The 2016 South Korean zombie apocalypse action thriller, Train to Busan, is to be adapted to a Virtual Reality property that includes not only a piece of location-based entertainment but as a VR video game too.
Contents Panda, who are part of the sales division for South Korea’s Next Entertainment World, revealed they had signed a contract with Singapore’s Vividthree Productions to create the new VR adaptation of the highly acclaimed film.
Also in the news – Clint Eastwood’s A Fistful of Dollars gets a new trailer for its 4K restoration release
“This is one of those cases which show how one well-made film has the scalability to be developed into multiple forms,” said Vincent Kim, president of Contents Panda.
“We believed in the possibilities because ‘Train to Busan’, a film that has mesmerized audiences in Asia and beyond, deserves to be adapted into a multisensory format. That would allow fans of the film to experience the zombie apocalypse action thriller in virtual reality,” said Charles Yeo, CEO of Vividthree.
The Singapore government is providing financial support for the development of the VR sector, Vividthree will launch a static show in Singapore and Malaysia with a view of then expanding it globally.
Directed by Yeon Sang-ho and starring Gong Yoo, Jung Yu-mi, and Ma Dong-Seok. The film takes place on a train to Busan, as a zombie apocalypse suddenly breaks out in the country and compromises the safety of the passengers.
The film premiered 2016 Cannes Film Festival and has since gone on to set a record as the first Korean film of 2016 to break the audience record of over 10 million theatregoers. Independently, at the end of 2016, an announcement was made that it will also be remade as an English-language feature film, through French studio Gaumont.
