VIDEO: How Elle Fanning's Real-Life Transgender Friends Prepared Her for Filming

[stephaniec]

VIDEO: How Elle Fanning's Real-Life Transgender Friends Prepared Her for Filming Ray

http://www.people.com/article/elle-fanning-real-life-transgender-friends-prepared-role-ray

People/By Michael Miller@write_miller 09/12/2015 AT 03:45 PM EDT

"Elle Fanning knew from personal experience that taking on the role of a transgender teen in her new film Ray would be no easy task.

"I definitely knew that it would be a huge challenge to do – I've definitely never done anything like that before," the 17-year-old actress exclusively tells PEOPLE at the Toronto International Film Festival, alongside her costar Naomi Watts. "

[captains]

I haven't seen the video, but I have read a few interviews with Elle, and I was actually struck by how respectful and informed she was. Maybe I'm setting the bar too low, but I really was impressed with her "transgender fluency," so to speak. Her friends must've done a good job.