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- KIM Ki-duk Partners with Dick Cook Studios for Chinese Anti-War Film
- by Pierce Conran / Aug 05, 2016
- Indie Auteur Enters Big-Budget Realm with WHO IS GOD?
For his 23rd feature film project, indie auteur KIM Ki-duk is making a big leap with Who Is God?, which will mark both the filmmaker’s big-budget and Chinese-language debut. Pegged at USD 37 million, the anti-war film will be produced by Dick Cook Studios and Film Carnival.The bulk of the film’s production budget will come from the Hangzhou-based securities firm Huafeng Investment Consultation and the shoot will be handled by Film Carnival while DCS will take care of pre-production, post-production and the film’s eventual international distribution. Last year, DCS, which is run by former Disney Chairman Dick Cook, received financing from the Chinese conglomerate CITIC Guoan to form a production studio.Director KIM calls the film a “story of a conflict of faith,” with narrative strands that will be “richly interwoven with philosophy and Buddhist allegory.” According to Film Carnival, the script for Who Is God? has already met Chinese censorship standards and the outfit expects no problems for the completed project to be granted a release in China.The project is aiming to get production underway in the fall and hopes to cast LIU Yifei in the lead, a Chinese star known for White Vengeance (2011) and The Assassins (2012) among others, though a contract has yet to be finalized. The film is also in talks with a technical team that would include legendary choreographer YUEN Wo-ping and The Lord of the Rings special effects supervisor Jim Rygiel.Meanwhile, KIM will premiere his latest film The Net, which stars RYOO Seung-bum, at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival.
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