Filmmakers have seen their daily lives upended pretty dramatically due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Those that were filming when the outbreaks began around the world saw their productions halted. Some who were finishing up films and readying for release saw their pictures delayed. But some, like Pedro Almodóvar, have used their time to finish scripts a bit faster than they expected.
According to Variety, it appears that Almodóvar has used his time in quarantine to finish the script for his next feature, “Madres paralelas.” And not only that, he’s already gone ahead and spoken with Penelope Cruz to star in the film, which he hopes to begin production on in early 2021.
It’s unclear what the exact plot of “Madres paralelas” will be, but it’s clearly going to feature the filmmaker returning to his stories of motherhood and family. This is something that has been a near-constant in the world of Almodóvar, and if it results in another feature that is on par with the rest of his filmography, film fans will have no reason to complain.
The exact details of the film’s release are also not known at this time. As with the rest of his films, it’s clear that Almodóvar would like to retain creative control by keeping the budget modest. This will also allow for his film to find a distributor that is willing to release the film in theaters and not just sell it off to a streaming service.
“It could be called a classic model, but we still believe that Pedro’s films benefit from the intensity of the viewing experience in cinema theaters,” said producer Agustín Almodóvar about the release strategy for the new feature.
Almodóvar is coming off of another acclaimed film, with last year’s release of “Pain & Glory,” which found itself nominated for a number of awards after its debut at Cannes, including two Oscar noms for Best Actor and Best International Feature Film.
“Madres paralelas” is set to begin pre-production this fall with hopes of filming to start in February 2021.
