British director Iain Softley has been tapped to helm New Line Cinemas family fantasy
Inkheart, says Variety.
The story revolves around a girl whose father has the power to bring characters from books to life by reading aloud. When a villainous ruler and his band of rogues from a children's fable kidnap the man, his daughter and her friends -- both real and imaginary -- must rescue him.
"What attracted me was the central idea of the power of imagination," said Softley. "There's an unlikely cooperation between a very disparate group of characters helping to reunite a family."
The project is eyeing to begin shooting in the spring or early summer, with a final release tentatively set for an Easter 2007 release.