PARIS, Aug. 18 (UPI) — French film artist Luc Besson’s company EuropaCorp is developing a film based on the K-141 Kursk submarine disaster in which 118 Russians died on August 12, 2000.
The Kursk, the most modern of Russian Northern Fleet submarines, was hit by two explosions within two minutes during a routine military exercise.
EuropaCorp has hired Danish director Martin Zandvliet to direct Kursk from a script by screenwriter Robert Rodat, and based on Robert Moore’s book, A Time to Die, Variety reported. Kursk will be Zandvliet’s first English-language film, reported Variety.
On August 12, Russia marked the 15-year anniversary of the disaster, as memorial services took place and flags were lowered throughout the country to honor the men lost. The Russian Navy initially asserted that the sinking had been caused by a collision with another vessel but the government eventually admitted that the cause was a torpedo explosion in the submarine.
Of the 118, 95 crew members died immediately. The remaining 23 submariners managed to survive the two explosions and take shelter in the stern compartment, where they stayed alive for eight more hours, Russia Beyond the Headlines reported on the national tragedy’s 15-year-anniversary.
A Norwegian TV documentary about the accident was released. The film won Best Documentary at the Monte-Carlo TV Festival.
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