Milk & Honey opens soundstage unit

New studio created in Prague, $500K upgrade to come

By CATHY MEILS

PRAGUE -- Milk & Honey Films is introducing some friendly competition into the Prague film studio scene. The L.A.- and Prague-based company purchased two stages on Aug. 10, with closing on a third stage expected soon. New studio, Milk & Honey Studios Letnany, is located on the site of a former airplane factory five miles from the center of Prague. In addition to the undisclosed purchase price, Milk & Honey plans to invest $500,000 in upgrading the facility.

Milk and Honey began leasing the Letnany studios last August to accommodate the huge studio demands for the Sci-Fi Channel miniseries "Dune," which airs in December. It continued the lease for Hallmark's "The Monkey King" and has used the stages for production of commercials as well.

With Prague undergoing a film production boom, lack of adequate stage space has forced producers to seek alternative solutions. A former train factory and a pair of Olympic-size skating rinks have been temporarily converted for productions, including TNT miniseries "The Mists of Avalon" and Columbia's "A Knight's Tale." Moreover, the uncertainty over the future of Barrandov (a Canadian group is in prolonged negotiations to buy it), one of Europe's largest film studios and until now in a monopoly situation, has encouraged leading production companies to consider building or buying their own stages.

Milk & Honey partner Tomas Krejci, executive producer and head of Milk & Honey Production Services in Prague, is currently managing the Letnany Studios until an experienced studio manager is hired, along with additional personnel.