UPDATE: A casting grid on Production Weekly has Storaro listed as cinematographer on Coppola’s project, which is supposed to shoot very soon, or so we’re told.
EARLIER: After many back-and-forth rumors, it looks like Francis Ford Coppola’s next film is indeed “Glimpses of the Moon.”
If you look up Italian articles about this upcoming production, you’ll notice Vittorio Storaro’s name mentioned as the potential cinematographer. Nothing has been officially confirmed, of course, but it would make sense given Coppola and Storaro’s long history together, and the fact that Storaro literally lives just a few blocks away from where the film is supposed to shoot, in Calabria.
Storaro is one of the greatest ever, a legend who continues to work in his twilight years, wielding his iconic eye for light and color. Storaro is all about light emitting emotion, resulting in the most decadent images. Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Conformist” and Francis Ford Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now” are widely regarded as two of the most beautifully photographed films of all time thanks to Storaro. His cinematography has also been a clear highlight of the last few Woody Allen films. Yes, the man is 85, but he shot Allen’s “Coup de Chance” just a few years ago.
Only a few months ago, Coppola admitted that “Glimpses” was written and “ready to go immediately,” though he noted he needed someone else to foot the bill. He described it as a “modestly budgeted” film—though what that actually means is unclear, coming from a man who just spent more than $120M of his own money on his last project.
Coppola has described ‘Glimpses’ as a “strange 30s-style musical.” No cast has been announced so far. The film will be a loose adaptation of Edith Wharton’s novel of the same name while also being “inspired” by Leo McCarey’s “The Awful Truth.” Both works explore the story of a married couple who part amicably, only to discover it’s harder to let go than they imagined.
The filmmaker previously described the project as having “strong dance and musical elements.” He added, “I’ve turned it into a very odd confection.” It’s worth noting that Coppola’s only prior musical, 1981’s “One From the Heart,” was also something of an “odd confection.”
Coppola noted that ‘Glimpses’ was “funded the conventional way, with the help of national subsidies, because I’m all borrowed out.” While it “won’t be cheap by any means,” he emphasized that, unlike “Megalopolis,” it will not be an “epic.”