During this year's Sundance Film Festival, it was a little indie with the curious title Beasts of the Southern Wild that drew fevered praise from the press and took home the coveted Grand Jury Prize. With so much fervor for the film, few were surprised when Fox Searchlight scooped it up for a summer release. But to those of us who haven't yet seen this much buzzed about feature, the film's first trailerwas undoubtedly striking and enchanting, but also a bit bewildering.
While it's unlikely Fox Searchlight will strive to garner wide audiences with this heady adventure, their newly released featurette provides some added insight into the Beasts of the Southern Wild's plotline, its mesmerizing pint-sized protagonist Hushpuppy, and the incredible ingénue who brings her to life, 6-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis. Watch it embedded below or in high-res at Apple:
Though the first trailer was beautiful, and certainly piqued my interest, I'm grateful to have the mystique of Beasts broken down a little here. While some behind-the-scenes features tip their hand, giving away plot twists or spoiling key turns, this one provides a nice context to the film's praise. And it's a smart move on Fox Searchlight's part to let the cast and crew explain the narrative rather than crafting a second trailer over-burdened by clichéd expository dialogue. Instead, first-time filmmaker Benh Zeitlin and his co-writer Lucy Alibar speak to the world of their passion project, while the film's stars Dwight Henry and Quvenzhané Wallis weigh-in on their roles, imbruing this promotional vid with their vibrant and distinctive charisma.
Beasts of the Southern Wild will open in select theaters June 27th.
