Nicole Kidman is set to break new ground by starring in the first movie ever filmed in the United Nations headquarters. The UN has never before given permission for a feature film to be made in its New York base, but it has decided to give Nicole's latest flick, The Interpreter, the green light.
Every year the organisation receives numerous requests to be used as a location, but until now it has always said no. Even the legendary Alfred Hitchcock was turned down when he asked to film part of North By Northwest in the famous building. And when Nicole starred alongside George Clooney in The Peacemaker, which is about a plot to bomb the UN, they were only permitted to film on the road outside.
Nicole's new film, which also features Sean Penn, tells the story of a translator who overhears conspirators planning a deadly plot. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan is hoping the flick will help bring its work to the attention of movie fans.
The film's renowned director Sydney Pollack meanwhile said he felt very privileged to get a chance to work in the UN complex. "I'm very grateful to the secretary-general and to the UN for giving us the unique opportunity to make this film as authentically as possible," he said. "It's not just a matter of architecture, it's a matter of history, of atmosphere. The physical setting and the sense of history and event that come from standing almost any place in the UN's corridors and great rooms is impossible to duplicate."