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The
development control committee of the Rhondda Cynon
Taff County Council, which has long supported the
idea of building a "Welsh Hollywood", formally approved
it Thursday. "I'm thrilled", the 79-year-old Attenborough
saidon Friday.
"There are the most wonderful locations in Wales, and we needed major space".
Attenborough is backing a consortium that plans to build the ultra-modern
complex on 350 acres at Llanilid in south Wales, creating up to 2,000
jobs. It also will include an international film academy and movie-based
leisure attractions similar to those at Universal Studios in California.
The Welsh government had blocked the development because of the need for a new junction on the M4 highway between England and Wales, but officials said in October the problem could be overcome.
The complex, to be called Dragon International Studios, will have the latest facilities for making feature films, TV productions and commercials with full editing and post-production facilities.
The aim is to capture a share of the global market in film and TV production, as well as supporting a wide range of small and medium-sized productions.
Attenborough, who directed 1982's 'Gandhi' and 1992's 'Chaplin', said work on the complex would start next May.
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