‘The Expendables’ Studios Nu Boyana in Bulgaria Re-Opens
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Bulgaria’s Nu Boyana Film Studios, owned by Avi Lerner’s Millennium Media and home to the “Expendables” franchise, is re-opening for production, with anti-COVID-19 protocols and preparations being put in place.
The move follows the re-opening of the Bulgaria economy on May 13, and in anticipation of travel restrictions being lifted on June 14.
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“During the pandemic we took some time to focus on development and to analyze the market moving forward. We have emerged with a new strategy that aims to help producers get back to work and fulfil the lack of content we see hitting us a few months down the line,” said Yariv Lerner, chairman of Nu Boyona.
On May 13 the studio opened with the maintenance crew cleaning, repairing, sanitizing and installing the new requirements such as hand-sanitizing stations, social distancing protocols, and overall repair in order to be ready for this new phase of production.
Nu Boyana is working with Bulgaria’s minister of health to allow for a testing procedure that works well for both production and for the safety of everyone involved, the studio said in a statement. The proposal is to test within three days of travel to the location, test on arrival, and test again two days later to ensure that a member of cast or crew are negative for the virus. After completing this process and testing negative, they will be permitted to go back to work.
The new protocols are being reviewed by the government and will be published on www.nuboyana.com when ratified. There will be two separate sets – one for commercials and the second for movies, which have different requirements.
As well as “The Expendables” franchise, Millennium is also known for “Olympus Has Fallen” and “London Has Fallen,” “The Hitman’s Bodyguard” and “Mechanic: Resurrection.” Recent films include “Angel Has Fallen” and the reboot of the Rambo franchise, “Rambo: Last Blood.”
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