The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz
The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz |
| ‘Crouching Tiger’ prequel to film in New Zealand Posted: 21 Apr 2014 10:20 PM PDT The original movie, released in 2000, broke new ground in introducing Western audiences to Chinese cinema and Film Auckland's deputy chairman Alex Lee said securing the follow-up was a major coup for New Zealand. "Over the last 18 months it's been very quiet and it's nice we're finally getting traction," he told Radio New Zealand. "It's a production that will require a vast number of resources, facilities, technicians and crew." New Zealand is no stranger to big-budget movie shoots, providing stunning backdrops for both the "Lord of the Rings" and "Hobbit" trilogies. But Lee said subsidy changes allowing major productions to claim back up to 25% of their budget as rebates were a decisive factor in Auckland winning the "Crouching Tiger" prequel. "It's quite clear that until the decision to increase the incentives for international films to come to New Zealand we were just not competitive," he said. "Crouching Tiger" made US$213.5 million (RM694.2 million) globally, according to industry website Box Office Mojo, including US$128 million in the United States – unprecedented at the time for a foreign language movie. It also won four Oscars in 2001, including best foreign film, and launched the Hollywood career of director Ang Lee, who went on to win two best director Academy Awards for "Brokeback Mountain" and "Life of Pi". Film industry bible Variety reported that Malaysia's Michelle Yeoh will reprise her role as a warrior in the prequel, to be titled "The Green Destiny". It said Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein's The Weinstein Company is co-producing the film with New Zealand's Iron Knight Productions. Yuen Woo-ping, who co-ordinated the eye-popping action scenes in the original, will reportedly direct, using a script which has been approved by officials in Beijing. The green light from Beijing is important because it ensures access to the rapidly growing Chinese market, where box office takings soared 36% to an estimated US$1.8 billion over the first six months of 2013. The Chinese market is expected to overtake the US market by 2020, prompting keen interest from Hollywood. – AFP, April 22, 2014. |
| Oscar show producers to return in 2015 Posted: 21 Apr 2014 08:47 PM PDT The duo – famed for big-screen musicals such as "Chicago," "Footloose" and "Hairspray" – were re-hired after successfully producing the 2013 and 2014 shows that both saw jumps in audience numbers. "We couldn't be more thrilled to have Craig and Neil back to produce the Oscars again in 2015," Cheryl Boone Isaacs, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, said in a statement. "Their showmanship has elevated the show to new heights and we are excited to keep the momentum going with this creative partnership." Zadan and Meron said they were "proud of the show's success over the last two years" and were "eager to embark on another entertaining show to honour this year's motion pictures." The 86th Academy Awards on March 2 was watched by 45.4 million viewers in the United States, the largest audience in 10 years for the movie industry's biggest night of the year. The ceremony, hosted by comedian Ellen DeGeneres, included several well-received musical slots from performers such as Pharrell Williams, Pink, and Idina Menzel. And not to be missed was a star-studded "selfie" that became a Twitter sensation, eventually retweeted 32.8 million times. Next year's Oscars will take place February 22 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Nominations will be announced on January 15. – AFP, April 22, 2014. |
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