South African-born filmmaker Oliver Hermanus has been making films for some time, but he first started getting larger international attention with his 2019 film, Moffie, which he followed by adapting Akira Kurosawa’s 1952 film, Ikiru, into 2022’s Living, which was nominated for two Oscars, including the first-ever Oscar nomination for actor Bill Nighy.
Hermanus’ new film, The History of Sound, is just as powerful a drama, a period piece starring two of Britain’s top male actors, Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor, as Lionel and David, two young men who meet in the early part of the 20th Century at school in New England and connect over a mutual passion for folk music. Years later, the two of them head on a journey across the American South collecting regional folk songs, as their romance blossoms until David is called off to serve in WWI. The movie is based on a short story by Ben Shattuck, who adapted his own work into the feature film for Hermanus to direct, the duo creating an expansive and emotional dramatic film that covers all of Lionel’s life. Oscar winner Chris Cooper acts as the older Lionel, who also narrates the film.
Cinema Daily US had a chance to speak with Hermanus in a Zoom interview that you can watch in the player above. The History of Sound will be released in select theaters beginning this Friday, September 12.
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Director: Oliver Hermanus
Screenwriter: Ben Shattuck
Cast: Paul Mescal, Josh O’Connor, Chris Cooper, Raphael Sbarge, Emily Bergl,
Molly Price, Hadley Robinson
Producer: Lisa Ciuffetti, Sara Murphy, Andrew Kortschak, Thérèsa Ryan, Zhang Xin
Production Co: Film4, End Cue, Fat City, Tango Entertainment, Closer Media, Storm City Films
Distributor: Mubi
Rating: R (Some Sexuality)
Genre: Drama
Language: English, Italian
Release Date (Theaters): September 12, 2025 (limited)
Runtime: 2 hours, 7 minutes
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You can watch the trailer for The History of Sound below: