Luxury Real Estate

Courtesy of: Paula Maia of O & O Property Collections

Located on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, with year round peerless light condition, and only 5 ½ hours from New York city, the Algarve is about to become the Hollywood of Europe.

Portugal offers a very favorable high quality/ low cost of living ratio; which added to the fact that it has topography of 40 states of America combined and yet is roughly the size of New Jersey, makes of this project every producer’s dream.

The Holding Picture Portugal is the newest addition to international cinema, commercials, video games, music videos, and audiovisual production centers. This ambitious project has been developed by the Portimão municipality and the renowned international Portuguese actor Joaquim de Almeida, and comprises the creation of 11 super modern new studios fitted out with state-of-the-art equipment.

The prevision is for two of the studios to be up and running by the end of 2010, and wheels have been set in motion for various film projects. Amongst the feature films already planned are: - “Femina” with the renowned Italian actress Sophia Loren as the leading actress, -“Mendes”, a film based on the life of a Portuguese consul who saved more Jews than Oskar Schindler during the Holocaust. The consul role will be played by Richard Gere. - Remake of “Le Mans” which have Brad Pitt, Penelope Cruz and Al Pacino in the leading roles,.

During the first phase, the plan is also to construct post-production areas for audio and video, an area for shooting outdoor scenes and a «water tank» - a specially adapted pool for underwater filming.

The cinema studios complex will include a media park as well as a fun park for the entire family, and the central theme will be “the history of cinema and the world of cars”.

Negotiations have been taking place with CBS Paramount and Universal for the film studios, and Lynn Ferro, vice-president of CBS, has been one of the main supporters of this striving project.