A film about the Vietnam War Battle of Long Tan is set to start filming in southern Queensland this year. The provisionally titled DANGER CLOSE will star Australian Vikings star Travis Fimmel. Pre-production will start in March and shooting from the end of April.
The announcement was made by Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk during a trade trip to the US. Written by Stuart Beattie, it is based on the true story of young men facing the strange, contradictory and brutal truths of war.
Ms Palaszczuk said that Martin Walsh, the film’s producer, would like to 100-200 Australian veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns for the project. “I was moved to hear that Martin, himself a former Australian Special Forces commando, is planning a major Anzac Day event during the shoot, bringing Long Tan veterans, cast, crew and locals together for a special memorial service,” Ms Palaszczuk added.
DANGER CLOSE will also employ an estimated 120 full-time Queensland crew members, offer 30 principal cast and bit-part roles. Beattie is best known for being one of the co-writers on the original Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, along with being the writer/director of ill-fated local productions Tomorrow When the War Began and I, Frankenstein. The last time Beattie made a film specifically about Australian history we got…Baz Luhrmann’s Australia.
Watch this space.
