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hundreds of thousands of people in this generationis an amazing opportunity.”The writer/director aimed to create an experiencethat would have the audience rooting for our couple.Her goal was to expose the intensity and passion offirst love, and she was determined to put that intoeach frame of the movie. The director shares: “Iwanted a happy ending for this story. I wanted ourcharacters to win, and I wanted love to win. That’sthe story that I wanted to tell: that real love, yourfirst love, can be the most powerful.”She continues: “I thought a lot about ‘Romeo andJuliet’ when I was writing and was also inspired bythe photography of Ryan McGinley. The connectionto teenagers in his work feels inclusive, fun and youngand sexy. I didn’t want the characters’ love to feelportrayed from a distance. I wanted it to feel like wewere experiencing it. McGinley’s photography lets yoube in the world of his subjects, and that’s how I wantedto feel when I was watching Jade and David. Davidis a brooding, yet charming, guy who awakens thiswonderful, ethereal girl for the first time.”The self-described romantic admits that what alsodrew her to the project was her personal experience ofseeing a love story told on screen for the first time. “Iwant what I experienced when I saw my first love story,”she says. “I walked away from that theater thinking, ‘Icannot wait to fall in love. I can’t wait to meet that guyand have all of that.’ That’s what I want every girl in theaudience to think when they watch this movie.”Abdy was moved by how Feste and Safran had sobeautifully captured the intimacy and explosiveness offirst love. She offers: “The script gave us a Jade andDavid who were feeling something they’ve never feltbefore: this love and passion and desire to be happy.But there are other people that don’t understand thatfeeling, who may have once found that feeling withsomeone but have lost it now, so David and Jade have tobe brave and fight for it.” Agreeing with her director’ssentiment, Abdy sums: “The movie is about embracingthat love again, believing that no matter what age youare, everyone can feel love and passion.”Instant Connection:Casting the DramaFinding talented young actors who could provide theessential chemistry of David and Jade was the filmmakers’top priority. They discovered the ideal performers inAlex Pettyfer and Gabriella Wilde. Shares Schwartz:“In a love story, this is the whole ball game. The firsttime we saw Alex and Gabriella on screen, everyonewas very aware of their chemistry. You just felt it wasthere. Beyond the fact that they are both very attractivepeople, you felt this real connection between them.”Schwartz admired his director’s knack with thetalent. “Shana is wonderful working with young actorsand getting them to open up to one another and lettingthe audience into that love story,” he says. “She spentso much time in rehearsal with Alex and Gabriellahelping them forge that connection and open up– 13 –Alex Pettyfer is David Elliot.

Hugh (BRUCE GREENWOOD) confronts David.not only to each other, but to the camera as well. It’s sucha challenge for an actor to be exposed, and her patienceand guidance have resulted in terrific performances.”As part of the rehearsal and bonding process, Festesays Pettyfer and Wilde spent a good deal of timetogether off set and did a lot of fun exercises, includingdancing to loud music. As filming started, the directorfelt inspired by the talent and commitment of her youngactors. She shares: “They came to respect each otherso much. When you’re doing a love story, you have toknow that the other person has your back.”When they meet, the temperaments of the soonto-be young lovers are as different as their culturaland economic status. Feste praises her leading man,who plays David as a young man you root for: “Alexis a total romantic. What struck me the first time Imet him is how open he was talking about the love hewants to find. Most 23-year-old guys are not talkingopenly about love! David believes that he deserveslove and Alex believes that he deserves love, andthat translates in the movie.”Pettyfer discusses his director’s process: “We didsome interesting rehearsing, and that helped. Shanaguided us along the path. She comes from such aninteresting place of wanting peopleto relate and connect. It’s not somuch about a sole performance;it’s about collaboration. She’s givenme a new look into how to connectwith who I’m playing and where I’mgoing in the story.”Stuber adds that the care his directorput into the on-screen couple findingcomfort in one another was one ofthe virtues of the production: “There’sa complete and utter believability toall of their interactions. Gabriella andAlex are natural and organic; they havechemistry and feel like people in love.That’s a testament to their work asactors, as well as Shana and the time she put in so thatthey could talk through the places that they were going tohave to go with each other.”When David connects with Jade, he finds a girl whohas suffered a loss in her family that has taken her out ofthe social world of school. Even though she’s beautifuland bright, she’s not outgoing and hasn’t become apart of the high school. While he encourages her to seethat she is a free spirit and that someone couldfall in love with her, she gives him the confidenceto believe in himself.The filmmakers found that the British-born Wildeembodies many of Jade’s traits. Feste explains: “Ipictured Jade as gorgeous, and Gabriella definitelyis that. But how Gabriella wears her beauty is herstrongest suit. She has no idea how gorgeous she is.As we were starting to rehearse, I saw Gabriella openup. She is close to the character of Jade: aware of whatpeople think of her and quite shy. She’s an introvert,and I imagined that Jade would be an introvert. SeeingGabriella as Jade let love change and inspire her hasbeen fun to watch. Her arc is so strong in this movie,and that’s when you forget how beautiful Gabriella isand just realize that she is an amazing actress.”– 14 –

Wilde walks us through the story’s beats: “David Feste to have the audience also see the warmth of hisawakens Jade to her own voice and to her youth. Atcharacter, so as to not have Hugh appear as a clichédthe beginning, she’s quite serious and burdened by a villain. His on-screen daughter reflects on Greenwood’ssense of guilt toward her family following the death talent. “Bruce is a brilliant actor,” lauds Wilde. “There’sof her brother Chris. She’s someone who’s trying to a danger that Hugh could have just been a villain, butmake it all okay all of the time, and this is where David Bruce has kept the humanity in Hugh. While he is agives her license to be herself. She finds her voice in villain—what he does is frightening and wrong—the movie as she’s falling in love. Jade goes from beingyou can understand where it all comes from; he’ssuppressed to putting everything aside to fight for love done that brilliantly.”and what she believes in.”Producer Schwartz was taken with Greenwood’sFeste wasn’t the only one impressed with Wilde’s performance and ability to bring an incredible humanitydemeanor. “Gabriella is amazing,” praises Pettyfer. to stoic Hugh. Schwartz shares: “When you see Bruce“She has this beauty that takes you aback. She looks on screen, you sense a strength and integrity to him.like a supermodel, but she also is grounded and actually This makes the fact that he’s the antagonist of the moviequite shy—the most beautiful girl mixed with thevery interesting. Hugh will go to great lengths to keepquiet girl. She was perfect for Jade.”his daughter from David in ways that the audience mayTo play Jade’s parents, the production cast thenot agree with, but can always understand.”accomplished veteran actors Bruce Greenwood asFeste shares that they conceived of the parents byHugh Butterfield, a father whose desire to protect his seeing them in shades of gray. Both Hugh and Harrydaughter leads to awful results, and Joely Richardson protect their children the best way they can. Theas Anne Butterfield, Jade’s sympathetic mother who isdirector explains: “Do either one of them understandjust as romantic as her only daughter.the love that David and Jade have? I don’t think so. IGreenwood, an award-winning actor who has starredthink maybe toward the end of the film they start to.in such acclaimed films as Star Trek Into Darkness and Are they afraid of it? Yes, sure, because that intensityFlight, brings to life Jade’s menacing, if well-meaning, is frightening to see because it’s all-consuming.father. Discussing the part, the actoroffers: “One of the foremost thingsthat interested me about the characterwas that he was a father learning tolet go of a child that he loves beyondall measure, after having lost a child.Trying to keep her from harm, but atthe same time guide her is a tremendousstruggle for him; he begins to overreactand becomes rigid in the way he looksat his daughter’s aspirations.”Hugh is a successful surgeon inAtlanta who strongly objects to therelationship that’s blossoming betweenSabine (ANNA ENGER) and Keith (RHYS WAKEFIELD) get the party started at his family home.Jade and David. It was important to– 15 –

Jade visits David at work.Anne is the one character who is not afraid of that love,but is drawn to it and wants to celebrate it.”Anne is a published author who hasn’t written inyears. Like Hugh, she mourns the loss of their eldestchild, but while her husband’s grief pushes her away,she wants to hold on to their marriage. Stuber explainswhy this character is so pivotal to Jade and David’s arc:“Anne has a husband who’s cheating on her, and she’saware of it. She’s living a lie. But seeing this youngman who’s being honest with who he is and authenticin his love for her daughter that’s a big deal to Anne.That’s something she respects to the point that she givesDavid information she likely shouldn’t.”For her part, Richardson was impressed with Feste’sdirectorial style, one that allowed her to play Anne asa forgiving character who operates from a base of lovefor others—as well as a woman who has lost herselfto a controlling husband. Richardson shares: “Shanais precise, thinks outside the box and knows exactlywhat she wants. As an actor, you can be used to selfdirecting. With Shana, she thinks of these imaginativescenarios to get you to do the scene the way she’d like.”While Greenwood’s Hugh feels immediate disdainfor David, Richardson’s Anne feels drawn to the youngman’s spirit from the beginning. Richardson explains:“She has that mother’s instinct thatpicks up that he’s a good guy. But thebig thing that wins her over is that Davidhas this enormous love for her daughter,and that melts her heart.”Savage compares the character ofAnne to Richardson’s real-life persona,a woman inspired by love. She notes:“Joely is elegance personified. Anne isa character who is very observant. Sheis the glue that holds her family togetherand Joely is great at playing all thosesmall moments, the looks, the gestures.She’s always taking care of her family,concerned about where everybody isemotionally and how to keep them together. Joely istuned into that in a great way.”On the other side of the tracks, David’s father Harry,an automotive mechanic who works in the shop he owns,hasn’t considered love in a long time. His wife walkedout on him a few years earlier, and he’s closed his heart.Unlike his co-stars (Pettyfer, Wilde, Richardson) whoare British and Canadian (Greenwood), veteran actorRobert Patrick is from Georgia. “With his Southernroots,” says Savage, “Robert brings texture and acompletely different flavor. The Butterfields are a veryrefined family, and Harry represents this whole otheraspect of David’s world.”Patrick sheds some light on the background of hischaracter: “Harry is raising his son the best way heknows how. It’s a loving environment. When you meetHarry, you know that he’s a good, salt-of-the-earth guy.He’s a man’s man who is used to getting dirty, andhe’s raised his son that way—to stand up for himselfand be who he is.”The actor recalls his first meeting with his newson: “When I met Alex, it just felt great; we had aninstantaneous chemistry. He even looks like my son,which was funny to me, Alex and my son. They’reso similar that we actually used pictures of my little– 16 –

boy as David when he was younger.”which is something that the whole family isThe energy and versatility that Patrick brought toin great need of.”the story and his role was put to good use. PettyferIt was important to Feste that Keith and Jade’sfelt that in spades: “It was so crazy. Robert came on relationship was based on support for each other. Sheset, I hadn’t met him yet, and I wanted to seem very shares: “Rhys is an incredible actor. He’s mischievousprofessional and I’m nervous: ‘I’m.I’m Alex. Veryand has this wonderful smile. The minute Rhys andnice to meet you. I play your son.’ And he gives me a Gabriella got together, I knew they would be perfectmassive hug and says, ‘This is my son, everybody.’ Itbecause they genuinely support each other as actors.was exciting to work with him.”I feel incredibly lucky to have cast Rhys becauseAfter assembling the two leads and their parents,he adds so much to Keith that the audience will bethe team got to work building a stellar up-and-coming celebrating when he embraces this message to be bravesupporting cast. As there is darkness in Jade’s past and and fight for love.”David’s background, there was a potential of makingDavid’s best friend, Mace, is played by Nigerianthe film too serious. The talented young actors broughtborn Dayo Okeniyi, who is best known for his role inhumor and liveliness to the project.The Hunger Games. “Dayo is incredibly charismatic,”Filmmakers encouraged the entire cast to hang out says Feste. “Mace represents David’s old world—and get to know each other off camera, which helped peaking in high school. Dayo is one of those actors whoto enhance each relationship on camera. Abdy offers:brings such a fresh, fun energy to the film. Most of what“In rehearsals, they got to know one another, become he does is all improvised. I love his improvisation—friends and learn to tell truths about each other sohe’s so clever and so funny.”that you feel that there’s a life behind the movie.Okeniyi shares what drew him to the role of Mace:We encouraged them to go do fun things by“Before Endless Love, I’d come off projects where Ithemselves. Shana brought all that to the table as a was sci-fi intense, with a lot of death and destruction,director who is very character-driven. Because she’s and for the first time, a character came my way thata writer, too, she’s very much into the context and was down to earth, if a bit on the wild side. When Ithe life of each character.”Australian Rhys Wakefield playsKeith, Jade’s flippant, charming andprotective older brother. “What Ilike about Keith,” says Wakefield,“is that he has this deep-seated painwithin him. There’s this history of afather-son relationship gone awry.His purpose in this film is to helpJade along in her journey and towelcome David into the household,acting as a bridge between the parentand this outsider. David representshealing to Keith as well, coming inHugh, Jade, David and Anne (JOELY RICHARDSON) at the Butterfield lake house.as he does and mixing things up,– 17 –

Capturing the Passion:Design and LocationsHugh refuses to listen to Anne.was testing for the role, Shana said that he shouldbe the light of the movie. Whenever Mace comes onscreen, he should just be that breath of fresh air, thereaffirming friend. At the same time, she didn’t wanthim to be a caricature.”When David meets Jade, he has just broken up withhis girlfriend, Jenny, played by British actress EmmaRigby in her first American feature-film role. Jenny andJade are complete opposites: she’s overtly sexual andflirtatious with David, which makes us understand whyJade feels threatened. As David and Jade’s relationshipdevelops, Jenny refuses to watch passively. Her act ofrevenge succeeds in separating them—possibly forever.Feste wanted to explore the character of Jade bycontrasting her with Jenny, while also making surethat there was a genuine relationship between Jennyand David. “Emma has a tough role,” says the director,“because Jenny is the girl that you want to hate. Still, therewere takes where I said, ‘Emma, it’s just making me toosad, you are too good right now; just do less, because I’mfeeling too much for you. You look too heartbroken thatDavid has chosen someone else and we always have tobe thinking that Jade and David have the strongest bond.’But Emma is such a strong actress that sometimes youcan’t help but have your heart go out to her.”The paths of David and Jade’sstory are reflected in the design ofthe film. Feste assembled a stellarbehind-the-scenes team—led bycinematographer Andrew Dunn,production designer Clay Griffith andcostume designer Stacey Battat—tobring her vision from script to screen.For Griffith, the inspiration for thecolors of the production began bysitting down with Dunn, Battat andFeste, and pulling photographs that would reflecttheir shared, desired palette. Griffith recalls: “It’snot often that the director, director of photography,costume designer and production designer sit downand conjure up the look of the film. But we did, andit was fantastic.”Because they were on location in Atlanta for 34of the 37 shooting days, and not on a soundstage,the color palette was more difficult to control. ButGriffith worked with costume designer Battat tocreate the film’s signature look. The costume designerdescribes the style evolution of Jade’s characterprogressing from girl to woman: “We wanted Jadeto be more of a little girl at the beginning and thenprogress into being a woman. The fact that she’s stilla kid means she might want to wear her dresses withConverse high-tops. Jade’s color scheme is what Ilike to call a ‘1920s color palette’—soft, muted palepinks, peaches and minty greens with occasionalreds when she’s being defiant of her father. Whenshe chooses David, she’s in red.”On the opposite end, it was important thatDavid’s wardrobe reflect his demeanor of littlechange. Shares Battat: “David is a stable forcein the movie, so his wardrobe always remains– 18 –

constant; his look remains consistent, like aJames Dean-type character.”One of Feste’s priorities was to find a romanticto shoot the film. Enter BAFTA Award-winningdirector of photography Andrew Dunn, who allowedfor specific spacing of the characters to reflectFeste’s vision. “We initially created a tightness ofspace around Jade,” notes Dunn. “As she becomes awoman, develops her own point of view and finds herplace in life and in love, we created more freedomof space around her. She becomes more themistress of her environment and herspace becomes freer.”Something of critical importanceto Feste was having a team that wasvery open to love. Reflecting on Dunn,she compliments: “He is so incrediblygenerous and calm and his spirit is sogiving that I knew he would be perfect toshoot a love story. It’s great that he’s soopen and not cynical. When I explainedwhat I wanted in a scene or how I wanteda kiss to go and he said, ‘Oh, that’sbeautiful,’ I knew that he meant it. On topof that, he’s made the actors feel so freewith their emotions.”The camaraderie was felt betweenDunn and Feste. “Working with Shanawas an energizing and upliftingexperience for me. She has such a specialview,” notes Dunn. “She is wonderfulwith the actors, understands the storyso well—and it all comes from herheart. Shana is very inspiring. She’sa writer, she understands her subjectsand what she is trying to get from thestory, which has inspired me to go ona journey with her and draw out that storythrough the images, through the lighting,camera placement, movement thatwe created together.”Endless Love’s set was located almost entirelyin and around Atlanta, from May to July 2013.“Josh and I had never shot in Georgia before,”says Savage, “so this was our first time here. Thereare so many different places to shoot—from thebeautiful Atlanta neighborhood of Buckhead, wherethe Butterfield house is, to the more urban spotwhere we found an amazing old garage for Harry’splace, to the gorgeous lake

DUNN (Precious, The Perks of Being a Wallflower), production designer CLAY GRIFFITH (We Bought a Zoo, Sweet Home Alabama), editor MARYANN BRANDON (Star Trek, Super 8), costume designer STACEY BATTAT (The Bling Ring, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby) and composer CHRISTOPHE BECK (The Hangover trilogy, The Muppets).