Sundance winners Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard announced June 20 the imminent completion (July 2024) of their hybrid feature The Extraordinary Miss Flower, which tells the remarkable story of producer Zoe Flower’s mother Geraldine and the discovery of a suitcase of letters from the 60s and 70s that inspired acclaimed Icelandic singer/songwriter Emilíana Torrini to return to the studio to record a new album. The directors describe their work as “part film, part theatre, part fever dream with strong documentary elements.”
Forsyth & Pollard’s doc debut 20,000 Days on Earth, about Nick Cave, premiered at Sundance in 2014, winning the Directing and Editing awards in the World Cinema Documentary category.
As well as performing ten songs, Emilíana Torrini acts for the first time in the hybrid film, alongside Caroline Catz (Delia Derbyshire: The Myths and Legendary Tapes) who plays the film’s eponymous heroine. The Extraordinary Miss Flower also features Richard Ayoade, Siggi Baldursson, Nick Cave, Alice Lowe, Mark Monero, Niall Murphy and Angus Sampson in supporting roles, plus the voice of Sophie Ellis-Bextor.
The film is backed by Sam Dyson and Distiller Music and was shot at Distillery II studio, near Bristol, UK. Produced by Zoe Flower and co-produced by Andy Starke with executive producers Ben Wheatley, Beth Earl and Anna Hildur Hildibrandsdottir. key crew include cinematographer Erik Wilson BSC, Simon Byrt (musical director), Susie Coulthard (costume designer), Emma Rios (production designer/illustrator) and Anna Randall (hair and make-up designer).
“As the title suggests this is very personal for me, as it’s a performance of a new album by Emilíana – she wrote it with my husband and they were inspired by letters we found after my mum passed away,” producer Flower told Business Doc Europe, who is exploring festival, sales and release strategies for the film, including theatrical and broadcast.
Flower further tells how her mother’s letters, telexes and photographs reveal “traces of an extraordinary life full of secrets and lifelong friendships, tales of travel, adventure and love.”
“With her imagination fueled by these intoxicating fragments, Emilíana embarked on a creative odyssey. Working with her long-time musical collaborator, Simon Byrt, these letters blossomed into a suite of new songs. ‘Miss Flower’ is Emilíana’s first solo record for ten years, and a stunning evocation of a woman’s life, reimagined with love and artistic license by one of the most innovative artists of this era,” Flower adds.
Directors Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard comment: “We spend an outrageous amount of time thinking about new ways to hybridise music and film. After a chance meeting with Emilíana in Reykjavik, we knew she’d be a remarkable collaborator for a hybrid project like this. She’s spellbinding, a true raconteur with a permanent twinkle in her eye. This film is about capturing an alchemical performance, in collaboration with the camera. For us, that point of intersection is where real magic happens.”
Emilíana Torrini adds: “Being involved with this film was a mad and riveting experience. I’ve never been on a film set like this before, and I still don’t really know what happened. I am in total awe of Zoe, Iain and Jane to pull this off in such a short time. The artists and crew were incredible and showed such a deep understanding of where these songs came from, emotionally and creatively. A huge thank you to Sam and the team at Distiller for believing in the project and supporting us.”
