We already were jealous of all the people who were able to attend Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas. The genre festival opened with the world premiere of Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, then entertained audiences with screenings of anticipated movies like Holy Motors, Dredd, Sinister, I Declare War and Cloud Atlas. And in addition, Andy and Lana Wachowski hosted a Q&A after their Atlas screening, making us seethe with jealousy. But at least you can see a few minutes of their chat, courtesy of this YouTube clip:
The best reveal, for me, from that clip is the knowledge that Cloud Atlas novelist David Mitchell wrote all of his narratives from start to finish, then spent only 20 minutes chopping them in half and splicing them together to make the symbolic quilt that is Atlas. That’s remarkable, and more than a little insane. But as Andy explains in the clip, once you start dissecting each story, you can find motifs that carry themes from one plot to the next.
We’ve been beating the drum for the sprawling yet cohesive Cloud Atlas since the film’s Toronto premiere. Our own Katey Rich, in particular, is a huge fan of the “big, ambitious, gorgeous, glorious film.” And it’s such a “director’s film” that any chance we’re able to glean insight from either Tom Tykwer or the Wachowski Starship, we’re going to pounce on it.
We’re excited for you to see for yourself what the buzz is all about. Cloud Atlas opens in theaters on Oct. 26. But the discussion, we expect, will last a few lifetimes.
