Taika Waititi, Mia Wasikowska, Penelope Wilton in the swing of ‘Fing’ in Queensland

 

A cross-section of Australasian and British talent have come together in Queensland for Fing, a feature adaptation of David Walliams’ book of the same name that has begun filming at Screen Queensland Studios.

 

Walliams serves as executive producer and cast member for the project, appearing alongside Taika Waititi, Mia Wasikowska, David Walliams, Richard Roxburgh, Penelope Wilton, Blake Harrison, Robyn Nevin, and newcomer Iona Bell.

 

Directed by Jeffrey Walker, the Australian-UK co-production follows librarians Mr. and Mrs. Meek, (Harrison and Wasikowska), who will do anything to keep their darling daughter, Myrtle (Bell), happy. But it’s not enough for Myrtle, who always wants more.

 

When Myrtle declares she wants a Fing, her parents have no choice but to track one down, taking them to the furthest and darkest corners of the jungle. Fing turns out to be as much of a destructive monster as Myrtle, who, in turn, must battle it out with the evil animal park owner, The Viscount (Waititi), who is determined to own this rarest of creatures.

 

The Headmaster of Myrtle’s school (Walliams) is barely coping as he navigates her antics while juggling the demands of a school in the modern age.

 

Nanny (Wilton) is the opinionated and loyal servant of the Viscount, who she has raised since birth; while the Bank Manager (Roxburgh) has had to deal with the Viscount’s overspending for many years and is running out of patience.

 

Jo Sargent from London-based King Bert Productions is producing with Story Bridge Films’ Todd Fellman, who previously worked with Walker on The Portable Door, with AGC Studios co-financing and handling worldwide sales and distribution.

 

Transmission Films will release the film theatrically in Australia and New Zealand, after which it will premiere as a Stan Original on SVOD. Sky is co-financing and has developed the project in the UK and will premiere the film as a Sky Original on Sky Cinema.

 

Executive producing with Walliams are Shana Levine, Andrew Orr for Sky, Cailah Scobie and Alicia Brown for Stan, and Stuart Ford, Miguel Palos, and Aghi Koh for AGC Studios. Elevate Media Capital is providing financing.

 

The film was lured to Brisbane via Screen Queensland’s Production Attraction Strategy, with the expectation it will contribute about $16 million to the state’s economy and employ more than 300 Queenslanders during production. Special effects have been developed with New Zealand-based concept designers at Wētā Workshop.

 

The production comes more than six years after the release of the book, which featured illustrations by Tony Ross.

 

Walliams, who has sold over 60 million copies of his books in 55 languages, said he couldn’t wait to see his story come to life on screen.

 

“Fing is such a fun and visual story, with so many flights of fancy,” he said.

 

“To have Taika join the cast is absolutely thrilling as well. He’s a fantastic comedy performer, writer, and director, and I know he’ll have enormous fun playing the villainous role of the Viscount.”

Waititi, who is currently in Sydney filming Kornél Mundruczó’s Place To Be alongside Ellen Burstyn, said he was immediately drawn to the script due to his love of films with humour and heart.

 

“I was really thinking of my (now teenage) daughters when the role came to me,” he said.

 

“I can’t wait to unleash this absolutely mental Viscount character on audiences. It’s dark, it’s weird, it’s me!”

 

Sargent, who started King Bert Productions with Walliams in 2014, said she and the author had always known Fing had the potential to be an “incredibly cinematic story”.

 

“Director Jeffrey Walker and co-producer Todd Fellman have shared our vision from day one and it’s been wonderful to work alongside their world-class crew in Queensland, as we recreate the creature and story we know and love,” she said.

 

Fellman said it was exciting to have an international team of cast and crew in Brisbane to create what promised to be a “wildly fun and entertaining story”.

 

“Working with Screen Queensland once again continues to provide the perfect platform to create a film of international scale and quality which will resonate with audiences of all ages across the globe,” he said.

 

By Sean Slatter | Source