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“Go to England, or die trying.”
It’s no easy task.
You’d be forgiven, though, for never having heard of Trudy Ederle.
She successfully swam the Channel way back in 1926, and her memory has faded over time.
Young Woman and the Sea, however, is out to change that.
So that was the first thing that struck me, and almost feeling an urgency, or an obligation.
And that was a huge inspiration in itself."
“So it’s wonderful to be honoring her.
“She was the first woman to swim the English Channel.
Only five men had done it before.
Not only did she swim it, she beat the men’s record by two hours.
Just think about that.
And she’s forgotten.
So you want individuals like this to inspire other people, especially women.
And that’s why we made the movie.
All of those are about individuals that should not be forgotten and were forgotten.
You’re not going to forget about these characters anymore.”
In true Trudy Ederle spirit, though, she didn’t let that stop her.
“And she [said], ‘Yeah, let’s do it.
This story deserves it.’
And she trained for months, open water swimming, and we got out there.”
“If I had to do that for myself, I would never.
I do not like open water.
“Answered prayers to the movie gods!”
“Her stamina and her will it’s a very physical role, and very few can do that.
And delivering lines, and being out there: I can’t do it.
I just felt lucky to have a camera on her.
“This was made for streaming, yet it turned out so well.
“I’ve made some pretty big hits.
So, you want to see this expansive ocean.
You want to hear it.
It’s that kind of movie.
It’s a real audience movie.”
“I grew up by the ocean and I’m drawn to it,” says Rnning.
“Its beauty, its dangers.
And it symbolizes Trudy’s obstacles and what she has to overcome.”
As Bruckheimer tells it, too, the sea was consistently the biggest challenge in filming the movie.
“It’s always the water,” he says.
It’ll be sunny.
It’ll be rainy.
It’ll be stormy.
It’ll be beautiful.
“The response from people has been really wonderful, in people going, ‘I want to swim.
“So being in amongst that conversation is really wonderful.
She’s doing it because she loves it.
And she was told she can’t, and she wants to do more.
“Making this film has not been easy,” says Rnning.
But it took us 10 years, so it’s kind of an echo of Trudy.
Trudy Ederle, then, is not a name anyone is likely to forget again.
Young Woman and the Sea is out in select UK cinemas now.
