‘Snowden’ Producers Adapting Hermann Hesse’s ‘Demian’ Into Feature Film (Exclusive)

Producers Eric Kopeloff and Philip Schulz-Deyle have optioned Hermann Hesse’s “Demian” and plan to adapt the novel into a feature film. Nick Kreiss (“Afraid”) has penned a screenplay with cinematographer Andre Lascaris (“About Alex”) and under the supervision of the Hesse estate.The book was a bestseller in the U.S. and its story of spiritual enlightenment and self-discovery resonated first with readers in the post-World War I period and then later with members of the American counterculture of the 1960s, who embraced the novel yet again. It found favor with the likes of Timothy Leary and Colin Wilson, who became enthusiastic boosters of the Hesse canon. Kopeloff thinks the time is ripe for a new generation to rediscover “Demian.”“We’re living in a digital age, where a lot of our lives are dictated by social media,” he says. “There’s an externalization of identity. This story is a fresh contrast. ...