Argentine thesp Javier Drolas, best actor winner of Argentina’s Silver Condor for his role in coming-of-age drama “The Good Intentions,” has joined Colombian actor-producer-writer Marcela Mar (“Dear Gentlemen,” “Satanás”), in the upcoming “Imperfect” (“Imperfecta”), a Spanish-language adaptation of Polish-Canadian author Jowita Bydlowska’s bestseller “Drunk Mom: A Memoir.”
Hailed by Lena Dunham (“Girls,” “Too Much”) as an “intense, complex and disturbing story, bravely and beautifully told,” the story, a reflection on the mental health of mothers during pregnancy and postpartum, follows Jo, a 42-year-old photographer, who has her first baby and celebrates the joy of motherhood with her husband and friends. But one drink awakens an old addiction and she struggles to stay in control, protect her role as a mother and keep her life from falling apart.
”Imperfect” is slated to shoot during the last quarter of the year, with Sofía Oggioni attached as DoP.
Reflecting on her own experience as a mother, Mar said: “Becoming a mother shook me to my core at 21. What struck me first was my own high expectations. I had internalized an idealized image of motherhood, only to be surprised by the complex reality of caring for this new being.”
Mar, who optioned the book in 2021, co-wrote the screenplay with Gloria Monsalve (“Torah Tropical”) and Argentina’s Natalia Smirnoff, who will direct. Smirnoff’s work has been featured at such prominent festivals as the Berlinale (“Puzzle,” 2010) and Sundance (“The Lockcharmer,” 2014).
“I’m excited to give voice to a main character who makes many mistakes, not to judge her, but to help us all see her fully. I believe it’s a powerful challenge that, hopefully, will help many other women begin to question the internal standards they use to measure themselves,” said Smirnoff.
The Colombia-Canada-Argentina co-production is led by Colombia’s Diana Camargo (“News of a Kidnapping,” “Accidental Twins”) and Mar’s Ganas Productions, co-producers of “Mi Bestia,” which premiered last year at Cannes parallel section, ACID.
Their co-producers are Canada’s Arantza Maldonado (“Havana,” “The Eighth Floor”) of Fait Divers Média and Juan Pablo Miller of Tarea Fina, Argentina, whose credits include “Las Acacias,” winner of the Caméra d’Or at Cannes 2011, Argentinean Oscar entry “The Sleepwalkers” and “Sublime,” a Sebastiane Award best Latin American Film awardee at the 2022 San Sebastián Festival.
The drama has already secured Latin American distribution through Elba McAllister’s Cineplex. “Cineplex’s involvement in the project started over a year ago upon reading the script. We believe this film will not only move audiences but also open conversations on ways to understand and navigate postpartum behavior; it will be an intense and powerful film,” McAllister told Variety.
Mar is currently starring in the Colombian stage play “El Padre,” an adaptation of French play “Le Père” by Florian Zeller who also directed the big screen version starring Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman. Mar plays the daughter of the patriarch, played by Jairo Camargo (“One Hundred Years of Solitude”).
She is also set to topline “Débora,” an upcoming biopic about the pioneering Colombian painter Débora Arango, to be directed by Daniel Posada (“El Chapo,” “Tijuana”), written by Will Nunziata, whose credits include “The Old Guitarist” and “Lilith.”