Message to the Ministry of Culture: “Clash of the Titans could have been filmed in Turkey”
Clash of the Titans was going to be filmed in Capadoccia
French Director Louis Leterrier, of the newly released movie, Clash of the Titans, made an interesting confession to Aysegul Ekinci. The director also sent a message to the Ministry of Culture ‘ I definitely want to film the second Clash of the Titans in Turkey’.
Louis Leterrier, French director of the newly released movie, Clash of the Titans, said that he almost filmed the 3D format movie in Capadoccia Turkey. ‘Turkey is a wonderful country. It has a beautiful geography. Capadoccia was especially suitable for the Clash of the Titans. I loved the region. However, it was going to be very costly to have a team of 800 people shooting in Turkey for many months. Frankly, I did not receive much support on this matter, therefore we shot the movie in Tenerife’ and said that Tenerife offered affordable and economic ‘platforms’ to the foreign producers.
The Clash of the Titans tells the story from the Greek mythology, of the 11 year war between the Titans and the Olympians, two godly races that existed on earth prior to the creation of men. In the fight for the ultimate power, kings provoke men, while gods provoke kings.
French director Louis Leterrier combined many powerful names in the casting and said that the only candidate for the Perseus, born as a god and raised as a human being, was the handsome actor of Avatar, Sam Wortington. French director reminded the fact that semi-God Perseus, was the son of God Zeus in Greek mythology, and that he possessed both having a good heart and superior warrior characteristics and added: ‘Sam Worthington has been in the spot light lately. He is a good actor and he is modest. The Perseus in my head has been Sam all along’.
During our interview Louis Leterrier also sent a message to our Ministry of Culture, ‘If we were to receive incentives on this matter, and if we were to realize that shooting in Turkey with our crew would be affordable, we can shoot Clash of the Titans 2 in Turkey’.
I want to film Clash of the Titans 2 in Turkey
I meet director Louis Leterrier for an exclusive interview upon the release of the 3D format movie. He is quite excited. He is still under the influence of the Clash of the Titans that he watched as an 8 year old kid. He decided during that time of his life to become a director. Let’s continue to listen to his story from his words:
‘I was a fan of Clash of the Titans. I watched it when I was 8. And I decided to become a director. All these years I had a single question in my mind. How would I shoot such a movie. That’s why when I first started out on this movie, I was a bit overwhelmed. But I have a great crew. What happened afterwards? The shooting became incredibly pleasant. Let’s see how the audience will react to it.’
-During our conversation you said that Clash of the Titans was almost filmed in Turkey. You also gave a message to the Ministry of Culture. Are there other projects that you would consider realizing in Turkey?
Louis Leterrier: If the movie were filmed in Turkey, it was going to fit the vision of the movie very well. However, I realized that operating with a crew of 800 people would not be cheap in terms of the means that was offered to us by Turkey. That’s why I chose Tenerife as an alternative. Sea and mountain locations. It resembles Turkey.
-Do you follow Turkish cinema? If so, what do you think of it?
LL: Many years ago I had watched a movie. It was called Turkish Hero. The movie was one of the best I had ever seen. I could film that movie again. There is a great Turkish actor in the Clash of the Titans. Tamer Hassan. He is a very handsome guy. I am aware of the fact that Turkish cinema has been making great progress in the recent years.
-It must be a multi layered job to shoot a movie such as Clash of the Titans. And when we take the original movie into account. Did you ever wonder where and how you would start this movie?
LL: Greek mythology has always attracted my attention. There are incredibly strong characters and legendary stories. It is not easy to reflect these onto the white screen. However, when you reflect it in the correct way, it turns into a visual feast. I tried to achieve that.
There is also the other side of the story. When you dive into such a project, you need have great casting, technical crew, good location and sufficient budget. Then you need lots of excitement and energy. I have a lot of both energy and excitement.
Sam Worthington: “After Avatar, I had to take part in the Clash of the Titans”
Looks like the Australian actor Sam Worthington, who became famous with the movie Avatar, will increase the number of his fans with the Clash of the Titans. The young actor is considered to be the new Russel Crowe of Hollywood, with his natural and sincere attitude. As soon as we started the interview, the handsome actor said: ‘I had to play in this movie.’
Sam Worthington left the impression of a hero on the younger generation of his family after Avatar. When he received the offer to play in the movie Clash of the Titans, his 9 year old nephew forced him to accept it, as in his words ‘It was inevitable for me to play in the Clash of the Titans’. He doesn’t seem to complain about this situation either. Sam Worthington is known for his affection for his family and he also loves children a lot.
It was inevitable for you to play Perseus in the movie but…How about other factors? It can’t just be the pressure from the family?
Sam Worthington: My nephew had a lot to do with it but I must confess that after the success of Avatar, Clash of the Titans helped me keep my career on the same line. Plus, I am not playing with a blue face. It’s a movie where I play as myself. You can’t imagine what a relief that is!
Plus, I like entertaining movies that help you ease your mind. We had a lot of fun making the Clash of the Titans. Louis Leterrier is a great director. He is incredibly filled with energy and he knows very well what he is doing and he motivates the cast. It was a great job.
In the recent times 3D format movies have gained a lot of interest. As an actor, what is your take on the 3D format?
Sam Worthington: With 3D you can do a lot of the things that you can’t do on the white screen. You give a visual feast to the audience. The audience can feel like they are part of it. I think this is very entertaining. So I’m not against 3D. Whatever the movie’s storyline requires, should be done.
You play characters that require physical strength. And you look very fit. What do you for it?
Sam Worthington: I actually don’t do anything special for any of my movies. But I’ve been regularly working out since I was a child. That’s why I have a fit body. Thankfully, I don’t have to put myself in the gym days before the movies. It would have been boring.
Also, although in some scenes it looks like I put a lot of effort into it, since it is in front of the green screen, it is not actually that hard. I like action movies. It suits me. I believe that I express myself better in characters with high energy.
Do you have a message for the Turkish audience that will watch the Clash of the Titans?
Sam Worthington: There is a serious financial crisis in Turkey. Therefore, I don’t know how much movie tickets cost in Turkey, but I hope we’ve done a job that is worth that price. I hope the audience will be satisfied. I also hear a lot of good things about Turkey, until now I didn’t get a chance to go to your country. But seeing Turkey has made its way to the top of my to do list already.
Gemma Arterton: ‘Greek mythology has always interested me. I played in Clash of the Titans with great enthusiasm’
One of the promising beautiful faces of Hollywood is Gemma Arterton. She is not only beautiful, but also very talented…She attracted attention as the Bond girl in the Quantum of Solance, followed by playing another action girl in RockandRolla, directed by British director Guy Ritchie. The actress graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 2007 and is very fond of Greek mythology. She enjoyed playing in the Clash of the Titans. She plays the role of Io, who shows the path to son of Zeus, semi-God Perseus. She says she travelled into her inner self during the shootings.
Gemma Arterton says ‘This movie has helped me develop my inner self in a way’ and adds that she got along very well with her partner Sam Worthington. Gemma Arterton also says ‘Greek mythology has many colorful legendary stories with a lot of messages. The richness of topics and the strength of the characters amazed me as an actress’ and adds that her heart is set on action roles.
Aysegul EKINCI/LONDON