Manx Radio has two brief clips available to listen to - one about the crowd and one of Zac speaking about the Isle of Man.

And another article popped up about Robert Kaplow, author of Me and Orson Welles. Read it here. There was a pic included with the article:



There was also an article about the DC trip by Poptimal which included two pics:



Lastly, there was a great NY Times article about Orson Welles and the film, with quotes/info from Richard and Christian.

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO WOAHITSAMY FOR UPLOADING THE RAW FILES!!!





Also, haven't had a chance to upload to YT but there is another Zac video here from TV3 (via ff, ty).

:D This was on oceanup:

Pictures from Rachel & Allesia: Today me and my friend went to the Soho Hotel in London to try and meet the Jonas Brothers. We waited a couple of hours with 4 other girls, but there was no sign of them and the security were being really picky about giving out information on whether they were actually there.

 We had also been told that Zac Efron had been staying there the night before, but had left early that morning.

So a couple of hours into our wait, a black car pulls up and Zac Efron was in the car! At first, he just got out of the car and went straight into the hotel. But then about 5 minutes later, his security came out, pointed to the fans waiting around, and called us over to him.

He then took us inside the hotel into one of the rooms where we all sat in a circle on the sofas and then in came Zac Efron! He was so unbelievably nice and he was really chatty asking everyone questions, AND HE WAS SO BEAUTIFUL. WE LOVE YOU ZAC <3

( Pics )

source

( IESB: Zac Efron and Claire Danes )

( IESB: Richard Linklater )

PopSugarUK's account of the press conference seems pretty comprehensive, so I won't be posting random other versions that are excerpts from it wherever they popup (unless significant other info is included).

( PopSugarUK's account of the press conference - Part 1 )

Also there the Wall Street Journal has an interview with Richard here, nothing specific about Zac though.

Earlier I posted a link to Moore's blog entry on MAOW, but his official review has been released:

He swaggered, an outsize personality who filled a room figuratively decades before he did it literally.

Labeled a "genius" in childhood, damned if he didn't spend his 20s proving that to be the case - and how.

"Me and Orson Welles" is a coming-of-age comedy built around the "Me," a star-struck theater lover winningly played by Zac Efron. But it's a movie dominated by Orson Welles - "tyro" and "enfant terrible" of the American theater.

Richard Linklater's affectionate homage to the man who would go on to scare America witless with his "War of the Worlds" broadcast and then re-invent the cinema with "Citizen Kane" is a movie-lover's delight. Linklater, thanks to a brilliant, sly and self-aware turn by Christian McKay, reminds us what all the fuss over Orson is all about.

Efron is Richard, a would-be thespian going to high school in the greater New York of the 1930s. He stumbles into the Great Orson on his way to rehearse his legendary production of "Julius Caesar," which Welles re-set in modern fascist Italy.

Welles is a pathological flatterer, nicknaming the kid "Gielgud" and "the ukulele player." He needs an actor who can sing and play a uke for a scene opposite his own turn as Brutus. Richard becomes an eye-witness to theater history as the show comes together, and he falls, hard, for the "older woman" office manager (Claire Danes).

McKay has the Welles twinkle, his bluster and confidence, a man so talented he can improvise a better monologue on the radio than the one his "The Shadow" scriptwriters wrote. He blurts out "I'm starving," just the way Welles did in "Citizen Kane," and charms charms charms.

Equally fine are actors playing other members of Welles' Mercury Theater. Eddie Marsan is terrific as a Romanian immigrant who faked a British accent and became John Houseman, Welles' right-hand man in those years. Ben Chaplin is an arrogant and highly-strung George Coulouris and James Tupper makes a dapper, randy and world-wise Joseph Cotton.

Efron fits neatly into all this, a wide-eyed innocent trying to grow up too fast, hold his own in sex banter with the boys and not fail in front of the imposing Welles, who seduces and thunders at one and all in pursuit of his vision.

"LOUDER! This isn't a school play!"

Linklater holds our interest even working within the boundaries of an overly familiar "that's when I grew up" story. For serious cinema buffs, he does even more than that, giving us a peek at what working for a true giant of the arts must have been like - thrilling, exasperating and - above all - fun.

Three and a half stars

source

( mas )



1, 2

LOL, re: this.



Crude, but effective (I hope).

From Time Magazine

How is Me and Orson Welles different from the other projects you have worked on?
Julie Sephora
NEW YORK CITY

It's sort of a coming-of-age story for my character, but it's also a week in the life of Orson Welles, this amazing American icon. There are a lot of tough people in Hollywood, but there's no one quite like Orson. He was a genius and should forever be remembered like that. I think one of the reasons this movie was so exciting to make was to reveal to everybody how amazing this guy was.

What factors do you consider when accepting a movie project?
Grace Guevara
ONTARIO, CANADA

Would I go watch this movie? That's probably the first thing I think about. The second is, What's the challenge? What's the risk? I think the risk for me in this role is that it doesn't really rely on anything I've used in the past. There wasn't a particular skill set I could fall back on, like singing or dancing or basketball. So I was forced to grow in other areas. The other actors in the movie are all incredibly accomplished, and I didn't want to disappoint.

Do you have a strategy for getting more mature roles?
Claire Young, NISKAYUNA, N.Y.

To be honest, I've never really had any strategy at all. I don't really work that way. I know that when I see a role and it speaks to me, I'm drawn to it and I have to go that direction. But there's no master game plan.

Looking to more seasoned actors, whose career would you most like to emulate?
Karsten W.N. Kurze
BAD HONNEF, GERMANY

I think Leonardo DiCaprio's done a great job. I was dead set against the guy when I was growing up, kind of force-fed his image from Titanic. Since then, through very hard work and incredible performances, he's done a complete 180. Now he's one of my favorite actors. He's at the top of his game.

If you could take away your fame for just one day, how would you spend that day?
Jess Debicki
LONDON

I would do something like--I was going to say "go to Disneyland." I'm not going to say "go to Disneyland," even though that would be pretty fun. I'd probably just get lost for a day and have no agenda. Just see where the world takes me.

What is the most normal thing about your life?
Christine Lim
PITTSBURGH, PA.

I'm doing the same things as my friends in college--working, studying, trying to have fun whenever possible but usually getting pulled back into work. It's really normal for the most part, other than having to talk about how it's normal.

Do you have any intention of going to college?
Emily Hansen
SANDS POINT, N.Y.

I can't say for certain right now. I know at some point I will go back and study, but at this point I'm definitely focusing on working as hard as I can on film.

Any interest in tackling Broadway?
Matthew Farina
NEW FAIRFIELD, CONN.

I've always wanted to. Finding that right role is a challenge. I wouldn't want to just do it to do it. I would want to make sure it's something special.

Is there any chance you will try action movies?
Angela Bohn
ZANESVILLE, OHIO

I would love to try an action film at some point, but not too soon. I think that can be a kiss of death. There's got to be a real role that I can bring something unique and specific to, a way for me to do it believably. Until then, I think it would just come across as weird.

How do you keep your hair looking so great all the time?
Jennifer Cheng
FREEHOLD, N.J.

I've never told anyone this before. This is a hair scoop. Shower before you go to bed, and then sleep on your wet hair. Towel-dry it. In the morning, it's all messed up naturally. If you have that messed-up thing going when you wake up, it's more willing to stay that way. That's Zac's hair tip.

There should be a video/podcast too at some point

Forgot to post these pics earlier.

This is from OK Mag's site:



This is from RosieChad:





Twitpics/Twitters from the UK Press Conference

( Twitpics from this morning )

( Twitters )

After-Party



( +10 )

LA Press Conference



( +10 )

Getty has more of the other cast members for both events.



Videos - UK Premiere

( Sky News - Showbiz )

( London Evening Standard )

( MoviebeatUK )

Also Digital Spy has a really awesome interview here and Hello Magazine has one here. I haven't gotten the Hello one to work right, but I'll keep trying and I'll try to get the Digital Spy vid uploaded to YT.

ETA: ( Digital Spy (I think the best red carpet video) )



Article and Review

( Reuters: Teen idol Zac Efron stars in Orson Welles tale  )

( Compuserve Review (via RT) )

I haven't had a chance yet to see if the after-party pics are in HQ anywhere but JJ posted these:



( +++ )

source

Thanks to Audrey and ZAAngels for the scans, click for hi-res.





InStyle (Dec 09)



People's Sexiest

Premiere Stuff

Had to reupload to YT but this is from fuckyeahmaxine:



Zoe Griffin was impressed that Zac spent 30 minutes outside in the cold signing for fans before the film.

There is also a very short clip of Zac here.

( Some pics )

( Twitters )

( Sun excerpt w/ pic from Starlight Children's Foundation meeting )



( Hollyscoop Article )



Other non-Zac specific things

Long but lovely interview/dialogue between Christian McKay and Wellesnet's Lawrence French: here. They do mention there will be a San Francisco premiere with Richard and Christian in attendance on Dec 1st.

The Orlando Sentinel discusses Christian's Oscar chances.

( Richard Linklater Q&A with Film Independent (he does talk about Zac) )

ETA: Forget to say, Claire was announced as being on This Morning Thursday morning. I'm not sure if Zac will be on or not.

Backstage
Pete Hammond
Critics Pick

In the vein of "My Favorite Year," this historical fiction set in 1937 focuses on a wide-eyed teen named Richard (Zac Efron) who lucks into a role in the newly founded Mercury Theatre production of "Julius Caesar" directed by none other than a very young, but still bigger-than-life, Orson Welles (Christian McKay). But what sets "Me and Orson Welles" apart from a run-of-the-mill coming-of-age story is its convincing and loving look at the world of New York City theater at that time and the emergence of a major talent.

Set in the week leading up to the opening of the play, this small gem of a movie, written by Holly Gent Palmo and Vince Palmo from the Robert Kaplow novel and directed by Richard Linklater, alternates between a backstage look at the creative process and an amusing love triangle among the overbearing Welles, his ambitious assistant Sonja (Claire Danes), and Richard, the love-struck, theater-struck young teen whose life will never be the same after this experience.

Although the personal story of the kid attempting to woo the older Sonja is compelling, this film is dominated by the presence of Welles in his pre-prime and the Mercury Theatre company he created. General audiences should appreciate it, but actors will devour this tale that is at its heart a love letter to the stage. The staging of "Julius Caesar" is remarkable and brilliantly pulled off.

Central to the film's success is British actor McKay, who gets every nuance of what you'd imagine Welles would be like in a performance so dead-on you would swear the ghost of Orson was lurking in the wings. McKay, discovered for the role while he was doing a one-man show Off-Broadway called "Rosebud: The Lives of Orson Welles," obviously had experience playing the great man, but McKay's achievement here is taking a theatrical approach and dialing it way down to make it work on film. With Linklater's guidance, McKay turns this Orson into a mad but human genius who knows what he wants and knows exactly how to get it. It's an extraordinary pitch-perfect interpretation that goes way beyond mere mimicry and travels into art.

Efron, shedding his "High School Musical" persona, is likable, engaging, and totally relatable as the idealistic teen who is led by his heart into a world he isn't quite ready for. Danes, as usual, delivers a believable portrait of a nice young woman with shades of gray and a desire to move her career forward with whatever it may take. A superb ensemble of stage actors is played by a superb ensemble of film actors—among them James Tupper, wonderful as Joseph Cotten; Kelly Reilly as Orson's temperamental leading lady; Ben Chaplin, terrific as a dour English actor George Coulouris; and Zoe Kazan as a precocious aspiring writer. Special kudos to Eddie Marsan, who nails the young Welles collaborator John Houseman.

Treat yourself to "Me and Orson Welles," a must-see for movie lovers and theater aficionados of every stripe.

source

( Zac )

( Claire Danes, Christian McKay (Orson), Richard Linklater and cast )

( BONUS MR. CLAIRE DANES (AKA HUGH DANCY) )

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

ETA: ITN Video on YT



( apparently there is a forest inside this theater, lol )

From johnnyminkley:



( +++ )

( Videos )

From jemsy14:



Will add more as I find them or they turn up on Getty.

( +3 )

( +8 )

( +12 )

( +10 )

( +8 )

( +6 (Zac smiling and 1 of Hugh Dancy!) )

( +8 )

This post will just be kind of pics as they come in and then later in the day I'll do an HQ post with JJ and/or fansites.