Walden Media and New Line are teaming to co-finance JOURNEY 3-D, a modern spin on the Jules Verne classic JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH. Academy Award-winning effects man Eric Brevig will make his directing debut on the film, which will be based on a screenplay by D.V. DeVincentis (HIGH FIDELITY). Visual effects vet Charlotte Huggins will produce the project, which is set to start production in April.
The story follows a teen and his scientist father who try to solve a message hidden in an ancient artifact that transports them to a previously unseen world filled with strange creatures.
The live-action/photoreal CG film will use cameras specially developed for Walden's large-format 3-D films, which include James Camerons GHOSTS OF THE ABYSS and ALIENS OF THE DEEP.
"In our never-ending push to get young people to read books, a central premise is to use the Verne book as a map," said Walden Media ceo Cary Granat. "The scientist makes the discovery that Verne might have gone down to the center of the Earth himself, and that he hid clues in the text. The hope is that a lot of people will read the book to discover the clues."
New Line's Cale Boyter and Michael Disco will shepherd the project with Walden's Alex Schwartz and Evan Turner.
Founded by Cary Granat, former president of Miramax Films Dimension label, and education reformer Micheal Flaherty, Walden Media, a subsidiary of AFG, produces films, television and theater for a family audience. For more information, visit www.walden.com.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
