On Sept. 14, 2018, Paul Weitz’s latest film “Bel Canto” will be released in movie theaters nationwide. The film, adapted from the 2001 Anne Patchett novel of the same name, drew inspiration from the Japanese Embassy Hostage Crisis of 1996-97 and has become popular throughout the years. In 2015, the novel was turned into an opera, which was commissioned by Lyric Opera of Chicago, and penned by Peruvian composer Jimmy Lopez and librettist Nilo Cruz. A look into the power held by art and music to heal the divisions between people, the film boasts a cast of stars such as Julianne Moore and Ken Watanabe and features the voice of Renée Fleming, “an instrumental person in the development of the film,” Weitz noted in a recent interview with OperaWire.

Julianne Moore plays Roxane Cross, a star soprano whose performance in a South American embassy is cut short when the building and its occupants are taken hostage by a radical militia. Providing the singing voice for Julianne Moore’s character was Fleming, who worked with Weitz to pick out the repertoire and who was in every step of the process. “When moviegoers hear the arias, it will reflect the repertoire of an experienced performer,” says Weitz.

Among them is the “Song to the Moon,” from Dvorak’s “Rusalka,” the aria that brought Fleming great acclaim and put her in the spotlight when she performed it at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Weitz recalled Fleming describing the work in a nutshell as “The Little Mermaid,” “but it’s opera, so in the end, everybody dies.”

But it wasn’t only about Fleming’s voice for Moore. Weitz notes that when Moore and Fleming were in the recording booth, Moore studied Fleming’s movements and gestures during her singing.

“Julianne was standing just a few short feet away. Going beyond the surface, she paid close detail to the timing and placement of her breath, aligning it with Renée’s to provide for a seamless performance in scenes which feature her singing, whether it be Dvorak, Puccini, Villa-Lobos, and more,” noted Weitz.

While Moore is no stranger to characters in high-stakes situations, Weitz revealed that there was one part of the project where she did show some reluctance; having to actually sing the arias. “Julianne requested that Renée’s audio be played loud enough to drown out her own voice as she articulated the language of the various texts. There was one humorous moment where, as this was happening, Renée’s audio cuts out,” said Weitz. While the film itself has no shortage of drama, it’s a testament to music’s power that it can bring laughter even into the production process.

Audiences will no doubt take away much from this artistic thriller. Short of the opera house, the movie theater is the place to be to experience some beautiful singing. To learn more about how the film interacts with its audience, check out OperaWire’s Opera Meets Film feature on the movie.