21/01/2010

US director Steven Soderbergh’s action-packed revenge drama Knockout will commence shooting in Dublin and Wicklow for three weeks beginning February 2nd. The film stars Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Dennis Quaid, and Michael Douglas and will mark the debut of martial arts expert Gina Carano.

Gregory Jacobs and Relativity Media are producing the film in association with Irish company Parallel Films (Perrier’s Bounty [+see also:
trailer
film profile]) with funding from the Irish Film Board (IFB).

Jacobs said, “Unlike most productions that tailor what’s available to the script, we wrote this movie for Dublin and are thrilled that the city has been so cooperative.”

Parallel’s Alan Moloney said, “Getting to work with Steven Soderbergh and Greg Jacobs is a real treat for us and me personally. Of course this could not be possible without the combined support of the IFB and the incentive available under Section 481. I look forward to seeing the growth in both these provisions as we move into the next decade. Film and television production is undeniably one of the areas where the Irish economy can benefit hugely moving into the future.”

IFB CEO Simon Perry said, “We are delighted that our contribution to attracting such a top quality US filmmaking team to shoot in Ireland has paid off. Most importantly, the fact that this project was written especially for Dublin reflects the growth of Ireland’s international image and reputation over the past few years.”

Martin Cullen, Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism said, “I am particularly pleased that over 100 film industry jobs will be created for Irish cast and crew. Knockout will give a great boost not only to the Irish audiovisual industry but to the Irish economy in general.”