Sarah Polley has put off summer vacation this year. The actress and director primarily has her hands full shooting the upcoming dramedy, “Take This Waltz.” That film, which is gearing up for a July shoot in Toronto centers on a relatively happy couple whose lives are thrown into disarray when a new romantic entanglement enters the female half’s life. Polley has pulled together quite the cast for the film with Seth Rogen, Michelle Williams, Sarah Silverman and Luke Kirby set to star. But as if that wasn’t enough, Polley has another film on the sly that she has been working on.
While doing press rounds for the horror film “Splice,” Polley has revealed that she’s also started work on a documentary “about memory and storytelling.” We think its safe to assume that Polley is venturing back into thematic territory she explored in her 2006 film “Away From Her.” If you haven’t seen it (and really, you should) that film chronicled the effects of Alzheimer’s on an aging couple. Details are scarce here so we’re not going to speculate too much, but it sounds like yet another intriguing project from Polley.
We’re glad to see Polley behind the camera again for not just one, but two projects. It seems she’s continuing to push herself as a filmmaker, venturing into unknown territory with a documentary while adding a fresh spin on standard genre tropes with “Take This Waltz,” which was written by Polley and as we noted, takes a look at love from a female perspective (one that’s far too often neglected in Hollywood).
As Polley herself notes, she’s at home behind the camera and wouldn’t mind never acting again. “I never really know if I’m going back to acting,” she says. “But I’ve been that way since I’ve been 15 or 16. I always feel like this might be the last movie I ever do, then a few years later I might do another one.” She goes on to add, “I’ll be directing for another year now, and my sense is I’ll want to direct some more, not act. But who knows?”
If Polley decided to stay strictly behind the camera, we wouldn’t mind at all. Young female directors are a rarity in the industry, particularly those as ambitious and curious as Polley. You can see her next in her most recent (and maybe last?) acting gig across from Adrien Brody in the horror film “Splice,” opening this Friday, June 4.