Writer-director Marielle Heller’s Sundance gem "The Diary of a Teenage Girl" will open the 2015 New Directions/New Films festival (March 18-29).
Based on Phoebe Gloeckner’s graphic novel, "Diary" centers on Minnie Goetz (Bel Powley), a 15-year-old girl who’s having an affair with the boyfriend (Alexander Skarsgard) of her mother (Kristen Wiig). In an interview with Women and Hollywood, Heller said of Gloeckner’s book, "I was so blown away by the honesty of the depiction of female adolescence, I knew I had to do something with the material. It was the most vulnerable, relatable version of a teenage girl I had ever come across, and I realized how starved we are for such characters."
"Diary" has been acquired by Sony Pictures Classics, but no release date has yet been announced. The film won a prize at the Berlinale and rave reviews at Sundance. Anisha Jhaveri wrote in her Indiewire review, "Shocking but genuine, poignant and hilarious, ‘Diary of a Teenage Girl’ could well become one of the more memorable entries in the Sundance Film Festival’s U.S. competition. Minnie’s story may be a singular one, but its essence will undoubtedly strike a chord — not just for women, but for anyone who recalls the befuddling emotions that plagued and enriched their teen years in equal doses."
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[via Variety]
