Nearly two years after it was originally set to get in front of cameras, Jules Stewart‘s directorial debut, the ensemble prison drama “K-11” has finally secured financial backing and is set to begin lensing this summer, according to Variety.
The project was developed as a starring vehicle for Stewart’s daughter Kristen and, while her name was not confirmed by sales shingle Intandem to Variety, we’re presuming she’s still on board as it’s a passion project she’s talked about and developed with her mother for years. Stewart last spoke of the film early last year when she lamented the difficulty of getting indie flicks off the ground but concluded that she “still really hoped to do it.”
Also attached at some stage during the project’s gestation were Stewart’s ‘Twilight‘ co-star Nikki Reed, who has evidently since dropped out, and Kevin Smith regular Jason Mewes whose involvement now is unknown.
“K-11″ references a section of Los Angeles County Jail reserved for homosexuals, with the story centering on two characters that were to be played respectively by Reed and Stewart: Mousey, a tattooed methhead transgender, and an autistic transgender named Butterfly — both residents of the male prison. “Kristen is playing a boy, and I am playing a man who is quite a few years older than she is. I am working more on my accent,” Reed noted at the time. “Mousey is Mexican, and she comes from a very specific place in Southern California.”
Sounds pretty crazy but we guess — with the moneymaking ‘Twilight’ finale and Walter Salles‘ “On The Road” both due out this year — there’s never been a better time for Stewart to tackle this risky, leftfield passion project. A premiere for “K-11” at the Berlin Film Festival next year is reportedly being targeted with Tom Wright producing through his shingle, Libertine Films, which holds North American rights.
