Self determination describes A-list actor Robert Redford (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Natural, The Great Gatsby), on and off the screen. His latest film, the survival drama All Is Lost, exemplified that in May, when he received an 8-minute standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival premiere.

Writer-director J.C. Chandor’s second film, All Is Lost, places Redford alone at sea in a sinking ship, with little but a survival instinct to buoy him. Chador’s first film, Margin Call, was nominated for an Oscar for its verbally dexterous screenplay and multi-dimensional characters. In this film, Chandor has done just the opposite. Robert Redford is the only man on screen throughout the entire film, and he has only a few lines of dialogue, weighing heavily on the ancient maxim, ‘action is character’.

With no explanation, Robert Redford’s nameless character sails alone on the Indian Ocean. His 37- foot yacht, the Virginia Jean, is all the background or exposition the audience is given in this high-stakes scenario. He falls asleep one night and wakes to a crash the next morning. A random metal container has fallen from a cargo ship, striking and perforating the Virginia Jean. The boat is rapidly flooded, all communication is disabled, a violent storm is approaching, and there is no hope for rescue. Redford has been placed in a crucible where his want and need have  become one – survival.

Lionsgate and Roadside Films will release the film in association with Black Bear Pictures and Treehouse Pictures. Neal Dodson, anna Gerb, Justin Nappi and Teddy Schwarzman produce.