With the red carpets rolling out for the Toronto International Film Festival this week, we’re adding another premier to the roster from All Lit Up Pictures: a film adaptation of the novel Claremontby Wiebke von Carolsfeld. When a young boy loses his parents to a murder-suicide, he finds healing amongst his fractured family, bringing them together. Featuring a star-studded cast from our fantastic faux directors at Linda Linda Publishing, Claremont is sure to sail it’s way into a few award noms.
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ALU Editor
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Claremont is about a family surviving the unthinkable, about working through grief, about finding one’s voice, one’s family. Claremont is my first novel but having directed three feature films (Marion Bridge, STAY, The Saver), casting is never far from my mind. A high-profile art house film rather than a Hollywood blockbuster this time traveling film adaptation would star some of my favourite actors, picked straight from some of my favourite movies.
Jacob Tremblay from Room would be perfect to portray Tom, the highly traumatized nine-year-old at the centre of Claremont. With his innate smarts and sly sense of humour, Jacob can hold the screen without the aid of words, which is perfect, as Tom turns mute after witnessing his parents’ murder-suicide.
Julianne Moore from The Kids Are All Right would play Sonya, the older of the surviving sisters, and the first to take Tom in – alas with less than stellar results. Underneath her steely facade, we can feel plenty of hurt, which is needed to make this seemingly harsh character sympathetic. Plus, I could watch Julianne Moore read a phonebook, if those were still around.
Rose, the younger sister who eventually provides a home to Tom on Claremont, would be played by Molly Parker from Trigger. Pretty much everything I write is for her. She’s a friend, the star of my film Marion Bridge and a fabulous actress. She is not only complicated and compelling, but also stunningly beautiful.
For Will, the youngest of the siblings, I would cast Mark Ruffalo from a movie I just adored when it first came out: You Can Count On Me. Troubled, handsome, but with a such a great heart! The ultimate man-child, searching for love in all the wrong places – until he finds it right at home.
Ray, the social worker who deeply connects not only to Tom but also Rose, would be played by Mahershala Ali from Moonlight. A fierce presence, who is capable of showing deep emotions while keeping a veneer of strength, Mahershala Ali would know how to portray a man who has responded to personal tragedy by helping others.And with this fantastic cast set, the final piece is to roll out the movie poster! Here’s what we dreamed up:
* * *A special thank you to Linda Leith Publishing for playing director in this edition of Character Study.Find more faux book to film adaptations on the ALU blog >>
