I’ve finally been able to update the gallery with some beautiful photos from Monday night as Rooney attended the Mary Magdalene screening in London, which was held at The National Gallery. My apologies for the delay adding them! Once again, thank you to the lovely Emily for the photos.
I’ve updated the gallery with Blu-ray quality screen captures of Rooney’s performance in The Secret Scripture, where she plays Roseanne ‘Rose’ Clear/McNulty, a young Irish woman who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital after being labelled a nymphomaniac and later accused of killing her baby. Although beautifully shot, I think this film will be quickly forgotten amongst her other work, but Rooney turns in yet another memorable performance (and her accent is very good). Enjoy!
VOGUE – Rooney Mara isn’t your average celebrity turned designer. Her new label, Hiraeth, created with her best friend, Sara Schloat, is quiet, elegant, and comes with a sincere message. Since going vegan seven years ago, Mara had trouble finding non-leather jackets and shoes that aligned with her values. “I realized there aren’t many [faux leather] options available for someone like me who is interested in design and wants high-quality pieces,” she explains. Mara was thorough in her search, too, and disqualified products from major chains with questionable ethics. “In fast fashion, you can find faux leather boots that are really cheap, but while it’s cruelty-free in the animal sense, I didn’t necessarily know where those things were made, or if they were cruel toward humans,” she says. “I didn’t want to compromise on either thing, and I wanted pieces that were made to last. So it really came out of my own need.”
She first started with shoes—specifically combat boots. “Finding a pair of really nice vegan combat boots is sort of impossible—the kind you can dress up, but also run around town in. That was my first order of business.” The project “snowballed” from there into a tightly edited ready-to-wear and footwear operation that eliminates not only leather, but also wool, silk, and cashmere—essentially any material that involves an animal. That makes Hiraeth stand out from the other cruelty-free brands out there. Along with supple-looking “leatherette” trousers and a matching harness, there’s a raspberry corduroy suit, a few Japanese poly “satin” blouses, some velvet items, and an ivory slip dress—timeless pieces with just a touch of romance. She intends for them to live in your closet for a long time, too. “Something I really struggled with was this question of, Do people really need more crap?” she says, only half-joking. “There’s so much waste, so it was important for us to make pieces you can wear forever, or at least, long enough for it to mean something.”
Even if you’re not vegan, her message of conscious shopping should resonate. It goes back to the label’s name, Hiraeth. “It’s an old Welsh word that translates to a homesickness, or a longing for a home you can’t return to, or a home that never was,” Mara explains. “It’s this nostalgia for lost places and people. When I came across that word, the meaning really resonated with me. In our world today, there’s such an extreme disconnection from everything we do—from the earth we live on, from each other, from the food we eat, from the clothes we wear,” she continues. “We’ve grown so disconnected from everything, and I think it creates that feeling of wanting to return to someplace that maybe we’ve never even been before, but deep down, we know we’re missing something. With clothing, [no one knows] who made their clothes, or where were they made, or what they’re made out of. People are not at all aware of those things.”
In contrast, Hiraeth is produced entirely in Los Angeles, and Mara had the chance to meet every person who will be making her clothes. “That was really important to me—to know where everything comes from, and that it’s all coming from a place of integrity,” she says. You can see a few behind-the-scenes snaps of the Los Angeles factory on Hiraeth’s Instagram, too, plus a first look at those combat boots. See more of the collection in the slideshow, above, and follow Hiraeth to find out when (and where) you can buy it; prices will range between $160 and $1,500.
DEADLINE – Amazon Studios is moving its Sundance Film Festival premiere Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot from May 11 to July 13.
Given the positive critical and audience reaction coming out of Park City for the Gus Van Sant-directed biopic, Amazon felt that a mid-summer launch was prime, much in the same way that they opened their 2017 Sundance pick-up The Big Sick last June under Lionsgate. That movie legged out to close to $43M at the domestic B.O. and notched an original screenplay Oscar nomination for husband and wife team Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon. Don’t Worry will receive a limited release.
Don’t Worry is based on the memoir by John Callahan (Joaquin Phoenix), who became paralyzed after a car accident at age 21 and turned to drawing as a form of therapy. Jonah Hill and Jack Black also star. It’s one of two Amazon movies the three-time Oscar nominee has next year in addition to the April crime noir You Were Never Really Here. It’s also Phoenix’s second movie with Rooney Mara along with their biblical pic Mary Magdalene.
Van Sant adapted, has screenplay credit and, separately, story credits with Jack Gibson & William Andrew Eatman. Charles-Marie Anthonioz, Mourad Belkeddar, Steve Golin, Nicolas Lhermitte are producing.
Courtesy of the films Australian distributor, I’ve uploaded some beautiful new stills of Rooney as the title character in Mary Magdalene. Be sure to take a look.
I’ve uploaded a brand new still of Rooney from Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot to the gallery. After some very quick glimpses of her in the trailer, this is really the first time we have a decent look at her role as Annu (which is reportedly very, very small).
Well, this one hurts a little bit. As much as I love and adore Natalie’s work, I really was looking forward to seeing Rooney take on this role–one that would have been so different and new for her. Here’s to hoping other great projects are on the horizon.
VARIETY – Oscar winner Natalie Portman will officially join Jude Law in “Vox Lux,” Variety has learned. In addition, Bold Films, which is backing the project and helped develop the film, has joined forces with Andrew Lauren Productions to finance and produce the picture. “Vox Lux” is written and directed by Brady Corbet, an accomplished actors whose credits include “Mysterious Skin” and “Funny Games. He made his feature film directorial debut in 2015 with “The Childhood of a Leader,” a kind of portrait of a fascist as a very young man that won two awards at the Venice Film Festival.
Rooney Mara had originally been attached to the film and when she dropped out Portman was circling the project. However, her involvement had been in question after producer Bold Films delayed shooting on the project as part of a company-wide restructuring that resulted in staff layoffs. Bold had been bruised by the box office failure of the Jake Gyllenhaal film “Stronger.” Its prospects are brighter now, because it scored a domestic deal for “Colette,” a historical drama with Keira Knightley, that premiered to acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival. “Colette” will be released by Bleecker Street and 30West.
According to the log line: “Vox Lux” follows the rise of ‘Celeste’ from the ashes of a major national tragedy to pop superstardom. The film spans 15 years and traces important cultural moments through the singer’s eye, starting in 1999 and ending in the present day. Principal photography will begin on ebruary 1st in New York City.
The soundtrack will feature all original songs written by Grammy-nominated artist Sia. ALP’s Andrew Lauren and D.J. Gugenheim will be producing along with Killer Films’ Christine Vachon and David Hinojosa, Bold Films’ Michel Litvak, Gary Michael Walters, David Litvak and Svetlana Metkina and Brian Young from Three Six Zero Entertainment. Portman and Law will executive produce along with Sia. Sierra/Affinity is representing the international rights and will be selling the project in Berlin. Endeavor Content and CAA will represent the US rights.
“We are thrilled to welcome such a stellar actress as Natalie Portman to the cast,” said Bold Films Chairman Michel Litvak.
“I was mesmerized by the scope and vision of Brady’s first film, ‘Childhood of a Leader,’ said ALP principal Andrew Lauren. “I don’t think Brady is of this century. His work is more reminiscent of a Sergei Eisenstein or Fritz Lang. When you sit with him, his encyclopedic knowledge of film is intimidating and his passion is infectious,”
“Andrew Lauren and ALP are an outstanding strategic partner, and we are excited to work with them,” said Bold Films CEO Gary Michael Walters.
Portman will next star in Alex Garland’s “Annihilation,” a twisty sci-fi thriller which Paramount Pictures is releasing next month. She will also be seen in Xavier Dolan’s upcoming film “The Death and Life of John F. Donovan.” Portman’s credits include “Black Swan,” “Thor,” and “Closer.”
ALP is currently in post-production on “High Life,” the English-language debut of French filmmaker Claire Denis. It stars Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, and André Benjamin.
Portman is represented by CAA and George Sheanshang. ALP is represented by attorney David Boyle.
Ahead of its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on Friday (Jan 19), the first official trailer and poster for Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot have been released – giving us just a small glimpse at Rooney’s character, Annu. I’ve also added captures from the trailer and the film’s official poster to the gallery.
