BELGA PRODUCTIONS

Wallonia hosts and co-finances 11 new co-productions

Nearly €1.35 million will be invested in 4 live feature films, 2 animated feature films, 2 series, 2 documentaries and a collection of humorous capsules.
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Four of these works are of Belgian initiative, seven are minority co-productions; France remains the preferred partner, alongside Canada, Italy, Norway, Germany and Luxembourg. Selected within the framework of the 110th session of the Walloon regional fund, these new projects should generate more than €8 million in expenditure in Wallonia.

After having financed Toto's jokes, Wallimage is thus supporting the second part of its adventures, entitled Toto goes green, currently being filmed by Pascal Bourdiaux in Belgium and Luxembourg, with Gavril Dartevelle and Guillaume de Tonquédec in the main roles. . Like the previous one, this comedy with a budget of €7.5 million is produced in Belgium with tax shelter financing by Frakas Productions, alongside Superprod (France) and Bidibul (Luxembourg).

Another French comedy aimed at a very wide audience, The Three Revenges of Master Poutifard is the new feature film by PEF (Pierre-François Martin-Laval). Adapted from the children's books of Jean-Claude Mourlevat, it depicts the revenge of a retired teacher vis-à-vis his former students. The main roles will be played by Christian Clavier and Isabelle Nanty. Managed in Belgium by Umedia, this UGC production is partially filmed in Brussels, Flanders and Wallonia where the image editing and part of the VFX will also be carried out.

Led by Joseph Rouschop, the Liège company Tarantula is participating in a sixth co-production with its Italian colleague Vivo Film, Superluna by Federico Bondi (Dafne). It tells how a small village organizes itself after a devastating earthquake. Filming is taking place this summer in Italy with a few Belgian technicians, with all post-production planned in Belgium. "It should be noted that Superluna should be the first film supported by Wallimage to obtain a Green label for its entire production process", underlines the fund.

Benoît Roland (Wrong Men) carries the new feature film project by Claude Schmitz (Braquer Poitiers, Lucie loses his horse), entitled L’Autre Laurens. This fake film noir tells how a private detective, caught up in a strange investigation mixing pretense, fantasies and drug trafficking, is confronted with the ghosts of his past. To meet the artistic wishes of the director, this Belgian initiative film with a modest budget will be shot largely in the South West of France but will include Belgian expenses throughout the production chain.

In terms of animation, the Wallimage line-up has been enriched with two feature films. Produced in Belgium by Umédia, Planètes by Japanese director Momoko Seto will mix live action and animation to tell the story of the misadventures of four dandelion seeds (achenes) escaping

to the destruction of their field by a nuclear explosion and in search of a new soil favorable to the survival of their species. Seven artists led by Guyone Leroy (Toy Story, Chicken Run) will work on the project for six months at the MPC studio in Liège. The project is piloted in France by Ecce Films and Miyu Productions.

After Titina (expected in theaters in early 2023), producer Viviane Vanfleteren (Vivi Film) is back on a new Norwegian feature film, Valemon, the legend of the white bear, based on a famous Scandinavian tale, in partnership with Belga production and Maipo Film (Norway). With funding expected in all three regions, the work and expenses will be split between a Flemish studio, a Brussels studio and Dreamwall in Wallonia.

Two international series

This summer session of Wallimage also has two major international series to its credit. Beyond Black Beauty is a 12 x 30 minute children's series adapted from a classic Anna Sewell novel that was previously made into a feature film in 2020, airing on Disney+. A young Belgian rider dreaming of the Olympic Games develops a strong bond with a stallion on her mother's American ranch.

The series is produced in Canada by Sinking Ship Entertainment and Leif Films for Amazon Prime, in partnership with Saga Film in Belgium. Twenty-one days of filming are planned in Wallonia for the last two episodes of season 1.

Belga brings to Belgium the entire filming of a German miniseries, Night in Paradise, based on a graphic novel by Frank Schmolke; we follow a taxi driver in an apocalyptic night that occurred in Munich during the Oktoberfest. It is produced in Germany by Windlight Pictures for the Starzplay platform. In addition to filming, Wallonia will host a large part of the post-production (sound, VFX, music, etc.).

Finally, this latest Wallimage selection includes two documentaries. After Les enfants de la collaboration, broadcast in the fall of 2020 by RTBF, Anne-Cécile Huwart and Tristan Bourlard will deliver a second part at the end

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