Bettany eyes 3D film by Popogrebsky

Paul Bettany is in final negotiations to star in Alexei Popogrebsky’s new feature, Lost Rooms.

Popogrebsky, who won a Silver Bear in 2010 with How I Ended This Summer, will shoot the new film in 3D in the English language. Other prominent European and US names are expected to join the cast and crew.

Producer Roman Borisevich, founder of the Koktebel Film Company, is in advanced preparations for the film, due to shoot in 2013. “Our main focus is co-production with Germany, France and the UK, and a strong world sales company is essential to this project,” he said.

Pitched recently in Rotterdam’s CineMart, the film is being presented as part of the Rotterdam-Berlin Express co-production initiative.

The Russian Cinema Fund has put $2.6m (¤2m) into the project while TV station Rossiya has invested a further $1.3m (¤1m). Borisevich is looking to attach a sales company.

“We are approaching final script development stages and commencing previsualisation and testing of some original VFX concepts,” he said.

The story is about a girl who has an ability to see hidden depth where everyone else sees flatness.

Popogrebsky has already shot a 3D short, Blood Drop.

Another Koktebel feature, the new film by Boris Khlebnikov, is already in post-production. It is loosely inspired by the Gary Cooper western High Noon, and is budgeted at around $1.3m.