Ed Solomon On ‘The Christophers,’ Creative Constraints, And Working With Steven Soderbergh [Interview]

Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Ed Solomon collaborated on 'The Christophers', a film about art, resentment, and creative disillusionment. The story revolves around Ian McKellen's Julian Sklar, a reclusive London painter, and Michaela Coel's Lori Butler, a young painter and forger. Julian's estranged children hire Lori to pose as his assistant and complete his unfinished canvases. Solomon recognized a personal story in the premise, exploring creative disillusionment and the tension between artists. The film was made with limited financial and geographic resources, which Solomon believes can be liberating for creativity. Soderbergh and Solomon's collaboration began with a conversation about making a contained, low-budget film with a heist premise, which eventually evolved into a character-driven story.