Indonesia’s Miles Film and Korea’s CJ Entertainment are to co-produce an Indonesian remake of Korean hit “Sunny.” The film is a female-driven dramedy about a group of adult friends who reunite 20 years after high school.
Directed by Kang Hyoung-chul, “Sunny” was one of the highest-grossing movies in Korea when it was released in 2011. It secured 7.36 million admissions, for a gross of $47.7 million.
The remake reunites two of the biggest names in Indonesian filmmaking, producer and screenwriter Mira Lesmana and director Riri Riza. They have worked together on several previous films, including “The Rainbow Troops.”
The remake is produced through Lesmana’s Miles Film. It will relocate the action to Jakarta, but otherwise hew closely to the original film’s non-linear storytelling. Its local title is “Bebas,” which translates as “Free” in English.
The cast is headed by Baim Wong and Marsha Timothy (“The Raid 2,” “Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts”). Other cast members include Agatha Priscilla, Widi Mulia, Zulfa Maharani, Amanda Rawles, Sheryl Sheinafia, Indy Barens, Brandon Salim and Baskara Mahendra.
Reflecting a near saturation of its home market, the CJ group has spread its wings in overseas cinema operations (through affiliate CJ-CGV), direct distribution in countries including the U.S. and Vietnam, and increasingly in production.
It has smartly leveraged its high-concept Korean drama, comedy and action films for remakes across the world. It was recently announced that Kevin Hart had been backed by Universal Pictures for an American remake of “Sunny.” CJ has sold or co-produced versions of pics including comedy “Miss Granny,” police actioner “Veteran,” horror-thriller “Hide and Seek” and erotic thriller “The Housemaid.”