Icelandic star Emiliana Torrini on The Extraordinary Miss Flower

In The Extraordinary Miss Flower, the new film from directing team Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard screening this week at DIFF, Icelandic singer adapts a cache of letters to Geraldine Flower – the extraordinary individual of the title, and mother of film producer Zoe Flower – into a series of entrancing tunes, varying from upbeat, danceable numbers to introspective ballads.

For good measure, the missives are also read by an array of notable figures, including comedy stars Richard Ayoade and Alice Lowe, and cult musician Nick Cave. Raised in Australia by an English father and an Irish mother from Dublin, Geraldine Flower would indeed have a remarkable life, working in media and travelling extensively.

And as revealed in the letters discovered by Zoe after her death, Geraldine had numerous suitors throughout her life, receiving nine different marriage proposals at different stages. But in a detail reminiscent of a John Le Carre novel, many of the letters were actually from international spies, adding a remarkable layer of intrigue to the film.

It’s noticeable how beautifully written the love letters in the film are, with Geraldine motivating prompting her correspondents to hit some remarkable literary heights.

“I do think that people are like that, because this is the way we had conversations,” reflects Emiliana, talking to Hot Press before arriving in Dublin. “Nowadays, we are so much in a world where we are editing pictures of ourselves – PR-ing ourselves, really. Back then, that just was not done. When you wrote a letter, you really trusted a person with a piece of your soul. I don’t think people were so self-editing – with letters, you fall into a flow of talk. In some ways, you’re talking to yourself, and another way, you’re talking to the other person.

“When that flow happens, it’s quite rare. It’s like when you’re drawing, when you’re a kid – there’s a certain type of space you’re in. People wrote really beautifully at that time.”

It was an interesting choice to have comedy actors like Lowe and Ayoade read the letters, giving the film a nice humorous texture.

“Most of the film is done with acquaintances and friends, and the actors were people Zoe had worked with,” says Emiliana. “I’m a huge comedy fan, so I was completely thrilled to have them. I’ve met Alice a few times and I just adore her – she’s completely in a league of her own. I’d only met Richard once, but I’m a huge fan of his. I also thought it made sense, because the letters are very humorous. You can also read letters with so many different emotions.

“For me, it was also interesting to see the difference between how I read the letters and how the actors did. They read them with a completely different rhythm, so when I saw their readings, I was going, ‘Wow, that’s a completely new voice to the one I have in my head.’ But it was just brilliant, I really loved the experience.”

As Torrini notes, throughout her life, Geraldine Flower was a hugely popular character.

“Every time there as a party at Zoe’s, the whole party would end up upstairs at Geraldine’s,” she recalls. “We all called her Mum-aldine! She was a very big part of the whole friend circle. A lot of the people working on the film knew her, and we all just adored Zoe, so we were very invested in this story for her and her mum. There was such a connection through that on set, it was actually quite magical.”

“Geraldine was the kind of person, who when she was going to do something, she just did it. At one point, she went out with a farmer, and she got this idea, where she went, ‘This is ridiculous – why is there not a phone book for the farmers, so they can actually talk to each other?’ That way they could be more informed about each other, and their products and stuff. So she set out to make the farmer’s phone book basically.

“But that was kind of stolen off her in the end, and she put a lot of work into it. She’d just get these ideas and start them, and no one was in her way! She was a really powerful and intelligent woman, and vulnerable at the same time. And very interesting and humorous.”

The Extraordinary Miss Flower is out May 9 and screens at the Light House Cinema this Friday at 9pm, as part of DIFF. You can purchase tickets here.