19/12/2019 - Wallonia’s regional investment fund is backing eight new projects: three feature films, four series and one VR project

In its final session for 2019, Wallimage has pledged support to 8 new audiovisual projects, including A l’ombre des filles [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], the new film by Etienne Comar (Django [+see also:
film review
trailer
Q&A: Etienne Comar
film profile]), as well as a number of series in the making.

A l’ombre des filles will tell the story of an opera singer who, deciding to take a break in his career, makes the most of his free time to give singing lessons to prison inmates. In so doing, Alex Lutz will find himself faced with a series of strong women, starting with Veerle Baetens, Agnès Jaoui and Hafsia Herzi. The film is produced in France by Maneki Films, and is co-produced in Belgium by Versus Productions.

Wallimage will also lend support to the new title by Austrian filmmaker Stefan Ruzowitzky (Oscar-nominated in 2007 for The Counterfeiters [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]). Hinterland [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Stefan Ruzowitzky
film profile] is a historical film which plunges the viewer into Austria, 1922, a land turned upside-down by the war and the resulting political changes. Only just liberated by Russian troops, Peter Berg is reassigned to his former position as an investigator in order to track down a particularly unpleasant serial killer. As he moves forward in his sombre investigation, a cruel and recent past begins to emerge. Co-produced by Freibeuter Film (Austria), Scope Pictures (Belgium) and Amour Fou (Luxembourg), the film will be enriched with archive footage and will be put together in its entirety by Benuts in Wallonia.

The last work chosen to receive support is the animated film Heart of Darkness by Gerald Conn, which, as its name suggests, is a new adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s novel. It follows in the tracks of Marlow, an officer in the British merchant navy who navigates a river leading to the Congo - a Belgian colony at the time - in order to re-establish commercial ties with a mysterious character. The latter, Kurtz, has created a realm where he decides whether his indigenous subjects live or die. The film is steered by Gritty Realism Productions (UK) and co-produced in Belgium by Artémis.

Last but not least, Wallimage is backing 4 new series, including Belgian comedy Baraki, created by Fred de Loof and produced by Kiki arrose la culture and 1080 Films, not to mention the second season of animated series Petit Poilu.

(Translated from French)