tiff. 2011 Conversation Deepa Mehta and Salman Rushdie
Undoubtedly one of the high points of the freshly concluded Toronto International Film Festival was the Inconversation event with acclaimed Director Deepa Mehta and renowned writer Salman Rushdie about their keenly awaited collaborative effort Midnights Children.
Moderated by tiff Co-Director, Cameron Bailey and held at the festival's spic 'n span new headquarters Bell Lightbox, the conversation was fully loaded. Somewhere between laughs and mind notetaking - it was enriching, entertaining and engaging for all attending.
Talkative and hysterical Rushdie the indubitable star of the afternoon had the audience and even co-panelist Mehta in giggling splits all the way through.
The novelist turned screenplay writer for Mehta penning a 267 page script which was then shorten to a taut 132 pager. “I thought I could be disrespectful about the book by removing some elements,” he said.
Casting for one of the female roles, that of a 16 year old Saleem Sinai’s mother was a fodder for a hotly discussed post event topic.
Although they wouldn't share a name, Mehta and Rushdie revealed they had taken the role to a starlet who after expressing interest in the project turned it down attribute to a missed call from her fading 'youth'.
Who could it have been? The whispers and murmurs began... and still continue.
The attendees were also shown 10 minutes of never before seen rough footage from the cinematic version of Midnights Children.
The clippings featured known faces like Soha Ali Khan, Shahana Goswami, Rajat Kapoor, Siddharth, Rahul Bose and the Taare Zameen Par phenom with some serious acting chops, Darsheel Safari who returns with a meaty role of prominence as an adolescent Saleem.
Moderated by tiff Co-Director, Cameron Bailey and held at the festival's spic 'n span new headquarters Bell Lightbox, the conversation was fully loaded. Somewhere between laughs and mind notetaking - it was enriching, entertaining and engaging for all attending.
Talkative and hysterical Rushdie the indubitable star of the afternoon had the audience and even co-panelist Mehta in giggling splits all the way through.
The novelist turned screenplay writer for Mehta penning a 267 page script which was then shorten to a taut 132 pager. “I thought I could be disrespectful about the book by removing some elements,” he said.
Casting for one of the female roles, that of a 16 year old Saleem Sinai’s mother was a fodder for a hotly discussed post event topic.
Although they wouldn't share a name, Mehta and Rushdie revealed they had taken the role to a starlet who after expressing interest in the project turned it down attribute to a missed call from her fading 'youth'.
Who could it have been? The whispers and murmurs began... and still continue.
The attendees were also shown 10 minutes of never before seen rough footage from the cinematic version of Midnights Children.
The clippings featured known faces like Soha Ali Khan, Shahana Goswami, Rajat Kapoor, Siddharth, Rahul Bose and the Taare Zameen Par phenom with some serious acting chops, Darsheel Safari who returns with a meaty role of prominence as an adolescent Saleem.
Filmed in Sri Lanka the footage created a larger than life, epic ambiance of intensely intimate personal story. "The fantastical is rooted in reality," commented filmmaker Deepa Mehta.
When questioned by an audience member of the film's release date, Deepa quickly reverted with an October 2012 - stirring the possibility of a Toronto film fest 2012 premiere next year.
Now that would be quite something well, well, well worth the wait.
source: filmicafe.com
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