MediaCorp Raintree Pictures has announced much-anticipated further details on its historical film 1965 - currently in development with Wayne Wang lined up to direct.

Based on the turbulent title year that Singapore broke away from Malaysia to become independent, 1965 will be a mainstream political thriller with a projected budget of $15m.

It will be primarily in the English-language, with some Mandarin and other various dialects spoken in Singapore.

‘It’s a fusion of historical fact and fiction. A fictional character will carry the audience’s interest as we move along with the background of momentous events,’ says Daniel Yun, managing director of MediaCorp Raintree. ‘It’s not unlike 13 Days, featuring Kevin Costner as a character in the midst of the 13 days during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Our film will deal with 45 - 60 days in 1965.’

‘We’ve had several meetings with Wayne Wang and he has also met with the key research team in Singapore. For a scriptwriter, he proposed we work with writers like Peter Morgan [The Queen, Frost/Nixon] or Eric Roth [The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button],’ adds Yun.

‘It’s the first time in Singapore we’re making a political thriller based in historical facts. It’s a mainstream commercial film. We want to couch the story in such a way that will engage academics with facts and audience with drama - much in the way of Frost/Nixon or The Queen,’ he says.

‘Raintree Pictures is the key driver of the film, but we are looking forward to working with Salon Films and our other partners in Asia Alliance to develop a film with more international appeal,’ say Yun, speaking of the pan-Asian financing and production alliance that Salon Films set up last year, including Japan’s Yoshimoto Kogyo and Hengdian World Studios in China.

‘We are also looking for international casting,’ he adds.

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