Photo Credit: Akson Studio / Playtime
The wheels are in motion on a Polish Frédéric Chopin biopic, while a film on Antonio Vivaldi began shooting in Rome last fall. Is a classical music biopic renaissance on the horizon?
Paris-headquartered production and investment company Playtime has picked up Polish production outfit Akson Studio’s Chopin, A Sonata in Paris. Starting out life as a film called Chopin, Chopin!, the Michał Kwieciński-helmed project is an ambitious biopic of composer and pianist Frédéric Chopin.
The movie stars Eryk Kulm as Chopin and Lambert Wilson as King Louis Philippe. It chronicles the Polish native Chopin’s journey to Paris at the age of 21, “where he wielded music’s power like no other.”
“Chopin is not only historically one of the world’s greatest pianist and composer, but an amazing character, in many ways bigger than fiction,” said Nicolas Brigaud-Robert, co-CEO of Playtime. “The film is visually stunning and absolutely gripping in its narrative,” Brigaud-Robert continued. “When we saw the first images on this epic, it was love at first sight for us at Playtime.”
Chopin, A Sonata in Paris, is expected to release this year in Poland by Galapagos Films. The partnership with Playtime will help ensure the film sees an international release.
Meanwhile, a wider release date remains uncertain for Antonio Vivaldi biopic, Primavera, the feature debut of opera director Damiano Michieletto. Written by Ludovica Rampoldi, the 18th century period piece was featured last year during Memento International 2024 summer roster, with shooting beginning in October. The script, described as a “true page-turner,” is loosely adapted from Tiziano Scarpa’s critically acclaimed novel, Stabat Mater.
Primavera was produced by Indigo Film Production and co-produced by Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia, who will oversee the film’s release in Italy. France’s Moana Films will also distribute, while the movie received backing from the Fondazione Veneto Film Commission and the Regione Lazio PR FESR fund.
With films like these coming out in the near future, it begs the question whether an era of classical musician biopics is on the horizon. Classic rock continues to experience a surge in biopics, with everyone from Bob Dylan to Bruce Springsteen and Janis Joplin getting a film. Will Chopin and Vivaldi spark their own classical music biopic renaissance in 2025?