Brit Marling has to be the most exciting talent to emerge so far in 2011. Virtually unheard of at the start of the year, she made a huge splash at Sundance by writing and starring in Mike Cahill‘s offbeat sci-fi drama “Another Earth,” which became one of the big buys of the festival when Fox Searchlight picked it up. We said it had a “haunting, unshakable vibe that follows you long after you left the theater,” and you’ll have a chance to check it out when the studio releases it next month.
But that wasn’t all that Marling had up her sleeve: she’d also written and starred in another picture, “The Sound of My Voice,” and we discovered when we caught it at SXSW that it was even better: the tale of a mysterious cult leader, played by Marling, became one of our favorite films of the festival. Fox Searchlight picked that up as well, and will put it out later in the year, and it looks like the company are keen to keep the collaboration going.
The actress had revealed to us at SXSW that she was planning another project with “The Sound of My Voice” director Zal Batmanglij (the brother of Vampire Weekend‘s Rostam Batmanglij, who scores the film), entitled “The East,” about a woman who infiltrates an anarchist group. Anne Thompson was at a fundraiser for the Sundance Institute earlier in the week, where, among many many stars, Marling was in attendance, and she let slip that Fox Searchlight will again be working with the duo to back the film.
Batmanglij told us back in March that “We’re gonna make it this summer, by hook or by crook. It just depends on who gets to make it with us.” Whether that time frame is still at work isn’t clear, but with backing from one of the biggest shingles out there, it’s entirely possible, and we’re sure we’ll start to see more casting news emerge in the near future. In the meantime, “Another Earth” hits on July 22nd, with “The Sound of My Voice” following sometime later in the year.
