New episodes of French ‘Survivor’ to be filmed in Myanmar

Published on Friday, 26 October 2012 19:54

An advertisement of New season of "Koh-Lanta"

New season of “Koh-Lanta”, a French version of US popular reality game show “Survivor”, is set to be filmed in Myanmar’s Myeik Archipelago.
"The reality game show will highlight the natural beauty of the Myeik Archipelago and the lifestyle of its inhabitants," an official from state-run Myanmar Motion Picture Enterprise said.
The French production team will announce the filming schedule in November.
The film crew will spend 42 days at the country’s most southern region to film 14 episodes, which will be transmitted on the French television channel TF1 and show's official website. The crew will work together with local film technicians.
The reality show will choose 20 contestants–10 males and 10 females –out of 15000 applicants to compete in two teams in survival games and underwater adventures on an isolated island. The winning team will be awarded 1 million Euros (US$1.2 million).
Since its debut in 2001, the show has broadcasted 11 regular seasons and 3 special seasons. The 12th season is being filmed in Malaysia and will be broadcasted on November 2. The “Koh-Lanta” attracts over 99 million viewers at its highest and 81 million viewers at its lowest.
According to the official, the reality show will attract tourists to Myanmar, as well as creating job opportunities for locals during the filming period.
The film production team has promised to build an Eco museum and a healthcare centre at the archipelago after they finish filming the show. They also plan to hold a photo exhibition on Myeik Archipelago’s beautiful landscapes underwater sceneries in France next year.
The archipelago consists of around 800 islands distributed along 600 kilometres of coastline in the Andaman Sea. It is also the home of the Salone (Moken) sea gypsies who spend most of their days on the boats and only live on the islands during the monsoons.