ELLAR COLTRANE

I didn't have my parents to rebel against, but I had society, and that definitely is what they taught me. Just: Trust nothing.

I feel like that's so ingrained in so many children that you are so confined and repressed growing up that, anything you do, you have to rebel against it at some point.

As I've become older and more self-conscious, I'm more aware of films and the film industry. I'm sure you've seen that, but the publicity, the public side of this world is pretty scary to me.

I wasn't a child star, so hopefully I can keep my head on straight.

I was a pretty alert kid, and I, you know, I was very interested in arts.

The only thing in life that really gives me any peace is just being lost in the process of creating something, whether it's the film or painting and drawing, which has been a big part of my life, for a long time.

It's beautiful to have people look me in the eyes and actually treat me like a human.

I try not to worry about my appearance as much as possible.

It was surreal to step out of my own existence and see how most American children experience things.

I'm interested in all kinds of art. I draw and paint and don't know how to play the banjo, but I do play the banjo.

I was a pretty alert kid, and I, you know, I was very interested in arts.

It was surreal to step out of my own existence and see how most American children experience things.

I'm interested in all kinds of art. I draw and paint and don't know how to play the banjo, but I do play the banjo.

The only thing in life that really gives me any peace is just being lost in the process of creating something, whether it's the film or painting and drawing, which has been a big part of my life, for a long time.

It's beautiful to have people look me in the eyes and actually treat me like a human.

I like acting; I like being lost in the creative process.

I didn't have my parents to rebel against, but I had society, and that definitely is what they taught me. Just: Trust nothing.

I try not to worry about my appearance as much as possible.

My mom comes from a really out-there upbringing, so for her, the way she raised me is pretty disciplined. I was home-schooled but more really unschooled, really.

I was very angsty from a very young age. The way people start acting when they're 15, I started being at 8.

I've struggled so much, growing up, with just feeling that my life is valid because it's not filled with these hyper-dramatic moments, and I think a lot of people of my generation feel that way. We're so inundated with hyper-drama that people crave everyday life.

I feel like that's so ingrained in so many children that you are so confined and repressed growing up that, anything you do, you have to rebel against it at some point.

I was raised to be some kind of artist.

I don't want to make any general statements, but I feel like so many stories that are presented as being about humanity and human emotion are just so convoluted and overly dramatic and focus on these certain little things that are supposedly meaningful, but just don't really mean anything.

As I've become older and more self-conscious, I'm more aware of films and the film industry. I'm sure you've seen that, but the publicity, the public side of this world is pretty scary to me.

I wasn't a child star, so hopefully I can keep my head on straight.

I'm not interested in being famous or anything, but I'm definitely interested in expressing emotions, and acting and filmmaking can be great outlets for that. Filmmaking is an incredible art.

I'm inspired by anything. Not even just art, just anything that's real and vulnerable.

I never watched a frame of the film until it was finished.

The fact that I'd never really seen myself on screen allowed for a blissful ignorance. It didn't feel like a movie. I didn't have that self-consciousness. It was a game that I was playing.

People in New York just go about their business. Maybe living there for a long time, it would get lonely, but there's something really nice about being able to go about your business and not feel like anybody is really paying attention to you or what you're doing.

My aunt was a fashion model and I happened to go to her agency with her, one day, when I was five. A talent agent said, "You should come talk to us." I did a few things. I did an indie movie and commercials, and stuff.

So many things tear us apart from each other. That's the hardest thing, to fit with all the hatred and pain we're embroiled in. I mean, we're a very violent species, physically and emotionally.

I think a lot of people were like, "Oh, you're 13, you're gonna rebel." But I was never in public school and I was never really forced to do much of anything, as a kid.