If you’ve seen this particular opening to Portlandia, it’s almost impossible not to think of it as the video featuring Tom Tykwer and The Wachowskis discussing how and why they made Cloud Atlas soon devolves into a contest of finishing each others’ sentences. Of course, that’s with good reason considering the film (based on the novel by David Mitchell) explores the mutability of identity through time and location. (One more sign that Chris Marker and Bertolt Brecht live on.)
The video, put out by Warners, is incredibly encouraging because it involves the filmmakers expressing 1) a desire to make a movie like the ones that first inspired them and 2) their difficulty in finding a studio home for this admittedly atypical film. Even with shifting tides, Warners seems like an incredibly safe haven for creative types looking for some freedom. From the looks of the recent trailer (and from how giddy the three are here), it seems like that’s absolutely the case with Cloud Atlas.
Damn the naysayers. It’s good to see directors open about their passion and free to turn it into something epic.
Check out the video for yourself:
Cloud Atlas is in theaters October 26th.
