NEW PROJECT! David Tennant To Play R.D. Laing



David Tennant has a new project for 2016. He will be playing the role of the renowned Scottish psychiatrist R.D. Laing, the ‘Acid-Marxist’.

Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men, The West Wing) will co star in the biopic named, 'Metanoia', which will be filmed as UK/Germany co production. Shooting on the project will take place in the first quarter of 2016 at MMC’s studios in Cologne and on location in London.

The film will be set in the 1960s and will tell the story of Laing and his unique community at Kingsley Hall in East London. In 1965, Laing and a group of colleagues created the Philadelphia Association and started a psychiatric community project at Kingsley Hall, where patients and therapists lived together. He was often criticised for his techniques, which included the occasional use of the drug LSD. The title of the film, Metanoia, refers to the Laing's belief in self healing.

David Tennant told Screen Daily:
“I have long been fascinated by the life and work of RD Laing.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate and discover this important man and I am honoured and thrilled to be involved in telling this story.

“Robert Mullan’s passion for the subject is inspiring and the presence of the brilliant Elisabeth Moss makes this something I cannot wait to start work on.”

The film's writer Robert Mullan said:
"In the late 1960s, and throughout the 1970s, R.D. Laing was seen as the ‘high priest of anti-psychiatry’ and the so-called ‘Acid Marxist’ - lauded by his supporters for his daring and experimental work with disturbed people.

“In truth, Laing simply tried harder than other psychiatrists to sympathetically understand the cracked minds of the people who came to see him. He gave them time and tried to see the world from their point of view. His books sold all over the world and his reputation was global”.

The production is in Cannes talking to potential financiers.

Source: Screen Daily





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