Welcome to Marwen is a fantastical drama that stars Steve Carrell (Mark Hogancamp) and Janelle Monáe (GI Julie). It is based on a true story of Hogancamp, a doll photographer and artist who was attacked by five neo-nazis in 2000 after they found out he was a crossdresser. The brutal beating him left him in a coma for nine days and with severe memory loss, reports The Guardian.

According to the film synopsis, “Putting together pieces from his old and new life, Mark meticulously creates a wondrous town where he can heal and be heroic. As he builds an astonishing art installation—a testament to the most powerful women he knows—through his fantasy world, he draws strength to triumph in the real one.”

Monáe’s character is one of those dolls who protects Hoggie from the Nazis in WWII. In the real world, she is Hogancamp’s physical therapist and a wounded veteran.

Welcome to Marwen is directed by Robert Zemeckisopens and opens in theaters on Nov. 21.