Perelman to re-write, direct Atlas Shrugged

Variety reports that Vadim Perelman, writer-director of House of Sand and Fog (2003), has been hired to direct Atlas Shrugged:

Perelman will work from a draft of the script penned by “Braveheart” scribe Randall Wallace, who managed to boil down the Rand manifesto of 1,100-plus pages into a 127-page script. The drama revolves around what happens when great industrialists and thinkers go on strike and the world grinds to a halt.

Wallace will remain involved, and in a recent meeting with Perelman, the pair traded Russian dialogue. Perelman was born in Kiev, while Wallace has picked up the language researching his Catherine the Great pic “The Mercenary”; Rand was born in Russia. Perelman has brought his own take that will be incorporated into Wallace’s script.

The filmmakers reportedly hope to start shooting the film in early 2008, with Angelina Jolie in the starring role.