Local Feature Film Eternity to Screen in Three Cities in China & Lucerne

Eternity, the feature film by New Zealand director Alex Galvin, has been officially selected as one of five feature films selected for the 2014 New Zealand Film Festival in the People’s Republic of China which is to take place between 24 April and 12 May in Beijing, Shanghai and Guilin. Eternity has now been selected into nine overseas film festivals.

Wellington film and entertainment lawyer Michael Stephens, NZ Co-Producer of Eternity said, “Around 100,000 people should attend screenings of the 7^th New Zealand Film Festival in China in each city and news of the festival on Chinese Television should reach a China wide audience, creating further recognition of great New Zealand Films offering a platform to generate more Chinese interest in this country including as a tourism destination.”

Eternity’s selection for the NZ Film Festival in China follows the film’s acceptance by the Lucerne International Film Festival’s Showcase in that city in October.

Eternity is a sci-fi thriller set in the near future. Filming took place in Wellington, the Kapiti Coast, the Hawke’s Bay and in Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong connection is particularly significant for the New Zealand Film Festival in China given that this is the most recent film collaboration between New Zealand and Asia. Not only were the key locations, cast and investment for the film drawn from both countries, but a number of the production elements for the Film were also shared between NZ and Hong Kong.

“China is now New Zealand’s largest trading partner and is potentially the one of the largest international markets for this countries film and digital entertainment sector. The Chinese film market has an estimated box office of over US$3 billion per year. Furthermore, we understand that on average each person in China will see at least 10 films per year, totalling some 20.0 billion RMB in cinema visits each year. The opportunity for the New Zealand film industry if it can collaborate with China is truly colossal,” Michael Stephens said.

Director Alex Galvin said, “Eternity was conceived from the outset as a New Zealand/Asia coproduction and won official selection to last year’s Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF), one of the largest film festivals in Asia with over 250 films screened over nine days and attended by more than 200,000 people.

“The New Zealand Film Festival in China not only provides further exposure for Eternity and the other films selected helping boost the profile of our industry and a willingness to enter into coproduction agreements. This willingness to see greater cooperation between the two countries film industries is underscored by the fact that the Chinese government has offered substantial financial support for the festival,” Alex Galvin said.

ENDS

 

About Eternity

Eternity is a New Zealand/Hong Kong sci-fi mystery feature film, written and directed by New Zealand filmmaker Alex Galvin.

This is Alex’s second feature-length film, following his critically acclaimed first feature When Night Falls (2007). It is the first official New Zealand/Hong Kong film collaboration, and combines fantastic locations, cast and crew from both countries.

Eternity takes place not only in the near future, but also in a city created totally within a computer game.

While visually stunning and epic in scope, Eternity is a low budget film that has achieved this through the incredibly hard work of all cast and crew, production companies, and the generosity of its sponsors and supporters.

The film has screened at several film festivals and won several awards. It had its World Premiere at the St Tropez Film Festival in October 2012 and its New Zealand Premiere at the Hastings Opera House in November 2012. In 2013, Eternity has won the Special Jury Prize at the California Film Awards.

The film was selected for screening at Cinema des Antipodes at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2013 and was the only New Zealand Film to screen at the Shanghai International Film Festival in June 2013. In July 2013, it was nominated for four awards at the 2013 Madrid International Film Festival and won two prizes: Best Editing of a Feature Film and Best Supporting Actor for Ralph Johnson.

For further information about Eternity see: http://www.eternity-thefilm.com/about/

 

01:30PM Friday, 14 March, 2014