The U.S. The Congress trailer has arrived for Waltz with Bashir director Ari Folman’s long-awaited follow-up feature.  The film is a live-action/animation hybrid adaptation of the classic Stainslaw Lem short story “The Futurological Congress” and follows an aging actress desperate for work (Robin Wright, playing a version of herself) who takes one last job to support her disabled son (Kodi-Smit McPhee).  The work she finds has her scanned into an animated world where the company will own her image, but she’ll be forever young.  It’s an incredibly beguiling premise, and this trailer is absolutely mesmerizing. Reviews have been strong for the thought-provoking pic, with our own Matt Goldberg calling it “as fascinating as it is gorgeous” in his review, and I'm really looking forward to catching the full feature later this year.

Hit the jump to watch the The Congress U.S. trailer.  The film also stars Jon Hamm, Danny Huston, Harvey Keitel, and Paul Giamatti and opens in theaters on August 29th.

Watch the The Congress trailer below, via Drafthouse Films.

Here’s the official synopsis for The Congress:

More than two decades after catapulting to stardom with The Princess Bride, an aging actress (Robin Wright, playing a version of herself) decides to take her final job: preserving her digital likeness for a future Hollywood. Through a deal brokered by her loyal, longtime agent (Harvey Keitel) and the head of Miramount Studios (Danny Huston), her alias will be controlled by the studio, and will star in any film they want with no restrictions. In return, she receives healthy compensation so she can care for her ailing son and her digitized character will stay forever young. Twenty years later, under the creative vision of the studio’s head animator (Jon Hamm), Wright’s digital double rises to immortal stardom. With her contract expiring, she is invited to take part in “The Congress” convention as she makes her comeback straight into the world of future fantasy cinema.