A superhero's reward for traffic stress

Published Oct 24, 2014

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JOBURG motorists who spent many frustrating hours in gridlocked traffic in the CBD in February during the filming of the Hollywood movie Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron can forget their anger and enjoy the trailer, which has just been released.

The movie will be released in May next year.

The opening scene in the trailer shows the Joburg skyline clearly.

Other scenes in the trailer show some buildings in Commissioner Street in stark relief as well as actors in SAPS uniforms in a shootout, causing the demolition of food stalls.

Filming also took place on the Yeoville koppie and in Soweto, but these scenes are not included in the trailer.

The filming caused major traffic disruptions in February, with people experiencing long delays, tempers flaring because of frustrations and many altercations between impatient taxi drivers, motorists and metro police officers.

Scenes of motorists driving up the wrong side of the road and climbing up pavements were common. The city was filled with the constant noise of irritated drivers hooting.

The Joburg metro police department appealed to motorists to be patient, saying it was an honour to have a movie of this calibre being shot in the city.

The City of Joburg’s joint operating committee co-ordinated the filming with the assistance of the SAPS and local business owners, as well as the JMPD.

The main cast members, such as Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth, were not in South Africa for the filming. The movie is a follow-up to Joss Whedon’s mega hit The Avengers.

The Gauteng Film Commission said at the time it had showcased Joburg to Marvel Studios last year, “sharing information about Joburg’s physical assets and the benefits of filming in the region, which include the possibility of qualifying for the recently revised government film incentive, which is intended to encourage and attract large-budget films and television productions”.

City mayor Parks Tau also said at the time that he was excited about hosting the movie, saying it strengthened Joburg’s position as a worldwide film production centre with first-class facilities and production support.

The filming generated some jobs for South African crew members who were employed by the production.   -    The Star

 

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