Shooting begins on Silent Hill movie

Principal photography has started on Silent Hill, the movie version of Konami's classic survival horror franchise, according to a report in US entertainment paper Variety.

The film will star Radha Mitchell - best known for her role in Pitch Black - as lead character Rose, a woman who finds herself exploring the mysterious town whilst searching for her missing daughter.

Sean Bean will play Rose's husband, and other cast members include Deborah Kara Unger (Crash, The Game) and Kim Coates (Black Hawk Down, Pearl Harbour).

Christopher Gans, whose previous work includes cult French horror Brotherhood of the Wolf, is directing, and the script has been written by Roger Avary, director of Killing Zoe and The Rules of Attraction. Avary jointly received a Best Original Screenplay Oscar with Quentin Tarantino for Pulp Fiction.

A budget of $45-50 million has been set aside for the TriStar Pictures production, which will go on general release next year. The film is being made in association with Konami Corp.

"Konami sold over 4 million units of the Silent Hill trilogy of games, and I'm thrilled that they have entrusted me with this valuable franchise," said producer Samuel Hadida.

Hadida previously co-produced two film versions of Resident Evil and is currently working on a sequel, along with a big screen adaptation of the Onimusha franchise.