Any new Wes Anderson project gets our attention, but news that the quirky indie director’s next film will be a musical really gets our interest piqued.
The French site Charente Libre has confirmed previous rumors that Anderson’s next, as of now untitled, film will be a musical set in a fictional town in 1950s France. Which sounds about right for the director.
As of now though, we don’t know what exact form the musical will take. Will it be a jukebox musical, using pre-existing songs, or will new musical material be written especially for the project? It is pretty easy to see Anderson going the jukebox route based on his masterful use of pop sings in his previous films. Of course, he might want to challenge himself to write the lyrics himself.
Reportedly, the film will start production in November, with a budget landing somewhere between $17.5 million and $23.5 million. There is no definite word as to whom will be in the cast, although one of the leads may be a recent Academy Award-winning actor or actress.
The setting of the film doesn’t really surprise me much, as I have seen Jacques Demmy’s The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg to be an influence on Anderson’s work. Set in the late 1950s/early 1960s French village of Cherbourg, the film shares some stylistic elements with Anderson’s work, although it is not as formal in its composition as Anderson. (Umbrella‘s influence can be seen all over director Damien Chazelle’s La La Land as well.)
