On the heels of receiving his KING KONG Oscar, Joe Letteri of Weta Digital will next supervise vfx for THE WATER HORSE from Walden Media, Beacon Pictures and Revolution Studios.
THE WATER HORSE will be brought to the screen by director Jay Russell (LADDER 49, MY DOG SKIP), with screenwriter Robert Nelson Jacobs (THE SHIPPING NEWS, CHOCOLAT) adapting Dick King-Smith's (BABE, THE GALLANT PIG) book. The film will be produced by Robert Bernstein (CHARLOTTE GRAY, MRS. BROWN), Douglas Rae (CHARLOTTE GRAY, MRS. BROWN), Barrie Osborne (THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy) and Charlie Lyons (FIREWALL).
The film is expected to begin production in May in Scotland and New Zealand.
THE WATER HORSE tells the magical story of a lonely boy in Scotland who finds a mysterious egg on the shore of a loch. When the egg hatches, what emerges is a "water horse," a mythical sea monster of Scottish legend. But as the rapidly growing beast becomes harder to conceal from those who see it as a threat, the boy must find new ways to protect the misunderstood creature.
Letteri joined Weta Digital in 2001 as visual effects supervisor for THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS and THE RETURN OF THE KING (both Oscar winners for Best Visual Effects). Prior to joining Weta, Letteri was a visual effects supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic. Weta was formed in 1993 by several New Zealand filmmakers, including Peter Jackson.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
