The Florida Project trailer: Tangerine director's film tipped to be 'one of the great films about childhood'

'I can always tell when adults are about to cry'

Sean Baker's last film, Tangerine, was so alluring as it managed to take tricky subject matter (a transgender sex worker being screwed around by her pimp boyfriend) and make it almost light-hearted, honouring the sadness in the situation while also being very funny and not overly sombre like many indies.

The Florida Project is his follow-up, a candyfloss-coloured drama about life in an extended-stay motel just outside Disneyland.

Starring Willem Dafoe and six-year-old newcomer Brooklynn Prince, it looks a delight from the first trailer, capturing the energy with which children engage with the world.

Here's the synopsis from distributor A24:

'Set on a stretch of highway just outside the imagined utopia of Disney World, The Florida Project follows six-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince) and her rebellious mother Halley (Bria Vinaite) over the course of a single summer. The two live week to week at “The Magic Castle,” a budget motel managed by Bobby, whose stern exterior hides a deep reservoir of kindness and compassion.

Despite her harsh surroundings, the precocious and ebullient Moonee has no trouble making each day a celebration of life, her endless afternoons overflowing with mischief and grand adventure as she and her ragtag playmates—including Jancey, a new arrival to the area who quickly becomes Moonee’s best friend—fearlessly explore the utterly unique world into which they’ve been thrown. Unbeknownst to Moonee, however, her delicate fantasy is supported by the toil and sacrifice of Halley, who is forced to explore increasingly dangerous possibilities in order to provide for her daughter.'

The Florida Project has a limited release date of 6 October, 2017 in the US, with a UK one likely to follow.