Hong Kong-based CelestialPictures is introducing remakes of two martial arts classics in its ShawBrothers library - Five Deadly Venoms and The Flying Guillotine - here at the AFM and has attached leadingdirectors to both.

Kirk Wong is set to direct FiveDeadly Venoms - to be producedby Celestial's vice president of new film contents, Philip Lee, with Daniel Yuas line producer - while Teddy Chen will direct Flying Guillotine from a script by Su Chao-pin.

The two remakes have beenset up by Lee and Celestial's executive vice president, acquisitions &distribution, Gordon Cheung. Currently in pre-production, the two films arescheduled to start shooting in China in February 2007 and details of cast andfinancing will be announced by the end of the year. Both films have budgets ofat least $10m.

"The concept and mainstory will be similar to the original films but with some modern elements,"said Cheung. "Flying Guillotine will have updated special effects and Five Deadly Venoms will have a contemporary setting."

Wong has been working inHollywood since the late 90s, where his credits include The Big Hit starring Mark Wahlberg, while Chen's creditsincluding Hong Kong action films such as Purple Storm and The Accidental Spy. Su Chao-pin is one of Taiwan's leadingscreenwriters, with credits such as Sony-backed horror film Double Vision, and recently directed sci-fithriller Silk.

Directed by Chang Cheh in1978, Five Deadly Venoms revolvesaround five former pupils of a legendary martial arts master, each of whom hasa unique and deadly style of kung-fu.

Ho Meng-hwa's 1974 FlyingGuillotine is about a paranoidemperor who develops a new weapon: a thrown blade than can decapitate peoplefrom a distance.

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