How Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling Got Into Song-and-Dance Shape for 'La La Land'
Damien Chazelle’s La La Land opens in limited release today (with a nationwide rollout to follow over the next two weeks), and it’s already earned some of the best reviews of the year. Starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling as a pair of Los Angeles artists singing and swaying their way through a musical romance, awards season prognosticators view it as one of the top contenders for the Academy Awards‘ Best Picture prize. When we spoke with the stars and director (watch the clip above), they let it be known that all that on-screen movie magic was the byproduct of considerable hard work.
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In speaking with Yahoo Movies’ Kevin Polowy, Gosling confessed that the toughest part of his performance was handling singing-and-dancing duties simultaneously — as well as perfecting his piano playing, which he does in a number of sequences throughout the film. As Chazelle said, both his leads were intensely committed to their roles, which sounds like it was necessary, since the filmmaker says they went through “three to four months of rehearsal and intensive training” to prepare for the old-school musical.
Related: ‘La La Land,’ ‘Manchester,’ ‘Moonlight’ Lead AFI Picks for Year’s Top Films
To hear all about the “musical boot camp” endured by the La La Land cast and crew, watch our chat above.
