Maggie Gyllenhaal has had a lengthy and prolific acting career in film and television, starring in blockbuster successes such as The Dark Knight and acclaimed series including The Deuce, and earning an Oscar nomination for her work in the 2009 drama Crazy Heart. Now that she’s stepping behind the camera, Gyllenhaal appears destined for even greater success. The Lost Daughter, the star-studded psychological thriller and meditation on womanhood she adapted from Elena Ferrante’s bestselling novel, won her the Golden Osella Prize for Best Screenplay at the 78th Venice Film Festival, where the film premiered in September to a four-minute standing ovation.
Leda (Olivia Colman), Nina (Dakota Johnson), and Young Leda (Jessie Buckley)
Says Gyllenhaal: “I do feel like adapting a book into a screenplay is a similar process as being an actor: Okay, here are the words. These are two people ordering a sandwich together at a deli counter, but what’s the essence of it? What purpose does it serve inside the story? And that’s the same thing with the book: Here’s this little section. How do you then distill it into something that’s cinematic?”
Ferrante, the pseudonymous author, sold Gyllenhaal the rights to adapt the book for the screen under one condition: that Gyllenhaal direct. Notably, The Lost Daughter was shaped by women at every turn — not only Gyllenhaal, but also powerhouse stars Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, and Jessie Buckley; and cinematographer Hélène Louvart and producers including Osnat Handelsman-Keren and Talia Kleinhendler.