Executive producer
Tim Robbins
Zentropa Production
Busca Vida Filmes
O Som e a Fúria
present
Olmo and
the Seagull
A film by Petra Costa and Lea Glob
Upcoming Screenings
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REALITY BEGINS WHEN THE ACT ENDS
Synopsis
A journey through the labyrinth of a woman’s mind, OLMO AND THE SEAGULL tells the story of Olivia, a free-spirited stage actress preparing for a starring role as Arkadina in a theatrical production of Chekhov’s The Seagull. As the play starts to take shape, Olivia and her boyfriend, Serge, whom she first met on the stage of the Theatre du Soleil, discover she is pregnant.
Initially, she thinks she can have it all, until an unexpected setback threatens her pregnancy and brings her life to a standstill. Olivia's desire for freedom and success clashes with the limits imposed by her own body and the baby growing inside her. The months of her pregnancy unfold as a rite of passage, forcing the actress to confront her deepest fears. She looks in the mirror and sees both female characters of The Seagull - Arkadina, the aging actress, and Nina, the actress that falls into madness - as unsettling reflections of herself.
The film takes a further twist when what appears to be acted is revealed as life itself. This portrait of the creative process invites us to question what is real, what is imagined, and what we celebrate and sacrifice in life.
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PRESS BOOK: Text Only | Full Version
Reactions - Quotes
“OLMO AND THE SEAGULL is a captivating film by two exceptionally talented filmmakers and actors that explores the line between fiction and reality, with stunning visual storytelling. The film captures what it is to be in love and pregnant unlike any film I have seen. The filmmakers approach the subject in a non sentimental way while illuminating the mysteries, fears, and humor of this profound, transitional moment in a couple’s life.”
– TIM ROBBINS, director of Dead Man Walking
“Beautiful, tender, and endlessly fascinating, OLMO AND THE SEAGULL explores with thrilling boldness a space between fiction and nonfiction that I never dreamed possible.”
– JOSHUA OPPENHEIMER, director of The Act of Killing
“Petra and Lea have achieved a perforating film, the most solid and impalpable experience a woman can reveal.“
– EDMUNDO DESNOES, writer of Memories of Underdevelopment
Reactions - In The Press
"...you never know for sure what sequences are real and which were staged at the behest of the directors, whose look is an attentive and sensitive witness of the affections experienced within the couple..."
– Julien Gester for LIBÈRATION.FR
Read the review.
"Rarely the complexity of pregnancy was portrayed in all its dimensions, without hitting below the belt or emotional manipulation, as do Costa and Glob."
– Diego Batlle for LA NACION.AR
Read the review.
"... of a delicate sensibility, attentive, playful, Olmo and The Seagull will remain as one of the best findings of this festival."
– Jorge Mourinha for PUBLICO.PT
Read the review.
"ELENA's director mixes fiction, reality and Tchékhov in her new feature."
– Lucas Neves for FOLHA DE SÃO PAULO.BR
Read the review.
"Never a film showed us in such a human way an experience which is common to many women, but was always treated superficially or in a stereotyped way."
– Valentina D'Amico for MOVIEPLAYER.IT
Read the review #1 - "Olivia Corsini e Serge Nicolai between fiction and reality"
Read the review #2 - "Art, pregnancy and feminism"
Read the review #3 - "Petra Costa and Lea Glob between Brecht and pregnancy"
"A film about motherhood of a rare accuracy, which has faced the challenge of not falling into complacency nor wonder, nor in the tearful drama."
– LE COURRIER.CH
Read the review.
"Their approach to the motherhood theme came with a very feminine vision enriched with poetry and love."
– Rui Martins for PRAVDA.RU
Read the review.
Can we survive in our own skin?
Cast
Olivia Corsini
Olivia Corsini was born in Italy in the city of Modena in 1979. She was awarded a diploma from the “Paolo Grassi” Academy of Dramatic Arts of Milano and has been independently training with artists such as Tina Nilsen (Odin Teatret), Julie Anne Stanzak (Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch), Kim Duk Soo (Samul Nori school, South Korea), Carolyn Carlson, and Emma Dante, among others.
After two years with the international company “Teatro de los Sentidos” of the Colombian Enrique Vargas she arrived in France with “Théâtre du Soleil”, the esteemed company of Ariane Mnouchkine. In 2002 she played important roles in the collective creations: “The Last Caravanesérail”, “Les Ephémères”, and “The Castaways of the Mad Hope”. Since 2012 she has been working with the international collective “If Human” (Brussels).
Serge Nicolaï
Serge Nicolaï was born in France in the city of Marseille in 1967 and studied in diverse drama schools in Paris and Krakow. In addition to being an actor, Serge is also a scenographer, movie director and theater director. He received his first award in scenography for the play “The Last Caravanserail”. Since 1997 he has been a collaborator with Ariane Mnouchkine in the theatre company “Théâtre du Soleil.” He has also starred in French Television and Cinema productions.
Petra Costa
Petra Costa is a Brazilian filmmaker and actress. She first directed the short film Undertow Eyes (2009) which screened at the MoMA and was winner of best short film at Rio Film Festival, Cine Las Americas International Film Festival, London International Documentary Festival among others.
She then directed the feature ELENA (2012) which premiered at IDFA, followed by SXSW and HotDocs. ELENA won many prizes such as best film at Havana Film Festival (2013), was nominated for Best Cinematography at the 2014 Cinema Eye Honors and was the most watched documentary in Brazil in 2013.
Lea Glob
Lea Glob graduated from the National Film School of Denmark’s documentary director/TV-planner line, with the film, “Meeting my father Kasper Højhat”, in 2011, which, among other acknowledgments, was nominated for a Robert prize and received the award for most innovative documentary at the Chinese Sichuan TV festival.
Since then, she has received the main award at Nordic Talents, for the development of the documentary project Human Female Sexuality in cooperation with director Mette Carla Albrechtsen. That film went into production in the summer of 2014. Lea is also working as co-director on Eva Mulvad’s film, “A Family on the Run”.
CONTACT
International Press
Wolfgang W. Werner Public Relations
phone +49 89 38 38 67 0
fax +49 89 38 38 67 11
werner@werner-pr.de
International Sales
Taskovski Films Ltd.
irena@taskovskifilms.com
cell +44 7957 105 672
phone +48 693 866 348
