Kaufman and Sony in sync on "Synecdoche"

By Gregg Goldstein and Steven Zeitchik NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Sony Pictures Classics is in advanced negotiations to acquire "Synecdoche, New York," writer Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut and one of the more buzzed-about titles from this year's Cannes Film Festival. The film chronicles 40 years in the life of a writer played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, who sets out to stage the ultimate play. He spends decades creating an enormous set with actors who mirror him and the many women in his life (Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams, Catherine Keener, Emily Watson and others). The special effects-filled $20 million (9.99 million pounds) film received mixed reviews at the French festival, where it premiered in a two-hour, four-minute version, pared down from an original cut that ran a little over four hours. Kaufman --... [read full story]