Christchurch mum set to reel in Hollywood

Lisa Abbott. Picture / Christchurch Star

A Christchurch housewife is mixing it with Hollywood's big boys after producing a multimillion-dollar film in her hometown that will play to audiences across the United States.

Mother-of-four Lisa Abbott had no movie-making experience before chancing upon the opportunity to produce a romantic comedy that has attracted the interest of big-budget film studio Warner Bros.

The American-born wife of a jeweller had to learn as she went along in making Meet Me in Miami, which will premiere in Christchurch tomorrow before playing to audiences in 40 US cities.

It features two of Latin America's hottest stars, Carlos Ponce and Eduardo Verastegui, in leading roles, but also features Kiwis in the cast, including parts for Mrs Abbott's teenage children. The associate producer of the film is Gabriel Reyes, who does publicity for superstar Jennifer Lopez and the cast of the hit television programme, Desperate Housewives.

"It's unheard of that an independent film gets shown on Entertainment Tonight worldwide once, but we have had it twice," Mrs Abbott said.

"We have had quite a few offers. I have the head of acquisitions at Warner Bros almost begging us for the movie. They gave us this amazing offer. But it's my baby and I'm not so keen to give it away."

The film centres around a man's eventful visit to New Zealand to reunite with his long-lost love.

"I would say it's a movie about hope and love and keeping promises ... and a lot of humour."

The project began when Mrs Abbott's friends in the United States got her daughter, Brooke, a part in a movie called The Gardener. The movie was to be shot in Italy, but it fell through.

"So I thought maybe I could do this. So I called the bank, called my husband, called my family in America and said 'do you think I could do this?'

"I thought it was going to be a three-month adventure. I thought we bring the production [to Christchurch], we shoot it here, la de da, everything goes smoothly and that is it.

"Well, it didn't go that way. The three months turned into three years."

Finding the millions of dollars to fund the movie was the "scary" part, especially when the costs kept ballooning as cast and crew had to be flown to Christchurch from around the world.

She borrowed against investments to do it. After shooting the film the first time, Mrs Abbott was unhappy with the finished product.

"So I had to borrow more money and reshoot. So I had a choice - I could shelve the movie and just put it down to experience, which is really what I wanted to do, but again I had that inner thing that 'no, you can't do that, you have to keep going'."

Mrs Abbott now has plans for other films. She intends making a movie about the life of a Columbine High School pupil who "died for her faith".