The Summer I Turned Pretty star Gavin Casalegno will star in the upcoming indie romantic comedy Sunflower Child, playing a would-be-be Hollywood director who falls for an up-and-coming screenwriter, played by British-American actress Jennifer James, who also wrote the script.
Cinematographer Jamie Touche (Mozart: Rise of a Genius) is directing in his feature debut. The supporting cast includes Daniela Norman (Tiny Pretty Things), Muhannad Ben Amor (Andor), and Maddie Close (The Other Bennet Sister).
Shooting on Sunflower Child has begun at Twickenham Film Studios in the U.K. and on location around London.
According to the blurb for the film, James plays a young screenwriter “caught between the promise of Hollywood fame and preserving her artistic voice,” who starts up a relationship with an aspiring director (Casalegno). “As their romance blossoms over time, she soon comes face to face with the challenges of betrayal, the cost of success, and making the choice of saying no to the wrong version of her dream to follow her heart.”
In a statement, James called the film “an anthem for authenticity, for indie filmmakers, and what it really takes to get a foot in the door.”
Joseph Goldman is producing Sunflower Child through James’ Austin and London-based outfit Double J Productions, in association with Nebel Productions and in partnership with PickleJar Entertainment Group. MSR Media International is handling worldwide sales for the project and will pitch the film to buyers at the European Film Market in Berlin next week.
Casalegno, best-known for his role as Jeremiah Fisher in Amazon’s hit coming-of-age series The Summer I Turned Pretty, will be seen next in the YA romance film Chasing Red, alongside Riverdale star Madelaine Petsch, and in the Amazon MGM thriller The Devil’s Mouth with Kathryn Newton (Big Little Lies). He’s also returning for Amazon’s feature film version of The Summer I Turned Pretty.
Casalegno is repped by UTA and Bold Agency, Luber Roklin Entertainment and Skrzyniarz & Mallean; James is repped by Beresford Management; Norman is repped by Beresford Management and Authentic Talent and Literary Management; Amor is repped by Hamilton Hodell and Linden Entertainment; Close is repped by Revolution Talent.
