When Emilia Jones spoke to The Hollywood News at the tail end of last year, she gave us a sneak preview of her next film. It was CODA, which went on to win multiple awards at Sundance and is now set for release in cinemas and on Apple TV+ this week.
She plays Ruby, the CODA – child of deaf adults – of the title, who comes from a fishing family, accompanying her father and brother (both deaf) as they trawl the local waters. She’s essential to the family and its business as their interpreter, their connection to the outside world, but it’s a responsibility that takes its toll on her school work. When she joins the choir, she discovers a real talent for singing, one that her teacher is convinced could take her to a specialist college. But Ruby is pulled in two directions – a longing to follow her own path and develop her talent and her love for her family, who could be lost without her.
In a return chat with us, she reflects on the overwhelming response to the film, something that had her on “cloud nine” while she was filming Locke And Key for Netflix, and how everybody involved in the film “put their heart and soul into the project.” She also talks about how she “fell in love with the language” and how she’s continued to use sign language, a skill she has learnt for life. The film itself, she believes, is “a love letter to family”, something that has struck a chord with audiences in the wake of the pandemic.
‘CODA’ is in cinemas and on Apple TV+ from 13 August.
