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An A-list cast will feature in a major new movie about the Battle of Long Tan to be filmed in Queensland.
The film, to be produced by award-winning Australian Martin Walsh, and featuring actors Travis Fimmel and Jai Courtney, will be filmed in Queensland this year.
Pre-production on the movie will start in March 2017 and shooting will begin from the end of April.
Set in Vietnam, the provisionally-titled Danger Close is based on the true story of young men facing the strange, contradictory and brutal nature of war.
The film is due to start filming around Anzac Day this year, and Aussie veterans are set to plan a special memorial service during the shoot according to Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
"As Queenslanders pause to reflect on the sacrifices of our soldiers over the past century, a film crew will be capturing their very personal stories of courage, honour, mateship and loss," says Palaszczuk.
"I was moved to hear that Martin Walsh, 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.
The script for Danger Close was written by Stuart Beattie, an Australian screenwriter and director who wrote Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Collateral, and Australia.
Beattie also wrote and director Tomorrow, When the War Began, and I, Frankenstein.
The film follows Major Harry Smith and his company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand fighting for their lives, holding off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle hardened Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers.
The Battle of Long Tan is one of the most savage and decisive engagements in Australian military history. 18 Australians and more than 500 enemies were killed in the battle.
DANGER CLOSE Sizzle Reel (This is NOT a trailer) from Red Dune Films on Vimeo.
The production is said to employ around 120 full-time Queensland crew members, and offers 30 principal cast and bit-part roles.
Palaszczuk says securing the film is a major coup for Queensland who is competing with the world to secure these blockbusters.
"We are competing with the world to secure these films," says Palaszczuk.
"We are seeing a growing number of screen productions being filmed in Queensland, and our state is forging many exciting partnerships with leading studios."
In the last financial year, more than $214 million was spent in Queensland from direct investment by domestic and international productions, with 2340 jobs created.
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