the soloist - production

the idea of the film 'the soloist' came from a newspaper article in 'the times' paper about a musician on the streets playing a 2 stinged cello. the nemspaper article then became a phenomenon. producers, Russ Krasnoff and Gary Foster had expressed deep interest in the story

the director, Joe Wright was chosen to direct the film after producer Gary Foster said ' when i saw 'Anointment' i got very excited because i could see that joe Wright was a man who believes in complex cimema'

for a complicated person like Nathaniel Ayres. the film makers knew that the character would be a demanding one to portray. for the actor would need to be able to travel the distance Nathaniel's undeniable genius and his moments of mental inbalance. Almost as soon as the script was completed, acadamy award winner, Jamie Foxx expressed interest in the role. although he came to the production an accomplished musician, he spent 6 months learning advanced violin and cello techniques. with the first meeting of Steve Lopez and Nathaniel, Foxx feels as though these two characters are 'butting heads' as Lopez wants to save Nathaniel's life but Nathaniel thinks his life doesn't need saving.

for Joe Wright, Robert Downey's audition was just as important as Foxx's. the director felt that Steve Lopez is the character who changes by the end of the film and that Downey brings 'a great humanity and a feirce intellect to the character'. It was Downey's initial meeting with the director that got him the part of Steve Lopez, Downey had said that he wanted the film not to be about mental illness but about faith.

the director, Joe Wright knew from the beginning of production that he wanted to draw extras for 'the soloist' from the ranks of the downtown Los Angeles community depicted in the film. for him the extras were the heart of the film and it's link to the real world. to find these homeless extras, the casting crew initiated a series of homeless outreach centres. afterwards signing up 450 extras with a group of 20 nicknamed 'the lamp chorus' who appear in several scenes with Downey and Foxx inside the Lamp community where Nathaniel Ayres resides.