TV - Movies
Did Chloe Grace
Moretz ReallY
Play The Cello In
If I Stay?
By MIKAEL TRENCH
Chloe Grace Moretz was her usual best as the protagonist Mia in the 2014 release “If I Stay.” What many audience members noticed about the film, however, was Moretz's incredible feats on the cello, which left them wondering if the talented actress is as good at cello as she is at acting.
Moretz tried to learn cello for the film and trained for two hours daily for about seven months. However, she and the crew knew it wouldn’t be enough time to master such an intricate instrument, so Moretz's primary focus was, as she put it, "learning the emotionality" of playing the cello.
In the end, the film used a "Frankenstein" approach, where Moretz's head was cut out digitally and placed on a more experienced cello performer whose body was shown playing the instrument. Clever angles and editing ensured the sequences turned out to be seamless and believable.