The Aspern Papers - New movie filmed in Choroni

Henry James in Choroni? Why not. That's what the makers of a new movie have done, transplanting the US author's literary novella "The Aspern Papers" from 19th century Venice to the tropical forests of a cacao plantation in modern-day Venezuela.

The film stars US actress Brook Smith, of Grey's Anatomy, Belgian-born Felix D'Alviella, an established TV actor in the UK, Joan Juliet Buck, from the award winning "Julie and Julia" and the beautiful Venezuelan dancer and actress Lourdes Brito Laffont.

Also appearing are a number of local characters from the village, including Hueso and Tiburon, who plays the Afro-Venezuelan drums, or tambores, that Choroni is so famous for.

First-time director Mariana Hellmund, a Venezuelan writer who has worked as a script-supervisor on a number of US movies, also co-wrote the screenplay and produced.

From the trailer and stills released so far, the film looks great, with plenty of shots of Playa Grande, the colourful fishing boats in Puerto Colombia and the colonial houses of Choroni. The scenes in the cacao plantation were filmed at Hacienda La Sabaneta.

All we need now is a release date. For more details of the film visit: http://www.theaspernpapers.com

Here's the synopsis:

A young American publisher's quest to find the lost papers of the great romantic poet Jeffery Aspern, leads him on a treasure hunt to the coastal jungles of Venezuela.
The poet’s great muse, Juliana Bordereau is alive and hiding in an 18th century cocoa hacienda. She lives with scant means, in the company of her niece, Tita Bordereau, a quiet spinster held captive to her aunt's life and shaded past.
The American plots to lure the women with money, convinced that once inside the house he’ll get his hands on the papers - even if he has to go so far as to seduce the niece. The muse, the niece, and the gentleman will find themselves in a game of trust and deceit, far away from the comforts of civilization. But Tita’s naiveté becomes her strongest card when she takes destiny into her own hands, and exacts a price too high even for the paper-obsessed American.
Brooke Smith, Felix D’Alviella, Judith Roberts and Joan Juliet Buck star in this contemporary adaptation of Henry James’ beloved novella about literary obsession directed by Mariana Hellmund.