Touchstone Pictures’ ‘The Last Song’ Kicks off Production in Georgia

SAVANNAH, Ga.  — “THE LAST SONG,” a coming-of-age drama starring multi-talented singer/songwriter/actress Miley Cyrus, Kelly Preston and Greg Kinnear, begins production in Savannah, Ga., this week.  The film is based on best-selling novelist Nicholas Sparks’ forthcoming novel.

Hitting bookstores on September 8, 2009, Sparks’ “The Last Song” is the 15th book published by the novelist whose other books include “The Notebook,” “Message in a Bottle” and “Nights in Rodanthe.”  Though several of his books have been adapted to film, “The Last Song” is the first to make it to the big screen within the first year of publication.

“THE LAST SONG” is set in a small Southern beach town where an estranged father (KINNEAR) gets a chance to spend the summer with his reluctant teenaged daughter (CYRUS), who’d rather be home in New York. He tries to reconnect with her through the only thing they have in common—music—in a story of family, friendship, secrets and salvation, along with first loves and second chances.

Kinnear (“Little Miss Sunshine,” “Invincible,” “Baby Mama”) stars as the father, and Preston (“Jerry Maguire,” “Addicted to Love,” “The Cat in the Hat”) has been tapped to play the teen’s mother.  The film also features Bobby Coleman (“Friends with Money,” “Martian Child”), Liam Hemsworth (“Knowing”), Hallock Beals (“Letters from Iwo Jima”), Nick Lashaway (“The 40-Year-Old Virgin”) and Carly Chaikin (the upcoming feature “The Consultants”).

Julie Anne Robinson makes her feature-film directorial debut with “THE LAST SONG.”  Robinson has been twice nominated for a BAFTA (Best Single Drama, “Coming Down the Mountain” and Best Drama Serial, “Blackpool”) and received a Golden Globe® nomination (Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, “Blackpool”).  Her credits include a variety of television series, including “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Pushing Daisies,” “Weeds” and “Big Love.”  Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot, the duo behind “17 Again,” “Hairspray” and “Step Up,” produce; Dara Weintraub (“Superbad,” “Pineapple Express,” “17 Again” is co-producer.  Jeff Van Wie co-wrote the script with Sparks.

The creative team also includes cinematographer John Lindley (“Pleasantville,” “You’ve Got Mail,” “Mr. Brooks,” the upcoming “Imagine That”), costume designer Louise Frogley  (“Good Night, and Good Luck,” “Syriana,” “Oceans 13”) and production designer Nelson Coates (“The Proposal,” “Antwone Fisher,” “Runaway Jury”).