It’s surprising to learn that Russian filmmaker Kantemir Balagov hasn’t shot a single frame of his upcoming film “Butterfly Jam”. In fact, the leads have only just been cast.
Here’s Variety saying that Barry Keoghan and Riley Keough have been cast in “Butterfly Jam” and that cameras are supposed to start rolling imminently.
Synopsis: “Set against the backdrop of New Jersey’s Circassian community, the drama revolves around a teenager whose father and aunt run a struggling diner specializing in Circassian cuisine. When he’s not helping out in the restaurant, the boy is training to become a professional wrestler. After one of his father’s misguided schemes goes wrong, the boy is forced to take on board his father’s failings as he finds himself confronted with a violence that will force him to grow up faster than he would like.”
A few years ago, Balagov had left Russia and was stuck in Georgia working on an American VISA. He’s now living in New Jersey with a more durable O1B Visa. Given his distaste for Putin, he certainly won’t be going back to the motherland.
Balagov originally planned to shoot “Butterfly Jam” in Russia. He finally decided to rewrite the story and set it in a Circassian diaspora community of New Jersey. The film will be both English and Russian.
Balagov’s last film was “Beanpole,” which premiered at Cannes 2019 (review). It was this fascinating, disturbing, and madly uneven war movie. Regardless, ”Butterfly Jam” will certainly be one of the titles spitballed for potential Cannes 2026 appearance.