July 31--The public-private partnership that is promoting tourism to the U.S. is tapping another entertainment icon to help lure international visitors.
Brand USA announced that actor and director Robert Redford will narrate a 3-D, giant-screen film that will be released in February for theaters around the world, featuring the country's national parks.
Brand USA, financed by donations and fees charged to international visitors, launched in 2012 with billboards, newspaper and magazine ads, radio spots and an anthem by singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash.
The latest effort, a $10-million film to be shown in IMAX movie theaters, is dubbed "National Parks Adventure," featuring scenes shot in 30 national parks, including Yellowstone, the Everglades, the Redwood and Arches national parks.
The country's national parks welcomed a record 292.8 million visitors last year, surpassing the previous record of 287.2 million visitors in 1987.
The film is being produced by MacGillivray Freeman Films, which has made large-format movies including "Everest" (1998), "The Living Sea" (1995) and "Dolphins" (2000).
"There is no better place to experience this type of movie making than on these giant screens," said Shaun MacGillivray, producer of the film and president of MacGillivray Freeman Films.
Among the most memorable scenes shot for the film, MacGillivray said, were the images of the geysers and bison at Yellowstone National Park and the frozen waterfalls at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan.
"These are just incredible places for people all over the world to see," he said.
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