Good news on a project we’ve been following since last fall… glad to know that it’s moving full-speed ahead, as I’ve learned this afternoon that it’s locked up its starring cast which includes: Gugu Mbatha-Raw (in photo above-right), Miranda Richardson, Tom WilkinsonSarah GadonSam Claflin, and Matthew Goode; all have signed up to star in British actor/writer/director/producer Amma Asante’s (in photo above-left) period drama about the trials and tribulations of a mixed-race girl titled Belle, from a script which she co-wrote.

Mbatha-Raw will of course play the lead role, Belle.

The project, which was developed and supported by the British Film Institute, is one of many being shopped to buyers at Cannes.

A quick recap… the story takes place in the 1780s, and follows a mixed-race girl, adopted into an aristocratic family, who faces class and color prejudices. As she blossoms into a young woman, she develops a relationship with a vicar’s son who is an advocate for slave emancipation.

The project, budgeted at £6.5 million ($10.1 million), is scheduled to begin production this summer.

The film is actually based on a true story – specifically, the true story of Dido Belle, a mixed-race woman raised as an aristocrat in 18th-century England.

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Posted by fay on May 16th, 2012 under Articles with 0 Comments

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