Oscar Winner is Cinematographer for Philippine-Set Rom-Com

(SPOT.ph) You’ve already most likely heard that American actors Daisy Ridley and Alden Ehrenreich, who have both starred in Star Wars movies, are headlining the Philippine-set romantic comedy Manny V. Pangilinan’s Asia Pacific Films is bankrolling and producing. You may have also heard that the film, entitled The Last Resort, will be directed by Donald Petrie who is no stranger to rom-coms, having directed the fashionista favorite How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and the Sandra Bullock hit Miss Congeniality.

But what you may have not heard is that assuming the cinematographer title for the project is Russell Carpenter, who did the cinematography work for the blockbuster film Titanic. If you will recall, Carpenter won the Oscar for Best Cinematographer in 1997 for the said James Cameron film, which was also that year’s Best Picture winner.

Who is Russell Carpenter?

Carpenter and the Emmy-nominated Petrie (L.A. Law) were spotted in the country recently doing a tech scout—figuring out the feasibility of shooting in pre-selected locations—with Filipino producer Bong Sta. Maria who worked in Pangilinan’s first foray into film production, Rosario (2010).

Carpenter, an American, is known as a cinematographer of blockbuster movies—meaning he knows a thing or two about creating images that enhance a narrative and that will resonate with a wide range of viewers. The guy knows spectacle. After collaborating with Cameron in Titanic, the two collaborated again in the Avatar movies. Carpenter is also the cinematographer for True Lies, Ant-Man, Shallow Hal, the two Charlie’s Angels movies, and two Jean Claude Van Damme films: Hard Target and Death Warrant.

The Last Resort to begin production

Shooting for The Last Resort officially starts in April this year. Scripted by Legally Blonde and 10 Things I Hate About You writer Karen McCullah—who according to Variety was born in the Philippines but grew up in the US—the film sounds as much about two beautiful and glamorous people meeting and falling in love, as it is about showing the beauty of the Philippines—at least from reading the gist below from Deadline.com.

The story is about “Brooke (Ridley), who is determined to prove herself worthy of running her father’s hotel empire,” writes Anthony D’Alessandro. “She travels to the Philippines to scout a new resort location and meets Ben (Ehrenreich), a charming expatriate pilot who helps her discover the beauty of the country—and a newfound sense of freedom. As love and duty collide, Brooke must choose between the life she’s built and the one she’s only just begun to love.”

Sounds like a hit. And with a pedigreed creative team behind the movie, it will likely be one.