FILM DIARY

Special Presentation: Silk
Director: François Girard
Writers: François Girard, Michael Golding
Producers: Niv Fichman, Nadine Luque, Domenico Procacci, Sonoko Sakai
Cast: Michael Pitt, Keira Knightley,
Koji Yakusho, Mark Rendall, Sei Ashina, Kenneth Welsh, Jun Kunimura,
Toni Bertorelli, Callum Keith Rennie
Distributor: Alliance Atlantis
International Sales: New Line International

Silk marks Montreal filmmaker François Girard’s long-awaited return to the big screen after an absence of nearly 10 years.

The epic period romance, adapted from Alessandro Baricco’s best-selling novel, is also the third feature film collaboration between Girard and Toronto producer Niv Fichman (Rhombus Media), who worked together on the acclaimed pictures The Red Violin (1998) and Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993).

Silk is the story of Herve Joncour, a 19th century silkworm smuggler, played by Michael Pitt (The Dreamers, Last Days), who travels to Japan and begins a clandestine and life-altering platonic affair with a nobleman’s concubine (Sei Ashina), leaving his faithful wife (Keira Knightley) alone in France.

Girard’s break from feature filmmaking wasn’t intentional. Between The Red Violin and Silk, he wrote three screenplays, but financing on all of the projects fell through.

‘Maybe I grew overconfident and underestimated the risks, or perhaps it was because these were bigger films,’ explains Girard. ‘But it didn’t leave me with any sour taste. The experience of a film collapsing tested my endurance and determination.’

Silk almost met the same fate. The $25-million Canada/Italy/Japan coproduction was no easy feat to get off the ground.

Fall 1997: While Girard and Fichman are in post on The Red Violin, New Line exec Camela Galano suggests that Silk, a new book by Italian author Alessandro Baricco, would make a great film project.

But New Line doesn’t get the rights. Italian producer Domenico Procacci of Fandago Films, who has optioned the book, strikes a deal with Miramax, and over the next five years various directors are attached, including John Madden (Shakespeare in Love).

Early 2003: Miramax’s rights to Silk expire. Galano calls Girard and tells him to go to Rome to talk to Procacci and Baricco.

Spring 2003: Girard and Baricco hit it off immediately, and the Canadian director is brought on board. Baricco, a former music critic, is a big fan of Girard’s 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould.

Girard also directed one of Baricco’s plays, Novecento, which won a top prize at the Edinburgh Festival.

August 2003: Girard arranges a meeting between Fichman and Procacci, and Rhombus becomes a coproducer.

Development financing is secured through Telefilm Canada and U.K.-based producer Nadine Luque (Vice Versa Films), who is already attached to the project and brings funds from SureFire Finance, a U.K. investment fund.

2004 to 2006: Girard and American author Michael Golding co-adapt the book for the screen. The pair worked together previously on an adaptation of Golding’s book Simple Prayers, and Golding translated Novecento into English for Girard.

The writing process goes smoothly, except for the character of Helene, the wife left behind in France.

‘She is mentioned throughout the book extensively, but she didn’t have any scenes or any flesh. In the book you find out about her through Herve’s observations,’ says Girard. ‘So for the film, we had to create her, give her a life that didn’t exist before.’

January-May 2005: The producers try to structure the project as a Canada/U.K./Italy coproduction, but the strict U.K. regulations, which require a certain amount of the budget to be spent in that country and restrict spending in a non-coproducing country (in this case Japan), make this impossible. To make it work, the interior Japan scenes would have to be shot in a studio in London, which is far too expensive.

Summer 2005: The film is restructured as a Canada/Italy/Japan coproduction. The producers approach Sonoko Sakai, a former acquisitions exec in the U.S. for Nippon Herald, as a partner. Sakai’s great, great grandfather was an Italian silk trader who became involved with a geisha, so she is immediately intrigued by the project and signs on to coproduce. She brings Asmik Ace as the Japanese distribution partner and funds from Japanese public-private film investment fund Cinema Investment as well as T.Y. Limited.

Following the release of his film Last Days, Michael Pitt is tapped for the role of Joncour.

September 2005: It’s a long shot, but the producers send the script to Pirates of the Caribbean star Keira Knightley, who they dream of casting as the merchant’s wife. The producers don’t tell New Line they have sent her the script. ‘We didn’t want to jinx it,’ says Fichman.

Knightley loves the book and the script and says yes. Fichman calls New Line with the good news.

November 2005: Preproduction is underway in Japan but the financing isn’t locked due to the many complicated pieces to the funding structure.

‘Our Japanese partner cash-flowed production – they had that much faith in the project,’ says Fichman.

Financing is finally completed, with an equal 20% of the funds coming from each coproducing country: Canada (Telefilm, distributor Alliance Atlantis and tax credits), Japan (Cinema Investment) and Italy (Fandago Films, which operates a production and distribution arm), plus 40% from New Line International, which took world rights outside of the coproducing territories.

Feb. 27, 2006: The 54-day shoot begins in Matsumoto, Japan, lensed by DOP Alain Dostie, who has worked with Girard previously.

The six-week shoot in the Japanese mountains is challenging due to large amounts of snow as well as cultural and language barriers between the filmmakers and the Japanese crew, who structure on-set work quite differently than in other countries.

Depicting 1860s Japan with as much authenticity as possible is critical. With the help of Japanese translators, historical consultants and set designers, they put much effort into all the details of recreating the era.

April 7 2006: Production moves to Sermoneta, a village just outside of Rome, which doubles for the south of France, for another six weeks. Second unit shoots are also underway concurrently in Egypt and Siberia.

June 2006: Editing and post begin in Montreal.

Sept., 14 2006]: A rough cut is screened during TIFF for investors and reps from approximately 20 countries that have picked up rights from New Line. Reaction is very positive.

Fall 2006-Spring 2007: Editing and post continues.

Sept. 11, 2007: Silk premieres at TIFF.

Sept. 14, 2007: Silk will be released in the U.S. by Picturehouse, followed by the Canadian opening a week later through Alliance Atlantis.

October 2007: Silk will unspool at the Tokyo International Film Festival. The Italian release is scheduled for the Christmas season and the Japanese opening for January.