Karen Gillan sci-fi tale ‘Dual’ starts production in Finland with Aaron Paul and Beulah Koale
22.10.2020
First Hollywood production to be shot entirely in Finland
Production is underway in Tampere, Finland on director Riley Stearns’ satirical sci-fi thriller DUAL, starring Karen Gillan (JUMANJI: Welcome to the jungle), Aaron Paul (“El Camino: A Breaking Bad Film" and "Westworld”) and Beulah Koale (“Hawaii Five-O”).
Stearns wrote the script and is producing alongside XYZ Films and Lee Kim, with Film Service Finland providing production services. XYZ is financing the film via its fund backed by Helsinki-based IPR.VC, with additional production financing from BondIt Media Capital and Head Gear Films who are executive producing. XYZ is also handling global sales and co-representing the US with CAA Media Finance and UTA Independent Film Group.
The film is about a woman (Gillan) who, upon receiving a terminal diagnosis, opts for a cloning procedure to ease her loss on her friends and family. When she makes a sudden and miraculous recovery, her attempts to have her clone decommissioned fail and lead to a court-mandated duel to the death.
DUAL marks the first Hollywood production to shoot entirely in Finland. The production is receiving support from Business Finland and Film Tampere, and employs approximately 100 Finnish film professionals.
Finland has maintained consistently low levels of coronavirus. Even so, the production has established rigid protocols to ensure safety for its cast, crew, and surrounding community.
“We’re thrilled to be working with Riley and this great creative team,” says XYZ partner Aram Tertzakian. “XYZ is already deeply invested in Finland, so it’s truly an honor to bring a project with the pedigree of DUAL as Finland’s first major Hollywood production.”
“Since arriving over a month ago, I continue to find myself inspired by the city of Tampere,” says Stearns. “It has informed the look and feel of Dual in ways I never could have imagined while writing the script. I’m excited for audiences to see the world we’re able to create thanks to filming here.”
“Finland offers an exceptional environment for feature, documentary, serial fiction and animation productions not only based on our industry expertise and incentives but also thanks to Finland’s stable operating environment. With commitment to safety and cooperation between XYZ, Finnish partners and authorities, we have been able to create conditions where filming Dual is possible, despite the pandemic,” says Paavo Virkkunen, Executive Director, Finland Promotion Services, Business Finland.
“DUAL is a very important opportunity for Finland, and for Tampere. With our incentive offering and infrastructure, I am pleased thatTampere is emerging as a leading international filming destination,” says Ilkka Rahkonen, the Director of Film Tampere.
About XYZ Films
XYZ Films is an integrated content company whose mission is to empower visionary storytellers from every corner of the planet. As an independent production company and worldwide sales agency, the company is uniquely suited to identify talented filmmakers and bring their stories to life. XYZ was founded in 2008 by Nate Bolotin, Nick Spicer, and Aram Tertzakian. XYZ won the 2017 Sundance Grand Jury Prize for Macon Blair’s I DON’T FEEL AT HOME IN THIS WORLD ANYMORE.
About Business Finland
Business Finland is the Finnish innovation funding, trade, investment, and travel promotion organization. It is fully owned by the Finnish Government and has 44 offices globally as well as 16 regional offices around Finland. Business Finland is part of the Team Finland network. businessfinland.com. Business Finland’s Production Incentive for the Audiovisual Industry promotes the development of the AV sector ecosystem in Finland by attracting international productions to Finland. The AV production incentive is a maximum of 25% cash rebate for production costs in Finland.
About Film Tampere
Film Tampere is a film commission serving as a local film commission in Tampere region and is part of Business Tampere. We are committed to promote the region as a filming location, to connect your production with production services and to develop the local audiovisual economy.
The Tampere cash rebate can be granted for 10% of the production’s total budget which is spent in Tampere region. Qualified costs are the ones that are spent in Tampere region, including the costs which have arisen from planning and post-production of the production.