'Jackie' Filmmaker Pablo Larraín To Begin Production On Surprise Project 'Ema' Featuring Gael García Bernal

Filmmaker Pablo Larraín was a busy man in 2016, with the release of two separate critically-acclaimed, awards season contenders “Jackie” and “Neruda.” Now, it appears he’ll be performing double-duty in 2019, as well, as he pushes one production back and fills in the gap with a new, exciting, last-minute film, according to IndieWire.

Since it was announced back in 2017, “The True American” is the film that many believed would be Larraín’s next feature. However, with news of that film being pushed back, the Chilean filmmaker found a gap in his schedule, which he’s going to fill with a new film starring Gael García Bernal.

Ema” stars Bernal as a choreographer, who is going through an intense drama-filled situation with his wife, played by newcomer Mariana Di Girolamo, as a planned adoption goes awry. As their marriage is tested, the film will feature many of the actors involved expressing themselves through contemporary dance.

“I think this is a melodrama, which I’ve never done before, where people’s affections for others are essential to the story,” said Larraín. “There’s a lot of music and a lot of scenes where people are basically sharing their feelings.”

As you might imagine from that premise, the film will feature many dance scenes, but Larraín warns that the film is not a musical. Instead, he looks at the dance numbers as just another form of expression for the actors.

“It’s a way to transmit a message — it could be a political message, or a religious message, or a kind of vandalism,” he said. “Instead of yelling, they go out and dance. They’re expressing themselves by leaving a trace on the city. It’s very visual.”

“Ema” will begin production very soon and will last only six weeks. One can imagine that the shortened timeline might make memorizing a script difficult for actors, and you’d be right. Just not for the obvious reason. Larraín says that none of the actors involved will see a finished script before production, and will instead work from a new section of the script they’ll receive the day of shooting. The filmmaker has done this on previous projects and feels as if it will work best for “Ema.”

And as mentioned, “Ema” was conceived as a project to fill the gap between now and the time that “The True American” was to begin production. That film, which was said to star Amy Adams, Kumail Nanjiani, and Mark Ruffalo, has been pushed back into 2019 and that’s largely because the film is now moving forward as an independent production. No word on why the package featuring Amy Adams won’t be going into production, as there was apparent interest from multiple studios for the feature. However, as the report says, “The True American” will begin anew, with an unannounced cast, in early 2019.

READ MORE: Amy Adams To Join Nanjiani and Ruffalo In ‘The True American’ From Director Pablo Larrain

Now, it appears that, if all goes to plan, 2019 will give audiences not one, but two new Larraín films to get excited for.