Pinewood studio group looking to target Far Eastern market

Pinewood Shepperton, the studios group behind a raft of blockbusters including the James Bond series and Harry Potter franchise, is considering creating a production site in the Far East.

According to The Telegraph, the company wants to open a Pinewood Studios in China or a neighbouring country such as Malaysia, after increasing appetite from Hollywood for Asian film sets.

It follows Pinewood's move into Toronto with Pinewood Toronto Studios. Canada has become a popular destination for film makers because labour is cheaper than in Los Angeles. Films and high budget television series are filmed in Pinewood Toronto Studios, which was established recently through a long-term marketing agreement aimed at leveraging the Pinewood brand internationally.

It is understood a move to the Far East – which may mean building new facilities or managing an existing facility under the Pinewood brand – would be a medium-term project but is likely to come before the construction of Project Pinewood in the UK.

In June, the company submitted a planning application for a 100-acre, £200m new set representing city streets including New York, Paris and Venice.

The plan is to sell flats and houses within the sets. Pinewood sources said the company has had hundreds
of letters from interested house hunters, with life on a Venetian film set in Buckinghamshire the preferred choice of most.

In Pinewood Shepperton's interim results statement, the company said: "In our market, the Pinewood brand is highly regarded and as part of our long term strategy, we continue to look to leverage its reputation by developing wider opportunities that benefit the group."

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