Medicine for Miami: A24 & Plan B Take “Moonlight” Swim with Barry Jenkins

Announced late last night, we’ve got an encouraging piece of indie feature backing news for Barry Jenkins and his long awaited sophomore project. Deadline reports that the Medicine for Melancholy helmer has chosen the Miami backdrop for Moonlight. Production will begin this fall. The great news is that this officially becomes indie distrib outfitter A24‘s first foray into film production, and heavyweight Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner’s Plan B will be producing alongside producer Adele Romanski. The indie producer who has Chad Hartigan’s Morris from America and Justin Tipping’s Kicks in post, was shepherding the project late last year — it was among the items we highlighted during last year’s Independent Film Week.

Gist: Based on Tarell McCraney’s play, In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, this tells the story of Chiron and his coming of age during the War on Drugs-era Miami. Structured in three different time periods – the most pivotal moments of Chiron’s fraught quarter-life, battling a deteriorating home life and his dawning sexuality – the film is described as a radical depiction of modern masculinity.

Worth Noting: Between features, Jenkins directed shorts, but was most recently workshopping a limited series hijacking drama called “Radical” which was part of the Sundance Institute’s first Episodic Story Lab in ’15.

Do We Care?: It’s been an awfully long gestation period between projects, but the filmmaker has kept busy with a slow of projects in various formats. Described as “heartfelt, groundbreaking film” by the A24 folks, this is easily one of the most anticipated indie items, and filmed in the helmer’s former backyard. This homecoming is among our most anticipated upcoming films for the 2016 campaign. Casting news should be arriving on our doorsteps soon enough.