Tourism Australia hopes Kidman film lures visitors

The cinematographer sweeps his camera across the Australian landscape, from plains to waterfalls and finally a small and dusty country town. The colour is brilliant and the music of the soundtrack soars as warplanes drop their bombs.

“ Australia” is the name of the new WWII-era romantic epic movie, directed by the award-winning Baz Luhrmann and starring Australian screen stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackson. It opens later this month and is being hailed already for its cinematography and the work of its principals.

Tourism promoters are hoping that the real star of the film is Australia itself.

Australia’s national tourism board, Tourism Australia, has invested $26 million into an international advertising campaign that’s based on the new movie, and highlights the wilderness of Western Australia. Tourists are encouraged to visit the far-western state to refresh themselves from their busy urban lives.

“We knew that this huge film would create a wave of publicity that would put the country in the spotlight around the globe,” said Tourism Australia’s managing director, Geoff Buckley. “And we found that the film’s story had a remarkable resonance for what we do marketing the country as a travel destination.”

On Tuesday, the movie premieres in Sydney, with its stars in attendance. On the same day, it also opens in Bowen, Darwin and Kununurra, and then on 26 November it opens internationally.

Thanks to edition.cnn.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.australia.com