Donnie Yen’s “The Iceman Cometh 3D” to Be Introduced at Cannes Film Festival

Although The Iceman Cometh 3D <3D冰封俠> is still filming in the Changbai Mountains in China, plans are already made to introduce the new Donnie Yen (甄子丹) film at the Cannes Film Festival in May and generate wider interest in the North American and European markets.

High production costs were incurred for The Iceman Cometh 3D due to massive destructive scenes and delayed filming. However, 30 percent of its $200 million HKD production cost have already been recouped; it received good distribution sales at the recent Hong Kong industry trade show, FILMART.

Beach Party at Cannes

At the Cannes Film Festival, the film trailer for The Iceman Cometh 3D will be released, along with a press conference. The highlight will be a beach reception where guests are invited to party together with Donnie Yen and Eva Huang (黃聖依). The venue of the launch party will be transformed into a wine cellar with many Caucasians dressed in the same armor Donnie wore in the film. There will also be vaudeville performances among other entertainment, making it a grand Chinese affair. Total budgeted costs for the Cannes promotion are $500,000 HKD.

Location Filming

Previously, Donnie Yen and the production team were reportedly unhappy that the Hong Kong government had not been supportive of The Iceman Cometh 3D and took a long time in approving filming permits at local landmarks. Ironically, the crew applied for filming in mainland China’s top tourist attraction spot, the Changbai Mountains, and were quickly approved.

A few days ago, Donnie was seen with costar Wang Baoqiang (王宝强) on location filming at the snowy mountains. While hunted by Wang Baoqiang, Donnie activates a “space-time golden globe” that transports the snow-capped mountains of the Ming Dynasty to modern Hong Kong. A poignant romantic scene between Donnie and Eva Huang’s characters will also take place there. Filming at an altitude of 1,600 meters above sea level with snow depth as high as 3 meters, the actors, along with 500 extras and 50 horses, suffered the torments of the cold.

As the movie’s action choreographer, Donnie has been stressed since filming began. With filming almost complete and the sales and demand faring better than expected, Donnie can finally heave a sigh of relief. Donnie plans to bring his family, including his parents-in-law, to Cannes for a work-vacation.

In other related news, Bends <過界> starring Carina Lau (劉嘉玲) will be the first Film Development Fund-supported movie to compete in Cannes. Nominated for Best Actress, Carina has already attracted many sponsors for clothing and jewelry. Li Bingbing (李冰冰) will continue to appear at Cannes as a spokesperson for American cosmetics conglomerate, L’Oreal. Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊), who is currently in Malaysia for the upcoming election, has yet to confirm her attendance at Cannes.

Source: Oriental Daily; Chinadaily.com.cn

This article is written by Karen for JayneStars.com.