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Mayor promotes Seoul as film site in Hollywood

Sept. 29, 2014 - 20:35 By Claire Lee
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon spoke with “Star Trek” producer Jeffrey Chernov in an effort to attract more foreign studios to shoot their films in South Korea’s capital, during his ongoing U.S. tour in Los Angeles on Sunday.

The meeting took place some five months after shooting for the Hollywood blockbuster “Avengers 2” was held in Seoul back in April. The shoot was supported by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, led by Park, as well as South Korea’s central government.

Chernov in 2009 worked as executive producer on “Star Trek” for J.J. Abrams and Paramount Pictures. Along with Chernov, Park also met with American film director Roberto Orci, who is to direct the third installment of “Star Trek,” slated to be released in 2016. 
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon gives a special lecture at Stanford University on Sept. 25 during his ongoing U.S. tour. (Yonhap)

“Mayor Park spoke to them about what Seoul can offer as a filming site, as well as what they can receive from the local government should they choose to shoot movies in Seoul,” Seoul Metropolitan Government said in a statement.

Since 2007, the municipal government of Seoul has been offering financial support of up to 100 million won ($94,891) for foreign production houses that decide to film their projects in Seoul.

“The shooting of ‘Avengers 2’ was a great … opportunity for local filmmakers and producers to learn about Hollywood’s filmmaking system on top of promoting Seoul at the same time,” the Seoul government said in a statement.

Following the shooting of “Avengers 2,” American directors Lana Wachowski and Andy Wachowski’s project “Sense 8” is scheduled to be filmed in Seoul later this year, featuring Korean actress Bae Doo-na. Bae starred in the Wachowskis’ previous film “Cloud Atlas” (2012).

Mayor Park, a potential presidential candidate, embarked on his ongoing U.S. tour on Sept. 21. In Washington last week, he said Korea’s municipal governments, including his own, should be allowed to engage in business with Pyongyang, at a round-table forum at the Council on Foreign Relations.

He returns to Seoul on Tuesday. 

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)