Batmanglij and Marling wrote to have the anarchist organization target a multinational corporation instead of a government . Marling said , " Multinational corporations are outside of the purview of any nation-state . These are the entities that are shaping and running the world ... The modern anarchy movement is about rebelling against the corporate structure . " Batmanglij said the film focused on the pharmaceutical industry due to the writers hearing stories about the side effects of drugs , such as a drug to help quit smoking that resulted in some people committing suicide . He said they considered focusing on banks due to the financial crisis of 2007 – 2008 , but they chose the pharmaceutical industry so the mission in the film would have emotional resonance . They titled the film '' The East '' to make a variety of references . The director explained , " ' The East ' is ... the East Coast , which is like something in our American collective consciousness — New England , tony , center of power . The Wicked Witch of the East in the Oz mythology was the bad witch because the book was about how the Midwest was getting screwed over by the east , by Washington . And then of course we have the Middle East or the Far East , which is seen as different or other . The ultimate Other . So , it 's funny that this word means two things , and I thought that was an interesting name for a resistance group that is combined of kids from New England who want to make themselves the Other . " '' Sound of My Voice '' , directed by Batmanglij and starring Marling , screened at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival in January . Producer Michael Costigan , who liked '' Sound of My Voice '' , got a copy of the screenplay for '' The East '' . Costigan liked the screenplay and approached Batmanglij to say that he and his fellow producers Ridley Scott and Tony Scott at Scott Free Productions were interested in making the film . After the festival , Fox Searchlight Pictures acquired distribution rights for '' Sound of My Voice '' and '' Another Earth '' ( also starring Marling ) . In the process , the distributor greenlighted production of '' The East '' . By September 2011 , Marling and Alexander Skarsgård were cast in the starring roles . Felicity Jones was attached to play Izzy , but she dropped out to promote '' Like Crazy '' . Jones was replaced by Ellen Page
2011 Sundance Film Festival
2011 Sundance Film Festival
The East (film)