– The adaptation of the opera of the same name based on Gus Van Sant’s film and created with Oliver Leith, stars Agathe Rousselle and is now in post-production
Actress Agathe Rousselle (© AF Films)
Following its acclaimed stage run, the opera Last Days (premiered in 2022) has been adapted for the screen by artist Matt Copson, who created the original piece together with Oliver Leith. Inspired by Gus Van Sant‘s 2005 film of the same name, a fictionalised account of the final days of singer-songwriter Kurt Cobain, this feature-length adaptation reimagines the stage production for cinema. Filming took place at the end of last year in the Canary Islands, and the project is currently in the editing phase.
The film portrays the final days of a reclusive musician, played by French actress Agathe Rousselle (Titane [+see also:
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Claire Mathon (César Award winner for Portrait of a Lady on Fire [+see also:
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Copson, a British artist and director, is known for his work in contemporary art, opera and bold theatrical installations. He work has been exhibited at institutions including the KW Institute in Berlin, the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris, the Aspen Art Museum and the Serpentine Galleries in London, among others. He has also collaborated with musician Caroline Polachek, co-directing her music videos since 2019. His artistic style blends pop-culture references, experimental animation and reflections on contemporary anxieties.
Speaking to Cineuropa, from one of his production companies, Frank Ariza explain: “For AF Films, this film represents a decisive commitment to ambitious and singular auteur cinema. Accompanying Matt Copson on his first feature film has been an exceptional creative experience, marked by a deeply collaborative and demanding process in which formal experimentation and artistic freedom have been fundamental pillars. Drawing on the language of opera and respecting its aesthetic and formal codes, the film tackles a deeply human and contemporary reality: the final days of a rock star, reaffirming our commitment to projects that explore and challenge conventional narrative models.”
“The staging consciously embraces its theatrical nature: the spaces (the house, the field, the forest) were entirely recreated and treated as characters in their own right, giving the story its own visual identity. In this universe, the dreamlike and the real intermingle, creating a unique sensory experience, reinforced by the active presence of the orchestra during filming and within the film itself,” concludes the producer.
Last Days is produced by Frank Ariza for Spain’s AF Films, Many Enterprises in the United States, and independent producer Riccardo Maddalosso, in collaboration with MUBI and Louverture Films. MUBI holds worldwide rights to the film, except in Spain, where they remain with AF Films.
(Translated from Spanish)
