Disney to co-finance, distribute Narnia film to be made in NZ

Walt Disney Studios will co-finance the film version of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, which is to be made in New Zealand, the company has announced.

The film of the book, written by C S Lewis, is expected to start preparation, including obtaining stage space and personnel, in Auckland early this year.

Significant parts of the movie, which is scheduled for release in December 2005, are also expected to be filmed in the South Island.

New Zealander Andrew Adamson, who directed the blockbuster animation film Shrek, will direct the film.

Walt Disney Studios chairman Dick Cook said Disney had signed a deal with the film's main company Walden Media.

"With an exciting and meaningful plot and well-drawn emotional characters, The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe has the potential to be just the start of an extraordinary series of films; the exceptional imagination present in the novels follows in the best Disney tradition," he said in a statement.

The film is one of the first beneficiaries of the Government's Large Budget Screen Production Grant (LBSPG) scheme announced in June.

The scheme is designed to remove some of the financial disadvantages New Zealand faces in attracting investment in screen production and film compared with other locations, including Australia.

The film is expected to qualify for expense grants under the LBSPG scheme.

The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe is one of seven books written by C S Lewis, set in the magical world of Narnia.

- NZPA