Lionsgate agrees to pitch about wedding
Lionsgate has acquired a pitch from Jason Filardi that will offer a comedic look at a Korean wedding. Filardi will pen the comedy with his cousin, Iain McConnell, on whom the story is based.
Vertigo Entertainment's Roy Lee and Doug Davison will produce, along with Miky Lee and Ted Kim of Korea's CJ Entertainment. Filardi will executive produce.
In the vein of "Meet the Parents" and inspired by real events, the pitch follows an American guy who falls in love with a Korean woman while teaching English as a second language. He proposes marriage and she says yes, with a condition: Her Korean family must approve and they must have a traditional wedding in Korea. So the groom makes the trip with his family in an effort to marry his true love.
Lionsgate would not confirm that the deal had closed.
Vertigo recently produced "The Strangers" for Rogue and is preparing for the release of "Quarantine" for Screen Gems and a remake of the Korean thriller "A Tale of Two Sisters" for DreamWorks. The company is responsible for a number of movies based on Asian properties, including, "The Ring," "The Grudge" and Academy Award winner "The Departed."
This new project marks a reversal of sorts, as it will take an original movie concept from the U.S. for production in Korea. A domestic release is planned.
Said Lee: "The project originated when Jason was telling me about his cousin's wedding, and he showed me the video. We both saw the movie potential."
Filardi's credits include "Bringing Down the House" and the upcoming New Line/Warner Bros. release "17 Again" starring Zac Efron.
He is repped by ICM and Brian Lutz.
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