Tony Winner Ellen Burstyn to Star in and Direct BATHING FLO

Deadline writes that Oscar, Tony and Emmy winner Ellen Burstyn will make her feature directorial debut with BATHING FLO. The actress is also set to star in the project.

"...when they sent me this BATHING FLO script to act in, I began picturing scenes I just loved," Burstyn told Deadline. "And they loved the way I pictured it and I just thought, 'Why am I not directing this?'...I never found something I really felt I wanted to direct, until now."

BATHING FLO is inspired by the life of Thruline manager and producer Danny Sherman. Set in New York, it "centers on a man in need of a place to live, who's given the chance to house sit in exchange for free rent. He discovers the house is occupied by the man's elderly mother Flo, who is part of the deal."

The movie is written by Lauren Lake with help from Danny Brocklehurst and Sherman. Lake and Sherman are also producing alongside Erica Steinberg.

Burstyn is a six-time Oscar nominee, as well as a Triple Crown Winner, who in 1974 won both the Oscar for ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE and the Tony for SAME TIME, NEXT YEAR. Her Emmy followed 24 years later for LAW & ORDER: SVU, and for over five decades, audiences have enjoyed her performances both on and off-Broadway, as well as regionally in theaters around the country. She also became a national best-selling author with her 2006 memoir LESSONS IN BREATHING. Burstyn, who teaches and lectures regularly, holds five honorary doctorates, and is currently co-president/artistic director of the famed Actors Studio.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride