In 2017, the story of Ogis, a boy who stood out from others because of his face, and therefore hid it under a toy astronaut's spacesuit, touched the hearts of many moviegoers and stuck in their memory for a long time. At the new school for "normal children", Ogis was initially met with hostility, but the boy's courage, intelligence and kindness gradually overshadowed his physical shortcomings and demonstrated once again that what is inside us is more important than what is outside. Already this Friday, March 8, a kind of continuation of the film "The White Bird" is coming to Lithuanian cinema screens, which will tell the story of Ogis's fiercest insult.
The emotional drama comes from Marc Forster, director of hits such as Once Upon a Time with Otto and Finding Neverland, and stars Oscar winner Helen Mirren and The X-Files and Sex Education star Gillian Anderson.
"This story is very important especially in these times, when sometimes we simply don't have time to notice what is hidden under people's appearance, external glitter. Therefore, stories about empathy will remind us how important it is to see beautiful, positive things everywhere," says Nathan Kahane, head of one of the divisions of the film company Lionsgate.
The drama adapts another novel of the same name, The White Bird, by writer RJ Palacio, who created The Miracle, to the screen. N. Kahane claims that no one else would have looked at this story as sensitively as director M. Forster.
"We were impressed not only by the works he had already presented, but also by the way this professional imagined the scenario, how he experienced it himself. "Sensitivity was the most important criterion here," said a Lionsgate representative.
An inspiring story of kindness, courage, love, "The White Bird" will tell the story of Julian (actor Bryce Gheisar), who was one of those who mocked Ogi without any scruples. It is Julian's story that continues in this film. After one conflict, he is banned from school and his parents decide to move away. The boy's grandmother (Helen Mirren), who came to visit from Paris, immediately notices that Julian is suffering and decides to share with him her own long-hidden story, which has the power to change her grandson's life.