Desperate times call for desperate measures, and that’s what faces Ellen Page in the new trailer for Netflix’s original feature “Tallulah.”
The film, according to its official synopsis, “tells the story of young vagabond, Lu (Page), who lives in a van and is fiercely independent in her hand-to-mouth existence. When a chance encounter incites her to impulsively ‘rescue’ a baby from a negligent mother, Lu, at a loss for what to do, turns to the only responsible adult she knows: Margo (Allison Janney), who mistakenly believes she’s the child’s grandmother.”
Tammy Blanchard (“Into the Woods,” “Moneyball”) and Uzo Aduba (“Orange is the New Black”) also appear in the film.
“Tallulah” was written and directed by Sian Heder, who has written and produced for “Orange is the New Black.” It premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, where Heder told Women and Hollywood the inspiration behind her story.:
“I used to work as a nanny for all the high-end hotels in LA and had a lot of weird experiences with mothers whose children seemed more like accessories than anything else. One night, I was so disturbed by the erratic behavior of a particular mother, I seriously considered taking off with the kid,” she said.
“I had been exploring the character of Tallulah already, based on a friend who was living off the grid out of her van. She was someone who lived with very little fear or sense of consequences for her actions. She seemed like the perfect person to steal a baby and set in motion a chain of events that could deal with some of the issues around motherhood and responsibility that I wanted to explore.”
When we asked what advice she had to offer other female directors, Heder had three tips:
“1) Look out for each other. I think the more we support each other as a community, the more successful we will be. I’m a part of Film Fatales, a collective of women directors who meet to share advice and provide support for each other’s projects. I think the more we can build an old girls’ network to rival the old boys’ network, the better off we will be.
2) Know the kinds of stories that you want to tell, and don’t be pushed into writing kids’ movies or Hallmark shows just because you have a vagina.
3) I think a lot of women feel like they have to choose between making movies or making a family. When I directed ‘Tallulah,’ I had a 16-month-old at home and was six months pregnant. It’s not ideal, and you need a fantastic partner or support system — both of which I had — but it can be done. My son was born the night we locked picture. A movie baby through and through.”
“Tallulah” premieres on Netflix on July 29.
