Christopher Nolan’s INCEPTION (2010). Subsequent appearances include FREEHELD (2015) TALLULAH (2016), and MY DAYS OF MERCY (2017). He hosted the documentary series GAYCATION (2016–2017), earning two Primetime Emmy® Award nominations. Since 2019, Page has starred as a series regular in the globally successful Netflix series THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY, which is gearing up to launch its fourth and final season.  

Page directed the documentary THERE’S SOMETHING IN THE WATER (2019), and with his production company PAGEBOY Productions, he develops and produces entertaining, original, and socially responsible stories.  

New York Times and Sunday Times instant bestseller, Page’s memoir,Pageboy was published to international acclaim in 2023.