EXCLUSIVE: Eva Longoria and Eugenio Derbez are starring in Marcelo in the Real World, with Lucia Puenzo directing.

Produced by Zeta Studios and Elefantec Global, the film is an adaptation of Francisco X. Stork’s novel. Longoria and Derbez star alongside Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Mathew Borrero and Ema Giménez Zapiola. Production is getting underway in Uruguay and Boston.

The pic explores the challenges faced by a young man with autism spectrum disorder as he navigates his place in today’s highly competitive society.

Puenzo’s directing debut, XXY, won Grand Prize at Cannes Critics’ Week. She sparked to telling a story with a protagonist on the spectrum, moving between two very different worlds as a teenager on the autism spectrum transitioning from a special education environment into the mainstream workforce. Along the way, he faces pressure to conform to society’s expectations while fighting to remain true to who he is.

“Very few films capture that transition when young people on the autism spectrum are no longer children but have not yet achieved full independence,” Puenzo said. “Marcelo simply experiences the world differently, and his perspective will invite audiences to question what we understand as ‘normal.’”

Zeta Studios CEO Antonio Asensio said Marcelo “transcends borders through the universality of its story and the extraordinary talent of artists such as Eva Longoria and Eugenio Derbez.”

Elefantec Global founder José “Pepe” Bastón added: “We spent six years developing this story and getting it to exactly where it needed to be, because from the very beginning I knew this was the film I wanted to make. Today, with Lucía directing, a cast of this caliber and a production of this scale alongside our co-producers at Zeta, it is exactly the movie we set out to make.”