THE AMERICAN Trailer (2024) Talia Ryder, Diane Kruger

THE AMERICAN Trailer (2024) Talia Ryder, Diane Kruger

THE AMERICAN Trailer (2024) Talia Ryder, Diane Kruger, Dance, Ballet Dancer
© 2024 - Vertical
"What will you do for the role? How much of your life are you willing to give?" Vertical has revealed the official US trailer for an indie thriller tilted The American, which originally premiered last year under the title Joika instead. Not to be confused with the George Clooney movie also called The American (can they even name it the same?). Based on a true story, The American follows one of the select few Americans, Joy Womack, to be admitted to the prestigious, but punishing, Russian Bolshoi Ballet School in Moscow, where she is tutored by the vaunted Tatiyana Volkova. She dreams of becoming a truly extraordianry ballerina, but at what cost? "Finding unlikely support from Volkova, she risks her health, relationships and potentially her life in her journey to determine what it means to be great." Starring Talia Ryder as Joy, Diane Kruger as Volkova, Oleg Ivenko, and Natasha Alderslade. Haven't heard much about this, despite playing at a few festivals last year. It looks super crazy mega intense! Whiplash but for ballet, or so it seems from this trailer.

Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for James Napier Robertson's The American, direct from YouTube:

The American Poster

Based on the true story of Joy Womack (Talia Ryder) who is one of only a handful of foreigners, and only two American women, to ever penetrate Moscow's infamously tough Bolshoi Ballet Academy when she graduated from its main training program and was offered a contract in 2014. Through Joy's brilliance this is an inspirational journey into the most competitive, hostile dance school in the world. Spurred on by Volkova (Diane Kruger), the Bolshoi's magnetic, masterful tutor, and the searing passions of first love, Joy's leap into the unknown touches immortal perfection: But at what price? The American, also known as Joika, is written and directed by New Zealand writer / filmmaker James Napier Robertson, director of the films I'm Not Harry Jenson, The Dark Horse, and Whina previously, plus other shorts. It's produced by Tom Hern, Belindalee Hope, Klaudia Śmieja-Rostworowska. This initially premiered at the 2023 Deauville Film Festival last year. Vertical releases The American in select US theaters + on VOD on May 17th, 2024.
Friends alum David Schwimmer, Euphoria star Dominic Fike, and Never Rarely Sometimes Always actress Talia Ryder are set to star in the indie movie Little Death, which is being produced by Darren Aronofsky and his Protozoa Pictures banner.

Jack Begert will direct from a script he co-wrote with Dani Goffstein, and the feature is based on their short film La Petit Mort, which starred Darrell Britt-Gibson and Rachelle Vinberg.

The short film followed two young drug addicts who break into the home of a neurotic TV writer before spending the night cruising around LA and pondering questions of life, death, and morality.

Fike and Ryder will play the drug addicts in the feature, and while Schwimmer’s role is being kept under wraps, it seems safe to assume he’s in line to play the TV writer.

Aronofsky is producing with Dylan Golden, Brendan Naylor, and Sam Canter, and production is expected to start in August in Los Angeles.

Darren Aronofsky
Darren Aronofsky on the set of Black Swan/Fox Searchlight
Schwimmer is coming off of the Peacock series Intelligence and he’s also part of the star-studded cast of Scott Z. Burns‘ upcoming Apple series Extrapolations. He previously worked with Burns on The Laundromat, which was directed by Steven Soderbergh. Schwimmer has also directed movies himself, such as Trust and Run Fatboy Run. He’s represented by the Gersh Agency and Circle of Confusion.

Ryder broke out in the acclaimed abortion drama Never Rarely Sometimes Always before landing supporting roles in Steven Spielberg‘s West Side Story and the Regina Hall movie Master, which Amazon acquired out of Sundance. She went on to star in the Netflix movie Hello, Goodbye and Everything in Between, and she has two films in the can — Jennifer Kaytin Robinson‘s Strangers and the ballet drama Joika starring Diane Kruger.

Fike is best known for playing Elliott on HBO’s hit series Euphoria, and Little Death is expected to serve as his first feature film. He’s repped by UTA, which also reps Ryder along with Anonymous Content.

Begert has directed music videos for Jack Harlow, Doja Cat, Lil Nas X, SZA, and Schoolboy Q. He’s repped by UTA.

Next up for Aronofsky is A24’s The Whale, which is expected to be an awards contender this fall. His producing credits include Jackie and White Boy Rick, and he also produced the upcoming Netflix thriller The Good Nurse starring Oscar winners Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne. He’s repped by CAA.
Is there anything left of the American Dream? That’s what Sean Price Williams‘ “The Sweet East” aims to find out: a coming-of-age road trip comedy that’s part “Alice In Wonderland,” part absurdist take on the contemporary United States.

READ MORE: Fall Film Preview: 60+ Most Anticipated Movies To Watch

“The Sweet East” had a highly successful world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. Now it hits theaters next month, looking to sneak onto critics’ yearly top ten lists.

Here’s an official synopsis for “The Sweet East,” courtesy of Utopia:

THE SWEET EAST is a picaresque journey through the cities and woods of the Eastern seaboard of the United States. Lillian, a high school senior from South Carolina, gets her first glimpse of the wider world on a class trip to Washington, D.C. Separated from her schoolmates, she embarks on a fractured road trip in search of America. Along the way, she falls in with a variety of strange factions, each living out their own alternative realities in our present day.

Talia Ryder stars in Williams’ feature debut alongside Simon Rex, Ayo Edebiri, Earl Cave, and Jacob Elordi. Jeremy O. Harris, Rish Shah, and Gibby Haynes also star.

Williams directs a script by film critic Nick Pinkerton. Alex Ross Perry co-produces “The Sweet East” with Alex Coco and Craig Butta. Jammy Kaltreider and David Kaplan executive produce the film.

As noted earlier, “The Sweet East” premiered at Cannes to much critical acclaim. The Playlist’s review out of the festival called it “an expansive chronicling of a slice of America ripe for many a rewatch.”

“The Sweet East” hits theaters on December 1. Watch a trailer for the film below.
Joy Womack, une dan­seuse de bal­let de 15 ans, quitte sa mai­son fami­liale du Texas et s’en­vole pour Mos­cou après avoir mar­qué l’his­toire en étant accep­tée à l’A­ca­dé­mie de bal­let du Bol­choï. Son rêve est de sor­tir diplô­mée de l’A­ca­dé­mie et deve­nir dan­seuse étoile dans la com­pa­gnie d’é­lite du Bol­choï. Mais la concur­rence est rude et sa légen­daire ensei­gnante, Tatiya­na Vol­ko­va, exige une impli­ca­tion colos­sale de la part de ses élèves. Afin de pour­suivre son rêve, Joy devra faire des sacri­fices de plus en plus extrêmes, quitte à se mettre en danger…
The first image of Talia Ryder and Diane Kruger in ballet-themed feature “Joika” has been unveiled.

James Napier Robertson (“The Dark Horse”) wrote and directs the film, which has started production in Poland.

Embankment are representing worldwide sales and co-representing U.S. rights with UTA Independent Film Group.

“Joika” is inspired by the true story of Joy Womack, an American prima ballerina who became one of the few Western women to be accepted to – and graduate from – Russia’s punishing Bolshoi Academy school of ballet.

There, Womack encountered mentor Volkova, a mentor who inspired her to jeté, metaphorically-speaking, to extraordinary heights in her career.

Womack has not only given the biopic her blessing but is choreographing its ballet.

Ryder, who has appeared in “West Side Story” and “Never Rarely Sometimes Always,” plays Womack in the feature while Kruger plays Volkova. Ryder is also a classically trained dancer and, in preparation for the film, worked with both New York Ballet principal dancer Daniel Ulbricht and Womack herself.

Kruger was also a ballet dance before she became an actor. She switched only when she broke her knee at the age of thirteen, which effectively ended her ballet career. In preparation for the role of Volkova she has been guest teaching ballet classes in New York alongside a Russian teacher and former prima ballerina.

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“Joika’s” supporting cast is also largely comprised of professional ballet dances. Tatar State Opera’s principal dancer, Oleg Ivenko, who played Rudolph Nureyev in Ralph Fiennes’ “The White Crow,” stars opposite Ryder as the Bolshoi’s star male dancer, while Natalia Osipova, the principal of London’s The Royal Ballet, will play herself in a cameo role.

They are joined by Tomasz Kot (“Cold War”), Charlotte Ubben (“The Novice”), Natasha Alderslade (“Burnt”), Karolina Gruszka (winner of a Polish Film Festival gong) and Borys Szyc (winner of both Montreal World Film Festival and Polish Film Festival awards).

“The level of talent and commitment from Talia and Diane is stunning. Two brilliant actors doing genuinely transformative work. I know we are on the cusp of something truly special,” said Napier Robertson in a statement.

Napier Robertson and Tom Hern’s Four Knights Film (“Guns Akimbo”) produce alongside Madants’ Klaudia Smieja-Rostworowska (“Lamb”), Belindalee Hope (“Shadow in the Cloud”) and Paul Green (“The Loft”).
Executive producing are Anonymous Content’s Laurie Ross, along with Peter Touche, Andrea Scarso, Phil Rose, Michael Cerny, Charlotte Ubben and Embankment.

Backed by Ingenious Media, RBF Productions, the New Zealand Film Commission, the Polish Film Institute, Department of Post and Adam Gudell from Moderator Inwestycje Group, “Joika” is a Polish-New Zealand co-production.

The film has already been sold in Australia/New Zealand (The Reset Collective), Benelux (Paradiso), Switzerland (Ascot Elite), CIS & Baltics (Ten Letters), Germany (Square One), Italy (Eagle), Spain (Vertice), Greece (Spentzos), Israel (United King), South Africa (Filmfinity), Portugal (Nos Lusomundo) and Middle East (Front Row).

Ryder is represented by UTA, Anonymous Content, and McKuin Frankel Whitehead LLP. Kruger is repped by UTA, UBBA, Untitled, Altitude and Peikoff Mahan.
The American Soundtrack. A movie directed and written by James Napier Robertson. Music from the film bellow.

Tracklist
The American Soundtrack List
The American Trailer
American ballet dancer Joy Womack is accepted into Moscow’s infamously tough Bolshoi Ballet Academy, with the dream of becoming a great ballerina.

Cast: Talia Ryder as Joy Womack, Diane Kruger as Tatiyana Volkova, Oleg Ivenko, Natasha Alderslade, Natalia Osipova, Charlotte Ubben as Diana Ava Maria, Borys Szyc, Tomasz Kot, Karolina Gruszka, Martin Hugh Henley, Artur Shesterikov as Mikhail Martynyuk, Erica Horwood.

Genres: Drama
Release Date: May 17, 2024
Original Title: Joika

The American Music Movie Soundtrack (2024)
The American Soundtrack (2024)
The American Soundtrack List
Sele’s Boat – Aarhus Girls Choir
Niccolò Paganini: 24 Caprices No. 5 – Sumina Studer
Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite, Chinese Dance – Stephen De Pledge
Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Act III, No. 19A, Pas de Six: VI. Variations 5 – Stephen De Pledge
Czerny’s The School of Embellishments, Op. 355: No. 36 – Stephen De Pledge
Jota – Josu Gallastegui
Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14, Moonlight: III. Presto Agitato – Stephen De Pledge
Good (Harasho) – Eve Lesov
Drigo: Pas De Deux (Esmeralda) – London Symphony Orchestra & Richard Bonynge
Flight of the Bumblebee – Rousseau
Minkus: Paquita, Variaton 7, Allegro – Stephen De Pledge
Saint-Saens: The Carnival of the Animals: XIII. The Swan – Stephen De Pledge & Ashley Brown
Minkus: Paquita, No. 3, Allegro – Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
November – Max Richter
Mendelssohn: Overture “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, Op. 21, MWV P 3 – London Symphony Orchestra & Claudio Abbado
The Curse (Live) – Agnes Obel
Delibes: Le Corsaire: Act III, 5. Le Jardin Anime: Garlands – Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
Moy Seryy Plyazh – Nick Buckton & Dmitry Novikov
String Quartet No. 1 in D Major Op. 11 – Novus Quartet
Pugni: La Esmeralda: Pas de Deux – Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
Minkus: Don Quixote, Act IV: Entree – Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
Minkus: Don Quixote, Act IV: Adagio – Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
Minkus: Don Quixote, Act IV: Basilio’s Variation – Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
Fur Alina – Stephen De Pledge
Lost My Bicycle – Nick Buckton
Devoid of Any Meaning – SideKickNick
Pensive in the Evening – SideKickNick
Underwater Manifestations – Heartbreak Sirens
Score Composer: Dana Lund
Music Supervisor: Jenna Ackerman

The American Trailer
The American | Official Trailer (HD) | Vertical
The American Soundtrack (2024)
External Links: IMDb
Movie Distribution: Vertical
Production companies: Ingenious Media, Four Knights Film, Madants