Kerala may be a location for next Paul Cox film

Australian director Paul Cox, who is currently in the State capital as the chairman of the international jury for the 17th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), has announced that he would be partnering with producer Baby Mathew Somatheeram for his forthcoming film, The Force of Destiny.

Addressing a press conference here on Saturday along with his long-time friend Anil Acharya and Mr. Mathew, Mr. Cox said the decision was to have Mr. Mathew co-produce the movie, which draws heavily from his book Tales from The Cancer Ward , and will have the India-Pakistan partition, an international love story of sorts, and much more thrown into it, along with the possibility of Kerala being a location for the movie.

The filming is slated to begin in August-September next year, and among the cast, Australian actor David Wenham, who has films including

Lord of the Rings ’ and

Van Helsing to his credit, is the only name that Mr. Cox announced on Saturday. As for the likelihood of a Malayali or Indian face in the movie, Mr. Cox said he had a few ideas and was doing a ‘silent, quiet research of the matter.’

He said he did not like the idea of screen tests and had never attempted at one, since it would be an insult to the actor.

The movie, written when he was sick and waiting for a donor for a liver transplant, will dwell on his experience and will also be about donor awareness. Force of Destiny will be the first film he makes after his ‘comeback,’ since he had first been given three months to live, and then six, before he finally got a donor.

Mr. Mathew, whose Soma Creation will be producing the movie, has produced a few short films and documentaries earlier and is waiting for the release of his first movie,

Black Forest .