"I was just more quieter, then after the scene ... I was all energized up," Fanning said. "After being quiet all day, I was just laughing and more normal." Barnz said he wrote the first draft of "Phoebe in Wonderland" a year before Elle Fanning was even born. The movie is part of the festival's dramatic competition and as of Monday had not been purchased by a distributor. Elle Fanning's appearance came a year after 13-year-old Dakota caused a stir at the festival by appearing as a young rape victim in the film "Hounddog."
Dakota's younger sister stars in 'Wonderland'
PARK CITY, Utah (AP) - January 21, 2008 In the movie, which had its world premiere over the weekend at
the Sundance Film Festival, Fanning's character sees a therapist
and says things like, "Are you always supposed to feel hope?"
The 9-year-old plays Phoebe Lichten, an insular and imaginative
girl who signs up to play the lead in her school's performance of
"Alice in Wonderland." At one point, she envisions her therapist
as Humpty Dumpty sitting on a wall, and calls out to him, "I need
help!"
The film features strong performances by Felicity Huffman and
Bill Pullman as Lichten's parents, and Patricia Clarkson as her
quirky drama teacher Mrs. Rodgers.
Fanning spoke after the premiere about getting in character for
a key scene in which she breaks into tears in Huffman's arms.
Writer-director Daniel Barnz said Fanning told the crew not to be
offended if she wasn't friendly on the day the scene was shot.
