Director Ava DuVernay is hard at work on her upcoming big screen adaptation of classic novel "A Wrinkle in Time," but couldn't resist roping the cast and crew into participating in the latest internet craze, the Mannequin Challenge. Luckily for fans eager to learn more about the film, the fun diversion also served a dual purpose, with the clip ultimately ending on the reveal of the flick's release date.

But first, viewers were treated to an impressive display of dozens of crew members -- including camera operators, sound techs, craft service employees, hair and makeup artists, and any and every other position you can imagine that makes a film set hum -- all standing frozen in place. The camera pans through the maze of people, up the steps of what appears to be the Murray house (the home of the film's central family), where several young actors are prepping for the shoot (including recent addition Rowan Blanchard).

The clip ends with DuVernay herself framing a shot of the film's main star, Storm Reid (playing Meg Murray, the protagonist searching for her missing scientist father), clutching a copy of the film's script. On the cover is scrawled the release date: April 6, 2018.

"A Wrinkle in Time" also stars Chris Pine, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Zach Galifianakis, André Holland, Levi Miller, Deric McCabe, Bellamy Young, and Will McCormack. We can't wait to see the impressive cast in action in 2018.

[via: Ava DuVernay]

Photo credit: Ava DuVernay/Twitter