by: John Rodriguez
From last August until October, the world’s attention was focused on Copiapo, Chile when a cave-in at a mine trapped 33 miners. And now, the story about the Chilean miners who were trapped within the San Jose copper=gold mine located deep within the Atacama Desert for more than two months will be heading to the big screen.
According to the miners’ representative, after surviving the ordeal which captivated the world the 33 miners have sold the rights to their story to producer Mike Medavoy who will shoot the film recounting their remarkable ordeal. Medavoy, who grew up in Chile, has produced other popular films like Shutter Island, Black Swan, and Motorcycle Diaries. Screen writer Jose Rivera has been attached to the project as the writer of the script.
In a statement released to the press about the deal, Medavoy said, “At its heart, this is a story about the triumph of the human spirit and a testament to the courage and perseverance of the Chilean people. I can’t think of a better story than this one to bring to the screen.”
Meanwhile one of the miners, Juan Andrew Illanes called the planned-project, “the only official and authorized film about what we lived in the San Jose mine. Much of our story has never been told.” According to those behind the film project, the film will focus on the dramatic hurdles which occurred during the incident’s conclusion on how the miners were safely rescued.
Along with the miners recount, the production will also use the book written by Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist, Hector Tobar about the incident as a reference for the film. For the book itself, Tobar spent a great deal of his time immersing himself in the miners’ story taking everything he heard from each and every miner and combined thme into the voice of one miner, Victor Segovia. In an interview discussing the book, Tobar said, “there is a deep, textured story there waiting to be told. There is a deep, emotional book about family and faith, full of all sorts of psychological textures, waiting to be written.”
Despite the announcement of the movie and the use of Tobar’s book, no studio is yet attached to distribute the film and the book has yet to find a publisher. The production of the film is set to begin next year.
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