Teamwork

Edward James Olmos and director Robert M. Young--who have worked together on four films, including the just-out “Triumph of the Spirit”--are reteaming for a fifth. This time it’s “Talent for the Game,” with Olmos, once a promising amateur baseball player, playing a baseball scout in search of potential athletic stars.

Young told us the pic will be much more than a sports movie: “Though we’ll see the beauty of the game, we’ll also see the beauty of discovery--because the movie is about discovering that it’s OK to be who you really are.” Olmos’ character, he added, “isn’t the guy out in front. He’s the guy in the back. He knows he’ll never become as wealthy or as famous as the men he’s discovering.”

Martin Elfand is producing and Frank Pierson is scripting, for Paramount Pictures. Shooting is anticipated to begin in February.

Young said to look for “a wonderful romantic relationship” involving Olmos and a yet-to-be-cast female character.

Other works in the Young-Olmos collaboration: “Alambrista!” (1977), “The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez” (1982) and “Saving Grace” (1986).

Said Young: “You could safely say that we enjoy working together.”