'Cake' director Asim Abbasi partners with UK-based production houses, announces three new feature films

The upcoming projects include a drama, comedy and a thriller

KARACHI: Following the worldwide success of Cake, director and writer of the film Asim Abbasi has announced three new ventures for the future in partnership with UK-based production houses, ZAB Films and Indus Talkies, along with B4U Films.

Zulfikar Bukhari of ZAB Films and Indus Talkies were also behind the production of Abbasi's debut film. Being a part of Indus Talkies, the film-maker revealed, “We have a unified vision for Pakistani cinema: positioning our films on the world stage by telling culturally specific stories with a universal resonance, and giving cinema-goers diverse content to choose from.”

PHOTO:FILE

So what can one expect from the new movies? "It's too early to speak about specific story-lines, but the idea is to keep raising the bar and diversifying across genres and locations. My storytelling will always remain intimate, but potentially done on a larger scale this time," Abbasi told The Express Tribune.

Talking about the success of his debut venture, he said, "Anytime a film-maker goes against the tide and takes a risk, one never knows what the reception is going to be like, so it has been really humbling, and encouraging to know that if you build it well, they will come!" Abbasi is now looking towards the future and continuing to bring new narratives to the forefront both in Pakistan and the UK."

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The new production slate, currently in development, comprises of three feature films across diverse genres including drama, comedy and thriller. The first of these, a coming-of-age story, will be directed by Abbasi and is scheduled to go in pre-production by the year end, to be shot in the UK.



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Despite stiff competition from bigger films, Cake has now entered its 8th week at the box office and has grossed approximately $1.4 million globally to date.

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