Adaptations of original pieces of literature are about as daring as things get in Hollywood of late, so the news that Columbia Pictures have acquired the rights to a marginal best-seller comes as a real surprise. What makes
the optioning of the rights to
Moonwalking With Einstein:
The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by scientific journalist
Joshua Foer different is that it features an account of his real life investigation into memory, training his own, and subsequently winning the 2006 USA Memory Championship. The Penguin Press released book examines methods of memorizing that Foer learned and devised during his training, primarily with many time British memory champion, Ed Cooke. Doug Belgrad, Columbia chairman, said the following about the companys proud acquisition:
This is a very special book which transcends the already fascinating subject of memory. By explaining in personal and entertaining fashion a great deal about how our brains work, Joshua has written a book that sheds light on how memory is connected to humanity.
The development of the adaptation will be overseen by Hannah Minghella (Salt) and Rachel OConnor (Shalom in the Home), and no director or potential stars have yet been leanked. Nor has the revelation of just how you translate this book into a motion picture...
