On a crisp October afternoon in the Bois de Vincennes, on the outskirts of Paris, FKA twigs is transported back to 1950s America. Wearing a cream-colored pinstriped coat, a dark beret and black leather gloves, the British singer and dancer has been up since the early hours, with a 4 a.m. pickup for hair and makeup to transform into Josephine Baker, the legendary entertainer and civil rights activist.
\n\nStanding opposite her is Oscar-nominated actor Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, who plays Baker’s mother. The two are filming a tense confrontation at a cemetery, a scene that cuts to the heart of Maïmouna Doucouré’s ambitious biopic.
\n\nBetween takes, FKA twigs stays in character, looking pensive and emotional. The atmosphere on set is studious and distinctly international, with cast and crew switching between English and French.
\n\nAnd while the cemetery scene unfolding that afternoon is intimate, other sequences have the scale and flamboyance of a classic Hollywood production, notably those recreating the legendary Folies Bergère cabaret in Paris, where Baker became a sensation in the 1920s. The sprawling production has enlisted some 2,400 extras.
\n\nYet behind the lavish costumes, musical performances and sweeping historical canvas, “Josephine Baker” is ultimately a portrait of a woman whose…
Original source: https://variety.com/