Inception, di Christopher Nolan

The Dark Knight was under the fake working title Rory's First Kiss during production in Chicago, and now it appears Inception is under the fake working title Oliver's Arrow. Inception, the upcoming film from director Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight, Memento, The Prestige) has been under a veil of secrecy since its announcement. The only clue to its plot was a vague description of "a contemporary sci-fi actioner set within the architecture of the mind." But with this new working title discovery, a few fresh details have emerged about the project.

So what proof is there that Oliver's Arrow is Inception? They key is to look at casting sites. ProductionWeekly.com gave a big hint by listing Inception as: "Inception" (aka "Oliver's Arrow") in one of their issues. SideExpress.com, which lists available sides (small portions of the script featuring a character for actors to use in the audition process), shows a project titled Oliver's Arrow with the casting director John Papsidera, but does not have a project titled Inception. Papsidera is the casting director for two films that are currently in pre-production, Inception and The Details, but not for a film called Oliver's Arrow. The Details, a black comedy, would have no reason to use a fake title, thus leaving Inception, which has maintained secrecy since its announcement. Finally, The Dark Knight's working title used one of Nolan's children, Rory, in the title. It is logical for Oliver's Arrow to be Inception's working title since Nolan also has a son named Oliver.

SideExpress.com lists the following film roles for Inception (as Oliver's Arrow) on their site: Philippa, James, Security Guard, Attendant, Cab Driver, and Thin Man. What casting information has also revealed is that the film will be shooting all around the world, including in Los Angeles, CA, in London, England, in Tokyo, Japan, in Paris, France, in Morocco, in Tangiers, and in Calgary, Canada.

Inception stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Marion Cotillard, Michael Caine, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, and Ken Watanabe. The film will be scored by composer David Julyan (The Prestige, Memento, Insomnia) and cinematography will be done by Wally Pfister, who has worked with Nolan on virtually every film and has received Academy Award nominations for his work on Batman Begins, The Prestige, and The Dark Knight. Inception begins filming July, 2009 and will release July 16th, 2010 under Warner Bros. Pictures.

When the project was first announced, most people assumed that Inception would be a smaller film that Christopher Nolan would film before returning to make a third Batman film. But with a budget of over $200 million (or possibly $178 Million if the initial number is Canadian dollars) , the film isn’t looking so small after all.

This according to The Calgary Sun, who also claims that the psychological thriller will be filming in five different countries, including a “significan portion” in Kananaskis, Alberta (a rural district situated to the west of Calgary in the footholls of the Canadian Rockies). Apparently Nolan visited Canada twice scouting locations, looking at nearby foothills and mountainous areas by helicopter before choosing Fortress Mountain as the main Alberta location. The newspaper insists that the location shooting will be significant, employing hundreds, if not thousands, of local film workers beginning this Summer when construction on an “elaborate set” is scheduled to begin.

The plot is being kept under lock and key. MTV recently asked Joseph Gordon-Levitt to talk about the movie, and the star reluctantly responded:

Here’s the thing… I cant wait to talk to you about [Inception] but I’ve been very specifically asked not to talk about it. I want to respect [director Chris Nolan's wishes] because I love his movies and I’m so honored and grateful to be working with him. He’s got a really specific idea and way he wants people to be presented with this thing.

A picture of Christopher Nolan, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Ken Watanabe featured in a Japanese publication has surfaced. The photo containing the Inception director, and two of its stars, was taken on June 15th in Tokyo, Japan (one of the reported filming locations of Inception). According to reports, filming is already underway in that country, which is only one of six reported countries the film is scheduled to shoot in.