The anticipation for NEW MOON, the second chapter of the teen vampire juggernaut TWILIGHT, by the throngs of rabid fans has been at a fever pitch since the closing credits of the first movie. TWILIGHT brought in $350 million worldwide and made overnight superstars of the leading cast members Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. The TWILIGHT saga: NEW MOON is poised to do the same for a whole new pack of actors, a wolf pack that is. NEW MOON introduces us to a tribe of werewolves who have evolved as protectors against the vampires. MOVEMENT had the chance to speak with two of the NEW MOON wolf pack Alex Meraz (above on the left) and Kiowa Gordon (on the right).

   Though press releases tout that the pack members are all of Native American descent, Alex who plays Paul is quick to point out that is not accurate or politically correct. "I think the greatest thing about this, and I've been saying it time and time again, is that it's not ‘Native American,' that's such a linear term, you know? Its actually Native of the Americas, or Canada has the best term for native peoples, they call them First Nation people. Because when you say Native American, two of the cast members who play Werewolfs are native from Canada, you wouldn'd call them Native Canadians. That's the cool part about this, that we have the platform to correct things like that." Alex grew up in Arizona, his parents from Mexico, he and his family are members of the Purepecha tribe. His grandfather was a medicine man. I asked them both how their respective communities were responding to their heritage being portrayed in a major motion picture as a pack of werewolves. Kiowa who plays Embry, is a member of the Hualapai tribe and tells me "My whole tribe is proud, but my mom is the proudest." Alex tells me "The indigenous people have been really responsive and they are very happy and excited, and we know that we have the responsibility to carry ourselves in a good way and do the work justice and represent the Quileute." The Quileute are the real life tribe the fictional wolf pack descended from. "All of our customs are so different from that tribe, so we had to enter it keeping that in mind and being respectful."

    Neither of the boys have a bulging résumé, so how did they get such dream roles in a guaranteed blockbuster? "I was going to church with the Stephenie Meyer, the writer of the books" says Kiowa, "and she came up to me and my mom and talked to me about an open casting call that was going to come to Phoenix for a major motion picture for native American actors." Having the author of the books the film is based on giving you the inside track never hurts, though he makes a point to note it was his abilities that ended up landing him the role.

    Alex on the other hand did have some experience with major film work and less of an in. "About four years ago I had a small bit role in The New World with Colin Farrell and Christian Bale, then a bunch of indie stuff, then I was lucky enough to get a good role in this one! It was very conventional, you get the breakdown and audition for it. But I was terrified because I know the casting director, she had cast me another project before and she told me they had over 70,000 inquires about the audition, so it was sort of like American Idol! The auditions were terrifying because you know its such a big thing and there is so much invested in it, at least for me. I started working out during the audition process, I wanted to look good. The first audition I did was on video and sent it through the internet and was just hoping that I'd get a call back. I used that month to work out, I gained 20 pounds, so finally when I got the call back I was in shape and I even took my shirt off in the audition, throwing everything but the kitchen sink, I wanted to make sure I would get the job. The casting directors were very responsive, receptive, and warm. They were really excited to have me there, so I had a hunch I had gotten the role."

    The entire werewolf cast went through a "wolf camp" to keep them in shape throughout the filming of NEW MOON. We asked what that experience was like for them, Kiowa says "We came together as a pack and it really bonded us, it was really special. We ate about six meals a day, packed on lots of pounds. It was intense, about an hour and a half a day working out with this trainer who actually worked on 300, he was a Spartan." Alex concurred, "The best part was being able to bond with the guys. Its the best ice breaker doing something physical. You rely on each other for motivation and pushing each other, so it really helped and I think it comes across on screen."

    Having just finished filming the third installment of the series ECLIPSE and preparing for the final film of the series BREAKING DAWN these young actors are about to become household names and certainly the focus of love lorn tweens everywhere, but are they ready for the tidal wave of fame? Kiowa tells me "Its definitely affected me, but I try to keep my head level." Alex seems a bit more unsure, "Umm, I don't know! Every time I do a Q&A and you get hundreds of thousands of screaming fans it's scary to me. I never know if I'll get used to that, but whatever life's going to bring I'll just go with the flow and be flexible."

The TWILIGHT Saga: NEW MOON
in theatres Friday, November 20th, 2009
www.twilightthemovie.com