Academy Award winner Tilda Swinton puts on her director’s cap with her debut feature, The Hexagonal Hive And The Mouse In A Maze, premiering at Sheffield DocFest. According to Deadline, Swinton’s documentary explores the varying mechanics of learning in different corners of the world, encouraging viewers to reconsider the variety of pedagogies that satisfy humans’ hunger for knowledge. Swinton describes the film as a “smorgasbord of suggestions, observations, and wonderings.”
The Hexagonal Hive And The Mouse In A Maze follows Swinton and her fellow co-director Bartek Dziadosz as they journey through the UK, Bangladesh, West Africa, and North America, exploring unique, diverse learning methods. Examining the role of education across time, the documentary peeks into the educational experiences of young people and adults. Featuring insights from scientists, farmers, philosophers, educators, and children, Swinton’s directorial debut emphasizes the importance of lifelong curiosity in a complex world.
Best known for her cool as-ice performance in Only Lovers Left Alive, Swinton not only directs but also co-writes together with Dziadosz and. Lily Ford. Dziadosz serves as the film’s editor. Ford and Vijay Vaidyanathan join the team as producers, with music by Simon Fisher Turner. The executive producer team includes Ahsan Akbar, Adam Bartos, Colin MacCabe, and Karen Wells. The Hexagonal Hive And The Mouse In A Maze is a production by London-based Derek Jarman Lab.
Tilda Swinton Joins Colin Farell in Netflix’s ‘The Ballad of a Small Player’
Swinton is gearing up to star in Netflix’s The Ballad of a Small Player, alongside Colin Farrell. Adapted from Lawrence Osborne’s 2014 novel of the same name, the story follows Farrell’s character, a gambler and con man escaping the UK for Macau’s glitzy gambling scene. However, upon his arrival, the last thing he expected was to encounter a kindred soul who might just help him get out of his situation. While details of Swinton’s role remain a mystery, filming is set to kick off in Asia this summer.
Last year, Swinton took on a quirky role in A24’s Problemista, a hilariously surrealist film that takes a jab at America’s complex immigration system. The story centers on Alejandro (Julio Torres), a toy designer from El Salvador who heads to New York City to chase his dreams. Once there, he ends up working for Swinton’s eccentric artist character, who becomes his only shot at getting a work visa in order to stay in the States and achieve his artistic ambitions. An empathetic testament to the struggles of life, Problemista has been praised for revealing the many layers of its characters, showing that it is not entirely the characters’ faults, but rather the circumstances that force them to act in questionable ways.
Problemista is currently available to stream on Max.
via Collider