American Film Market Dailies

The anticipated feature film adaptation of I Am Not A Bird has added more star power to its stellar cast: Carice van Houten (HBO’s “Game Of Thrones”), Andrew Rothney (The Huntsman: Winter’s War), Kate Easton (upcoming Ocean’s Eight ), Takehiro Hira and newcomer Elisabeth Larena, the film’s producers Lauren Mann of Wandering Trail Pictures and Blackbird’s Lawrence Inglee announced today. 

The cast joins Alexandra Daddario (San Andreas, HBO’s “True Detective”) who was previously announced to star in the title role as Margaret, a young western woman losing herself in the bacchanal of nighttime Tokyo.

Production for the dramatic thriller has begun this week on location in Tokyo, Japan.

Best known for her role as Melisandre (the witch who revives Jon Snow) in HBO’s award-winning series “Game of Thrones”, Carice van Houten plays Ines, Margaret’s ally and fellow lost soul who has accepted that her youthful modeling and partying years in Tokyo are now behind her and seeks to go home.  Houten recently starred in Brian de Palma’s upcoming film Domino with Guy Pearce and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Focus Features’ biopic Race about Jesse Owens, the greatest Olympic track and field athlete during WWII, and IM Global’s genre thriller Incarnate opposite Aaron Eckhart. 

Andrew Rothney plays Liam, Ines’ fellow co-hort who is also facing decisions that affect his immersion into the Tokyo nightlife. Rothney is the up and coming British actor most recently seen in Universal’s The Huntman: Winter’s War alongside Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Jessica Chastain, and Emily Blunt.  

Kate Easton takes on the role of Louise,  a student who connects with Margaret thru her love of words. Easton co-stars in the WB’s upcoming Ocean’s Eight alongside Matt Damon, Cate Blanchett, and Sandra Bullock and Annapurna’s film adaptation of Where’d You Go, Bernadette. Easton can also be seen in Edward Zwick’s Love & Other Drugs with Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, Steven Soderbergh’s sultry Magic Mike, and the upcoming Amazon release of Lynne Ramsey’s You Were Never Really Here with Joaquin Phoenix.    

Japanese star Takehiro Hira plays Kazu, a debonair, mysterious stranger who seduces Margaret.  Hira is a well establish film, TV and theatre star in his native Japan. Hira made his theatrical debut with the film Rokumeikan, and received recognition for his role as the last shogun Yoshinobu Tokugawa in Atsuhime. His other films include Takashi Miike’s Harakiri, Ace Attorney and Aku no Kyoten, and the big budget film Nobu’s Castle. 

Rounding the cast is newcomer Elisabeth Lareda, who currently stars in Spain’s TV series “Cuentame.” 

The feature film is directed by Swedish director William Olsson (Reliance).  The script is adapted from Catherine Hanrahan’s acclaimed debut novel Lost Girls And Love Hotels.  Hanrahan adapted her book for the screen.

WME Global’s Alexis Garcia and Samantha Racanelli are handling the worldwide rights for the film.  Van Houten is repped by UTA.