Who directed the Girl with the Pearl Earring

A. Mike Newell, the British director of Four Weddings And A Funeral, is directing the 10 million film. Kate Hudson, the Hollywood actress and daughter of Goldie Hawn, stars in the movie, the best-selling novel inspired by a Vermeer painting.

Q. Who was Vermeer

A. Johannes Vermeer is one of the great enigmas of 17th century art: his understated portraits of domestic life, with their subtle play of light and texture, define the Dutch Golden Age, but very little is known about the man himself. His portrait of the anonymous Girl with a Pearl Earring has fascinated art lovers across the world.

Only 35 of Vermeer's paintings, most of which depict women alone - reading a letter, playing a lute, pouring milk or weighing jewels - are known to exist.

Tracy Chevalier published Girl With a Pearl Earring in 1999 after becoming fascinated by the plain model's enigmatic half smile. Her novel, which has sold more than a million copies across the world, is an imaginative rendering of the life of the model, whom she names Griet and casts a 16-year-old housemaid whom becomes increasingly intimate with her master.

Kate Hudson, whose father is Bill Hudson, a comedian, will play the quietly perceptive griet after a personal endorsement from Miss Chevalier. The actress was nominated for an Oscar last year for her performance as a rock groupie in Almost Famous.

Q. Have many people even heard of Vermeer - will it be enough to make them see the film

A. The book has enjoyed extrordinary success and an exhibition, vermeer and the Delft School, has atrracted large crowds at the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square. The gallery says it has taken the unprecedented step of staying open late to cope with visitors to the exhibition.

Q. Who is making the film

A. The film, which is being funded by Intermedia, a british film-financing organisation, will be shot in Holland later this year. It is being produced by Archer Street, a British company.

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By Katharine MacColl