Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Todd Phillips produce Bradley Cooper's new film as a director, "Maestro"

"Maestro" is the new film directed by actor Bradley Cooper, which has been selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.

The feature film tells the story of composer and pianist Leonard Bernstein and is an original Netflix release.

The production describes "Maestro" as a love story that narrates the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein and Costa Rican actress Felicia Montealegre Bernstein. They first met at a party in 1946 and got married five years later. They had three children, and their relationship endured until the actress passed away at the age of 56 due to lung cancer. The result of the screenplay co-written by Cooper himself is an "epic portrait of family and love, and also a love letter to life and art." The couple's children worked with Cooper to advise him on the screenplay.

In statements to the US media, the couple's children have expressed their excitement about this biopic. "We are truly moved. This is not strictly speaking a biographical film because it does not tell the story of Leonard Bernstein from birth to death. It's not that kind of movie at all; it's a portrayal of our parents' marriage, so it's something very specific and very personal to us. We are really surprised that this was the aspect of the story that Bradley decided to focus on, and we are very enthusiastic about the actress who plays our mother."

In addition to directing, co-writing, and co-producing, the actor Bradley Cooper also stars in the film, portraying Bernstein, alongside Carey Mulligan, who plays Felicia.

For several years, there had been attempts to bring the story of the composer of the soundtrack of "On the Waterfront" (1955) by Elia Kazan to the big screen. Those early attempts were with Paramount, with Martin Scorsese set to direct, but the filmmaker chose to pursue and get involved in "The Irishman" instead. Steven Spielberg was then in talks and suggested Bradley Cooper's name after seeing his directorial debut in "A Star Is Born" (2018). The project finally got the green light when it came under the wings of Netflix three years ago. Now, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Todd Phillips are producing this story.

The filming of the movie was completed last year in Massachusetts, East Hampton, and New York, with some scenes shot in England and Italy.

The Venice Film Festival will take place from August 30 to September 9.

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