Charlie Heaton (“Stranger Things,” “The Souvenir Part II,” “The New Mutants”) and Mia Wasikowska (“Bergman Island,” “Club Zero,” “Alice in Wonderland”) are set to star in the romantic comedy “Twice Over,” which Athens-based boutique sales company Heretic has boarded for international sales.
The feature film, directed by Alena Lodkina, is an Australian production which will shoot in Perth later this year. The film is in pre-production and is supported by Screen Australia. It is described as “an intimate, offbeat story of reconnection and emotional toll.”
The film, co-written by Lodkina with Miles Allinson, follows two people whose unexpected reunion awakens long-buried feelings and unspoken uncertainties about love, time and reinvention.
“Twice Over” was chosen by BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning casting director Shaheen Baig (“Adolescence,” “Black Mirror”).
Associated with the project is renowned cinematographer JP Passi, whose works include “Compartment No. 6”, “The Happiest Day of Olli Mäki’s Life”, “The Last of Us” and “Chernobyl”.
Lodkina’s previous feature films – “Strange Colors” (College of the Venice Biennale at the Venice Film Festival, 2017) and “Petrol” (Locarno Film Festival, 2022; New Directors/New Films 2023) – “established her as one of the most original voices in contemporary Australian cinema, praised for her distinctive blend of realism, mystery and precision emotional,” Heretic said.
“’Twice Over’ brings together two extraordinary talents in Mia Wasikowska and Charlie Heaton, whose chemistry promises to be electric under the bold direction of Alena Lodkina,” said Ioanna Stais, head of sales and acquisitions at Heretic. “We are delighted to work with such an outstanding team and bring this project to the international market. »
Director of Narrative Content, Louise Gough, said: “‘Twice Over’ is an exploration of past and present converging and in the hands of Alena Lodkina, a singular work. This tender, ironic and thought-provoking story offers a different perspective on the search for love, regret and the ‘what if’ of it all. Sharp, deeply nuanced, fresh – ‘Twice Over’ is a story of modern love.”
“Twice Over” is produced by Kate Glover and Nathan Lewis for Never/Sleep Pictures, Aidan O’Bryan for WBMC and Gregory Jankilevitsch for Mid-March Media. Glover previously collaborated with Heretic on Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s “Hot Milk” (Berlinale competition) and Romain Gavras’ “Sacrifice” (TIFF special presentations), with Mid-March also involved in “Sacrifice.”
The film will benefit from a major production investment from Screen Australia, in association with Screenwest and Lotterywest. It is produced by Klaudia Smieja, Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Samantha Lang, Lee Hazeldene, Ioanna Stais and Giorgos Karnavas.
Heaton is repped by Gersh Agency, Independent Talent Group, Brillstein Entertainment Partners and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern. Wasikowska is repped by RGM Artists, WME and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern.
