Written by new-contact on Sep 28, 2015. Posted in On Location

TV drama Gran Hotel to double Dominican Republic for 1950s Cuba

New TV drama Gran Hotel will recreate 1950s Cuba at Pinewood Dominican Republic Studios. The facility currently offers three stages – with a third in development – and a 60,500 sq ft Horizon Water tank. Producers can get a 25% tax credit as a filming incentive.

Gran Hotel is set in the years before Fidel Castro seized power in Cuba in 1959, reports TBI Vision. The show will be a remake of a successful Spanish-language series of the same name.

“Since the introduction of the film law and its incentives, the Dominican Republic has seen substantial growth in both film and television production,” said Antonio Gennari, CEO of Lantica Media, which manages Pinewood Dominican Republic Studios, in comments to the outlet: “The country offers mesmerising scenery and world-class production capabilities.”

The new series will follow a young man whose search for his missing sister brings him to Cuba’s luxurious Gran Hotel.

“Setting Gran Hotel in a sexy, sinful atmosphere offers up a rich fusion of glamour and intrigue deeply rooted in an exceptional murder mystery format with a proven global footprint,” added Chris Philip, head of production and distribution at the Televisa USA network.

Since the introduction of the film law and its incentives, the Dominican Republic has seen substantial growth.

Antonio Gennari, Lantica Media

With US-Cuba relations currently thawing, American drama series Cuba was recently announced to film on location in the country itself. Earlier this year, Conan O’Brien became the first US talk show host to film in Cuba since the trade embargo was launched by the US in 1962.

Pinewood Dominican Republic Studios recently hosted the high-concept thriller 47 Meters Down, telling the story of two sisters trapped in a shark cage on the Mexican seabed.

Next year the facility is scheduled to host Zorro Reborn, which will reboot the famous masked avenger for an adventure set in the near-future.