Moody and atmospheric, Reaching for the Moon is the story of the unlikely and often tumultuous relationship between two extraordinary women: American poet Elizabeth Bishop (Miranda Otto) and Lota de Macedo Soares (Gloria Pires). Struggling with writer’s block, Bishop opts for a “geographic cure” and travels from New York to Rio de Janeiro to visit her college friend, Mary. There Bishop meets Mary’s partner, Lota, and the two women become embroiled in a tempestuous relationship that will span decades.