Romantic comedy was filmed in Northern Ireland

A China and United Kingdom co-produced film, starring British actor Rupert Graves, has wrapped principal photography in Northern Ireland’s capital Belfast.

The film Special Couple is a co-production between UK company Zephyr Films and Shanghai Dimension Film.

The movie, which is in both English and Mandarin, is the first feature film to be made as part of a China-UK co-production treaty signed in April 2014 between the UK government and Beijing, to strengthen trade ties between the two partners through creative relationships.

The romantic comedy tells the story of two Chinese friends living in London who pretend to be a couple so they can both stay in the UK.

While filming has been going on in various locations in Belfast, it is thought that the Northern Irish capital city is being used as a stand-in for London.

Special Couple, directed by Huang Lei, also stars Chinese actors Aarif Rahman and Luo Hongming, whose stage name is Bai Ke.

Fans of Rahman, who is also known as Aarif Lee, have been expressing their excitement about the movie on Chinese social media.

Weibo user Zhi Ai wrote: “Can’t wait to watch this film, Aarif Lee is the best actor with the study experience in the UK and the multi-language ability”.

Chris Curling, producer at Zephyr Films, told Screendaily: “Now that we have shown that the treaty can be successfully used, I hope that it will pave the way for more and more Chinese and British companies working together.”

The project had funding from the Northern Ireland Screen Fund, supported by Invest NI.

Noel Lavery, the newly-appointed permanent secretary of the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland, added: “I am certain the recent UK/China Regional Leaders Summit, which focused on prosperity and partnership between Northern Ireland and China, will be cemented by this growing relationship.”

According to the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, China’s box office revenue rose 13.45 percent in 2017, to more than 55.9 billion yuan ($8.6 billion) for the year.