“Maudie” director Aisling Walsh describes her upcoming feature, “Ethel,” in recognizable terms.
“We all understand what it is to struggle to be the best at what we can,” Walsh tells Variety.
“We’re all looking for that chance to make something happen.”Written by Celeste Parr, produced by Marie-Claude Poulin (“Brooklyn”) of Sphere Media, and presented at this year’s Venice Production Bridge gap-financing market, “Ethel” tells the true story of Ethel Stark – a trailblazing Canadian musician who broke barriers when she founded a mixed-race, all-female orchestra in the 1940s.
A violinist and conductor, Stark eventually brought her Montreal-based ensemble all the way to Carnegie Hall, becoming the first to woman to conduct there.“Shtisel” and “Unorthodox” lead Shira Haas is attached to star – as revealed exclusively in Variety – with the Canadian-Irish co-production aiming to shoot next year.“The film is about women finding their voice,” says Walsh.
“The orchestra changed their lives.
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