Emma Stone starred alongside a doll in a surreal new photo shoot in Athens from her The Favorite director Yorgos Lanthimos.
The 35-year-old actress is the cover girl of W magazine’s Art Issue, draped in a pleated, tiered Louis Vuitton dress inspired by Yorgos’ office curtains.
The magazine shows her taking the doll through various deserted scenes that refer to the urban decay of the Greek capital.
There seems to be a tender bond between Emma and the doll as they drift from place to place, from an abandoned park to a street near a docked cruise ship.
In her interview, Emma talked about her creative relationship with Yorgos – and why she wishes all her films could be silent.
Emma Stone starred alongside a doll in a surreal new photoshoot in Athens by her The Favorite director Yorgos Lanthimos
The 35-year-old actress is the cover girl of W magazine’s Art Issue, draped in a pleated, tiered Louis Vuitton dress inspired by Yorgos’ office curtains
Emma received critical acclaim for her role as a ruthless social climber in Yorgos’ The Favorite, set in the court of England’s Queen Anne.
Now they await the release of their vibrant new film Poor Things, starring Emma as a Victorian woman who commits suicide and is then resuscitated.
A scientist brings Emma’s character back to life by putting a baby’s brain inside her, meaning she has to go through a mental childhood in an adult’s body.
As her mind gradually develops, she embarks on a madcap adventure of hedonism with a libertine lawyer, played by Mark Ruffalo.
However, Yorgos and Emma couldn’t talk to W about Poor Things because their joint interview took place during the SAG-AFTRA strike.
They were able to talk about their new silent film Bleat, starring Emma as a grieving widow opposite a goat who she described as the real ‘star’ of the film.
Bleat was able to obtain a strike waiver as the studios competing against SAG-AFTRA were not involved in the project.
Yorgos described the silent film as ‘a live performance’ that should always be shown ‘accompanied by an orchestra playing live music’.
You see how she takes the doll with her through various deserted scenes that refer to the urban decay of the Greek capital
There seems to be a tender bond between Emma and the doll as they drift from location to location, from an abandoned park to a street near a docked cruise ship.
In her interview, Emma opened up about her creative relationship with Yorgos – and why she harbors a joke that all her films could be silent
Emma and Yorgos revealed how their professional bond reached a new medium when they collaborated in film photography
“We started in a makeshift darkroom in his bathroom, but in recent years he has built a professional darkroom in his studio in Athens,” says Emma.
“He pretty much learned how to develop film from watching YouTube videos,” says Emma
The filmmaker laughingly added that “I taught a master printer for 20 minutes,” then confessed, “But hey, YouTube!”
As for her co-star, she vamped, “Who said she was a doll?! Her name is a secret because she is very shy and this is her first role’
He and Emma came up with the idea of their photo shoot in Athens as a team, he said, recalling: ‘Together we looked at different references’
After co-creating Bleat with Yorgos, Emma shared on stage at the New York Film Festival that she wished she could act exclusively in silent films.
‘I was just kidding. But I like the silence,” she explained to W. “It’s nice not to have any pressure to use words to communicate. There is something wonderful about being able to speak with just your eyes and your body.”
Their new photo shoot included a photo that Yorgos took by having Emma run across the highway and stop at the center divider to pose for him.
The Oscar-winning actress joked, “Have you seen the things I’ve done in movies? By comparison, running down a highway isn’t scary.”
As for her co-star, she vamped, “Who said she was a doll?! Her name is a secret because she is very shy and this is her first role. We found her…She was perfect!’
Now they await the release of their vibrant new film Poor Things, starring Emma as a Victorian woman who commits suicide and is then resuscitated.
Emma and Yorgos revealed how their professional bond reached a new medium when they collaborated in film photography.
‘A few years ago, Yorgos became interested in film photography. He started developing his own prints and he taught me,” Emma said.
‘We started in a makeshift darkroom in his bathroom, but in recent years he has built a professional darkroom in his studio in Athens. He pretty much learned how to develop film by watching YouTube videos.”
The filmmaker laughingly added that “I taught a master printer for 20 minutes,” then confessed, “But hey, YouTube!”
He and Emma came up with the idea of their photo shoot in Athens as a team, he said, recalling, “Together we looked at different references. I was particularly impressed by Harry Callahan’s photographs of his wife and daughter – he took them in natural settings, where the figures appeared small, and he also took closer portraits.’
Yorgos revealed: ‘Emma not only helped as a model and muse, but also helped develop the photos. We made the prints together.’
