Pedring Lopez's Action Thriller 'Lotus' Sets Manila and Brazil Shoot for Fall 2026 Under Historic ACT3-Blackops Deal

An ambitious international action thriller is moving into pre-production with a September 2026 cameras-up date, and the production is drawing crew from three continents. Lotus, directed by Filipino filmmaker Pedring Lopez, is scheduled to shoot principal photography in Manila from September through October 2026, with additional sequences filming in Brazil. The project marks the first production under a newly announced partnership between Hong Kong-based ACT3 and Philippine production company Blackops Studios Asia, and it was introduced to international buyers at the Cannes Film Market as the first of five planned films under that collaboration. For crew in the Philippines, Hong Kong, and Brazil, this is one of the more globally ambitious productions to emerge from Southeast Asia in recent years, and the staffing process is only beginning.

Pedring Lopez directs from a screenplay he co-wrote with Rex Lopez, who also serves as producer alongside Maia Yambao-Lopez. Lopez is a respected figure in Filipino genre filmmaking, perhaps best known to international audiences for the Filipino martial arts action film Bato, which showcased his command of kinetic, grounded action sequences rooted in Philippine fighting culture. That background makes him a natural fit for an international thriller built around the physical energy and urban chaos of Manila and Brazil. Executive producer Leslie Loh brings the Hong Kong side of the equation, linking the production to ACT3's regional infrastructure and international sales network. The film's cinematography falls to Noel Teehankee, a seasoned Filipino DP whose work spans both local and international productions shot on Philippine locations. Stunt coordination is in the hands of Sonny Sison, a Filipino-American choreographer with credits across American and Asian productions, whose involvement signals a genuine commitment to practical, choreographed action rather than VFX-dependent sequences.

Cuba Gooding Jr. headlines the cast, the Oscar-winning actor known for Jerry Maguire, Boyz n the Hood, and a long career across both prestige drama and commercial action fare. Alongside him, the film features Australian actor Luke Ford, perhaps best recognized internationally for his role in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Irish entertainer and Boyzone member Keith Duffy, multimedia artist Qymira, and Brazilian actor Alberto Cowboy, with additional casting filled by Cristian Lavin. The ensemble is deliberately international in its construction, which tracks with the production's positioning as a global-audience thriller with dual-continent geography.

The production sits at the intersection of two growing regional film industries. Blackops Studios Asia has been building its profile as a genre-forward Philippine production company, while ACT3 brings Hong Kong's deep history of action film production and international co-production expertise to the table. The deal between the two companies, introduced publicly at Cannes, is designed to produce five films total, meaning Lotus is both a standalone production and a proof of concept for a longer-term slate. That context matters for crew: this is not a one-off indie but the opening chapter of an ongoing production pipeline between two companies investing seriously in the collaboration.

Manila is the primary base of operations, and for Filipino crew and department heads, this production represents a significant local opportunity with international scale. The Philippines has a strong and experienced film crew base, particularly in action and stunt work, and productions based in Manila typically draw heavily from local talent while importing select department heads for internationally financed projects. The Brazil component adds complexity to the logistics, requiring at minimum a small advance unit and local Brazilian crew for those sequences. Given the genre, the art department, locations department, and stunt team will all carry substantial workloads, and with a two-month principal photography window across two countries, the production coordinator and UPM roles will be especially demanding. Union status has not been confirmed in available materials, but productions of this scale and international financing structure often operate under local guild agreements in each filming jurisdiction.

With principal photography still more than a year out, Lotus is squarely in the early pre-production phase where the core creative and logistical team is being assembled. Department heads in the Philippines and Brazil who want to get in front of this one should be moving now. ProductionList.com maintains the full listing for Lotus, including production office contacts, confirmed crew, and scheduling updates as they become available. Bookmark it, check back regularly, and use the contact details to introduce yourself to the production team before the roster fills up.

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