From Anton Corbijn, photographer and director of the acclaimed Ian Curtis biopic Control (2007), comes Life, which premiered at the Berlinale this year and focuses on the friendship between Stock, a photographer for Life magazine (played by Robert Pattinson – Maps to the Stars) and a young rising star: James Dean (Dane DeHaan – Kill Your Darlings).
Hard-working, Los Angeles-based Stock is disillusioned by his job photographing celebrities at premieres and parties – and dreams of becoming an artist. Meeting the odd, aloof Jimmy Dean – who’s up for a role in Nicholas Ray’s latest – at a party one night, he’s immediately fascinated by him, and wants to collaborate.
Heading to New York together, they suffer struggles in their respective careers; Dean facing pressure from studio head Jack Warner (Ben Kingsley) and Stock lacking inspiration. But then – just before the premiere of East of Eden – they escape to Dean’s Indiana hometown, where the magic starts to happen.