TORONTO—A lineup of A-list cast members from “Cloud Atlas” took up two rows in the tight press conference room at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 9. Among them were Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Grant, Hugo Weaving, and Jim Sturgess.
The conference began with the whole room breaking out into a cheerful “Happy Birthday” singalong led by Hanks for Hugh Grant’s 52nd birthday. Grant thanked everyone and quipped it was “the first nice thing the press has ever done for me.”
“Cloud Atlas” is an adaptation of David Mitchell’s 2004 novel of the same name.
The film’s three directors—Tom Tykwer, who worked on “Paris, Je T'aime,” and the notoriously private Lana and Andy Wachowski, producers of “The Matrix”—were also at the conference.
Tykwer said it all began when the three first met, calling the encounter “love at first sight.” They decided they really wanted to work on something together, which is when they came across the “Cloud Atlas” novel.
“The novel was the most exciting thing we'd read in a long, long time,” Tykwer said. At that point, the three made an oath to make a close adaptation of the novel that would be approved by the author and retain the original title.
“Cloud Atlas” became a major undertaking, and according to IMDb cost US$100 million to make. It was shot on the shores of Costa Rica, in the U.K., Spain, and Germany.
The film explores the intertwining lives of some dozen characters who are connected to one another lifetime after lifetime. Much like “The Matrix,” it’s a spiritual journey that touches on the topics of simulated realities, good and evil, and “the one” who is willing to fight for the truth.
