Pilot to the series “Strange new Things” to be shot in Namibia

The Namibian filming industry has taken giant leaps this year – thanks to the success of “Mad Max: Fury Road”. After the successful shoot of the movie franchise Universal Pictures “The Mummy”, directed by Alex Kurtzman a few months ago, another big production is on the horizon: the pilot to the series “Strange new Things”.

“We are very happy with the growing film industry. I believe that “Mad Max: Fury Road” (which came to cinemas in 2015) had a great impact and put Namibia on the map,” said Florence Haifene, Executive Secretary of the Namibia Film Commission (NFC), to namib times yesterday. She confirmed that the NFC did in fact issue a filming permit for “Strange new Things”. “If the pilot episode is successful, the whole series will hopefully be shot here,”
she continued. Erwin Leuschner “Strange new Things” is a sci-fi series produced by Amazon. It features Richard Madden, the actor who portrayed the late Robb Stark in the internationally famed series “Game of Thrones.” According to international reports “Strange New Things” is about a priest (Madden) who leaves his
family to travel into space to help spread the word of God on a newly discovered planet. It is based on the 2014 book “The Book of Strange New Things” by Michel Faber. Amazon is planning the series as a 10-episode limited event, assuming they decide to pick up the pilot. It’ll be written by Matt Charman (Bridge of Spies) and directed by Kevin MacDonald (The Last King of Scotland). “We see a lot of things happen in the filming industry. People do not really see the benefit of productions coming to Namibia, but the boost to the economy is very big,” Haifene continued. She is especially
pleased that a lot of locals get employment opportunities on set and gain experience. “During the filming of “The Mummy”, ten Namibian trainees were attached to theproduction,” she said. Some
were employed in the make-up or sound department or were involved elsewhere. In total 200 Namibians were employed. Filming for “Strange new Things” is set to begin in the next few weeks. Besides this other, smaller productions, including documentaries, travel shows or commercials will also still be shot in Namibia this year. “I believe that Namibia has great potential. We are a very peaceful country and people are always surprised by the friendliness of locals,” Haifene concluded.