Chris Hemsworth, star of new Marvel sequel Thor: The Dark World, has praised the UK’s location filming opportunities. The movie shot mostly at Shepperton Studios and on location in and around London, marking a production shift for Marvel.
Location filming in Los Angeles increased by nearly 10% in the third quarter of 2013 compared to the same period last year, the city has announced. Feature production rose by nearly 20% between July and September, while commercial filming went up by 18%.
Construction has begun on Park City Film Studios near Salt Lake City in Utah with a ground-breaking ceremony. Over the course of a staged development, the studio will eventually offer a main 45,000-square-foot sound stage and a smaller divisible 15,000-square-foot stage among its facilities.
The Wanda Group in China has unveiled plans for a major new film studio in Qingdao in the north-east of the country. An investment of about USD8.2 billion is planned to deliver a 10,000-square-metre studio complex and 19 smaller stages, as well as a theme park, hotels and bars.
Eric Garcetti, the Mayor of Los Angeles, is under continuing pressure to appoint a so-called ‘film czar’, whose job it will be to boost the city’s production industry. Los Angeles has a problem with runaway productions and the film czar will have the unenviable task of reversing the trend.
North Carolina faces a long-term production challenge as it is set to cancel its generous 25% filming incentive on 1st January 2015. The state has recently hosted high-profile productions like Under the Dome, but lawmakers want to redirect funds to boost other parts of the economy.
Disney’s big-budget feature production of The Lone Ranger built Western sets for extensive filming in New Mexico. Based on the classic 1950s TV series, the film features Johnny Depp as Tonto and Armie Hammer as Ranger John Reid.
Sony has announced it will be opening a new Digital Motion Picture Centre at Pinewood Studios near London in the next few weeks. The centre will offer training resources for Sony’s latest cameras and digital technologies through structured courses and informal discussions.