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Cate Blanchett Plays 13 Different Characters In Single Film

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 18:46 PST, Dec 19, 2016

Cate Blanchett is one of the most influential actresses of this decade, according to the New York Times. So it’s no wonder filmmaker Julian Rosefeldt asked the 47-year-old Blue Jasmine actress to appear as 13 completely different characters in a single film.

Philosophical declarations by visionary artists from the 20th century don’t exactly attract modern people. But what if those statements are uttered from Cate Blanchett’s mouth? Initial screenings of Manifesto showed that the film could become a huge hit.

Manifesto is basically a collage of philosophical quotes said by artists from the past century reinterpreted by Cate Blanchett. The film features 13 distinctly different characters all played by the Oscar-winning actress.

It won’t be surprising if Cate Blanchett grabs another Academy Award for her performance in the film, yet that wasn’t Blanchett or Rosefeldt’s primary goal. The quotes were put together in one film in order for audiences to pay more attention to a more thoughtful discourse.

In his interview with the New York Times, Rosefeldt even drew a comparison between the 20th century artistic pronouncements and modern-era messages spread all over Twitter and Instagram.

“These manifestoes show that you actually can speak up loudly — if you have something to say.”

Rosefeldt, who invited Cate Blanchett to work on the film back in 2012, says the philosophical quotes in the film are nothing like things “we hear from all those new populists of our time.”

Manifesto, which had its limited world premiere in December last year at the Australian Center for the Moving Image in Melbourne, debuted in the U.S. this month. Currently staged at the Park Avenue Armory on separate screens until January 8, 2017, Cate Blanchett’s fans can now witness the Oscar-winning actress portray different artists expressing their views of the meaning of their art, according to another New York Times article.

“Every word of these manifestoes is beautiful and full of meaning, often utopian, sometimes prophetic. But always worth reading or listening to.”

Although Rosefeldt and Cate Blanchett met back in 2010 during the Berlin opening of the filmmaker’s exhibition in the Berlinische Galerie, it wasn’t until 2012 that the duo started working on Manifesto.

Cate Blanchett admitted in a telephone interview with the New York Times that she loves working with people that she finds “interesting,” no matter what their discipline is.

“I’m very visually inspired, so I’m constantly looking to artists, whether they’re working in film or paper or clay.”

As soon as Rosefeldt stumbled across the artist manifestoes in 2012, he knew that he wanted it to be Cate Blanchett to portray all the characters in a single film.

“And when I read all those beautiful and poetic texts, presumptuous and yet prophetic, I imagined her incorporating all these ideas.”

In the film, Cate Blanchett plays 13 different characters, from a homeless man to a corporate chief executive, and each character has something meaningful to say. Each character has about 12 and a half minutes to convey their thoughts, but at one point, all their speeches come together in a single mantra.

So it’s fair to say that Cate Blanchett is unrecognizable playing some of the characters, just like she was unrecognizable while filming the all-female Ocean’s Eleven spinoff, according to the Daily Mail.

Cate Blanchett, who stars in the film titled Ocean’s Eight alongside Helena Bonham Carter, Sandra Bullock, Dakota Fanning, Anne Hathaway, and Rihanna, was spotted sporting a 70’s ensemble in New York.

With a platinum blonde long bob and over-sized sunglasses, Cate Blanchett looked unrecognizable during filming. The Oscar-winning actress was filming scenes with co-stars Bullock and Bonham Carter.

It’s yet unclear what kind of characters Cate Blanchett and fellow actresses are playing in the film, but since it’s the all-female Ocean’s Eleven spinoff, it’ll certainly have something to do with crime. The film is expected to be released in June 2018.

[Featured Image by KGC-146/STAR MAX/IPx/AP Images]

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