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‘The Magic Flute’: First Look At F. Murray Abraham, Iwan Rheon, Stefi Celma, More — AFM

EXCLUSIVE: Here are your first look images at feature The Magic Flute from executive producer Roland Emmerich.

Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham (Amadeus) and Stéfi Celma (Call My Agent) are among cast for the modern reimagining of Mozart’s popular opera.

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German sales outfit Sola Media is handling international rights, excluding U.S., Canada and France. The firm will be showing a new sizzle reel during the upcoming virtual AFM.

Grand Budapest Hotel and Homeland actor Abraham, who famously played Mozart’s adversary Salieri in Amadeus, is playing Dr. Longbow, the headmaster of the boarding school in Austria. Celma will portray the character Papagena.

The screen adaptation is set in present-day Europe and tells the story of 17-year-old Tim Walker, who is sent from London to the Austrian alps to start his singing scholarship at the legendary Mozart boarding school. There, he discovers a century old forgotten passageway into the magical world of Mozart’s The Magic Flute.

Also starring are Jack Wolfe (The Witcher) in the dual roles of protagonist Tim Walker and Prince Tamino. Iwan Rheon (Games of Thrones) is Papageno. Supporting are Elliot Courtiour, Niamh McCormack, Tedros Teclebrhan, Waldemar Kobus, Jeanne Goursaud, Jasmin Shakeri, Larissa Sirah Herden, Asha Banks and Amir Wilson, among others.

The Magic Flute - Credit: Centropolis Entertainment
The Magic Flute - Credit: Centropolis Entertainment

Centropolis Entertainment

Starring alongside the ensemble cast are opera stars including French soprano Sabine Devieilhe, Mexican-French tenor Rolando Villazón and U.S. bass Morris Robinson.

The film shot in Munich at Bavaria Studios, Mozart’s birthplace of Salzburg, London and the Canary Islands.

Pic is directed by Florian Sigl, who has a background in classical music. Producers are Christopher Zwickler of Flute Film and Fabian Wolfart. Executive producer is Roland Emmerich through his Centropolis Entertainment. Timm Oberwelland, Theodor Gringel, Peter Eiff and Tobias Alexander Seiffert of Tobis Film and Quinta Media’s Stefan Konarske, who also is part of the cast, are co-producing.

The production is supported by national and regional funders from Germany and Austria, among them FFF Bayern, Bayerischer Bankenfonds, Hessenfilm, MFG Filmförderung, Filmförderung des Landes Salzburg, the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) and Filmstandort Austria (FISA).

The Magic Flute - Credit: Centropolis Entertainment
The Magic Flute - Credit: Centropolis Entertainment

Centropolis Entertainment

The film is scheduled to be released at the end of 2022 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland by Tobis Film.

The film is currently in post-production with VFX powerhouse Pixomondo (Roland Emmerich’s Midway and forthcoming Moonfall) doing the visual effects. Producers have also reached a deal for Deutsche Grammophon / Universal Music to release the original soundtrack.

“When we heard about The Magic Flute, we loved the idea of such an ambitious, high quality film, elevating independent family entertainment to a new level. With such great storytelling, impressive production value, the talented cast of upcoming and established actors combined with the idea of bringing Mozart’s most beloved opera to a broad audience on the big screen, how could we resist?” said Sola Media’s managing director Solveig Langeland.

“Mozart is definitely an established brand and we believe that our Magic Flute will become a timeless classic and delight a wide international audience.”

The Magic Flute - Credit: Centropolis Entertainment
The Magic Flute - Credit: Centropolis Entertainment

Centropolis Entertainment

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