Gerard Butler who arrived in Belgrade the other day, as early as yesterday at half past six in the morning was in front of cameras shooting scenes from ‘Coriolanus’ directed by Ralph Fiennes. The area around the KPGT and the old Sugar plant was forbidden zone the whole day long for all interested to see what was going on.
It was protected by policemen and security.
Butler is playing a character of an army commander while our actor Slavko Stimac is in the role of his deputy.
Butler shall stay in Belgrade until the end of the week and the popular Scottish actor is very busy. He is presently promoting films ‘The Bounty Hunter’ and ‘How To Train Your Dragon’. Apart from ‘Coriolanus’ he is also acting in ‘Untitled Comedy’ with Naomi Watts. Soon he is to begin work on a new project ‘Burns’ in the role of famous Scottish poet Robert Burns.
Ralph Finnes explained why Belgrade is an ideal location for shooting of a modern version of Shakespeare’s ‘Coriolanus’.
‘Serbia and Belgrade are perfect for us both in creative and financial sense. The shooting costs in Serbia are relatively low and we have huge support by Serbian authorities. However, much more important are Serbian endurance and very interesting locations. For example in Belgrade there is a contrast between Austro-Hungarian architecture, old communist style and neoclassicism of the 20th century. All these styles have created a contemporary world full of history at the same time. I want people to ask ‘where is that?’ They may think it is in Germany, Russia, Argentina… Belgrade is a capital, it is a powerful city, but it could be any other city as well. It is merged into a unique history and culture but it can also represent the whole world. That is why Belgrade is a perfect location for contemporary version of the play’, Finnes said.