The Dutch remake of Belgian box-office hit Loft suffered a freak setback late last month when both the director Antoinette Beumer and the cinematographer Danny Elesen sustained serious injuries during shooting.
During an incident on the set on July 19, Beumer injured her jaw and both arms while Elesen broke his foot.
They were standing on a platform overlooking the set when scaffolding collapsed and both were thrown down.
Beumer (sister of actress Famke Janssen and director of current Dutch hit The Happy Housewife) has had to withdraw temporarily from directorial duties while she undergoes surgery.
However, the production is going ahead as planned. Erik Van Looy, the Belgian director of the original film, stepped in to take Beumer’s place last week. One of the main cast members is just available until Aug 3. Van Looy is currently shooting the scenes with him in it.
The cameraman had his operation on July 23 and is already back on the set. Beumer is now recovering at home.
Beumer is expected to return to the production once she has recovered from her injuries. She will finish the film herself.
Loft is produced by Pupkin Films and Millstreet Films in association with original producer Woestijnvis. It’s about a group of young married male friends who secretly hire an apartment where they can take their mistresses without their wives finding out. Their little scheme comes unstuck when a dead body turns up in the apartment. Nobody knows who is responsible. “It’s like The Usual Suspects meets (Billy Wilder’s) The Apartment,” is how Van Looy styled the original film, which was a runaway box-office hit in Flanders.
Independent, which handled the Dutch distribution of Van Looy’s original film, is also releasing the remake. The opening is scheduled for December 2010.
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