Top Gear Motors into Myanmar
Clarkson, Hammond and May choose Asia Film Fixers and Khiri Travel to get job done
The BBC’s most popular show, Top Gear, is wowing millions of viewers this week with its two-part special on Burma (Myanmar). In the programmes, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May buy three decrepit Burmese trucks. They are tasked with driving up through Myanmar to Shan State to the Golden Triangle and then down to the River Kwai in Thailand, where they have to build a bridge.
There are calamities, mishaps and petty infighting around each corner. Part one, which aired in UK on Sunday and Monday attracted favourable reviews. One critic said the show (350 million views per week in 170 countries) would do more to attract tourists to Myanmar than any official tourism campaign.
The programme took 17 days to shoot on location in October with eight weeks of pre-production by the fixers. Twelve vehicles and 40 crew worked behind the scenes to capture each dubious misadventure along the way.
Top Gear’s production team turned to Asia Film Fixers (AFF) and Khiri Travel to get the show made. AFF and Khiri Travel provided pre-production assistance, location scouting, permits, government liaison, location management, logistics, transportation, accommodation, catering, guides, translation, purchasing, and itinerary advice.
The job involved the entire Khiri Travel Myanmar office as well as Terry Gordon, Chris East and Stephen Blaxhall from Asia Film Fixers.
Says Gordon: “Asia Film Fixers acquired the job. But we couldn’t have closed the deal or serviced the requirements without Khiri Travel.”
AFF and Khiri Travel secured special permission from the Myanmar Government for the Top Gear team to drive between Taunggyi in Shan State and Tachileik on the Thai border. It may have been the first time foreigners have made that particular trip since World War II.
On the catering side, Khiri Travel brought in a Yangon-based social business called Yangon Bakehouse. The Bakehouse provides young and disadvantaged Myanmar people with life skills and employment.
The mayhem continues in part two, due to be broadcast in UK on 16 March and on BBC Knowledge shortly there after.
Khiri Travel CEO Willem Niemeijer said: “With AFF we’re ready for more outlandish TV and film assignments in Southeast Asia. The crazier and more challenging the better.”
About the Khiri Travel Group
Khiri Travel, established in 1993, is an independent destination management company with its own regional network. The group has 13 offices in Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia, as well as an inbound travel company in the USA. The company’s detailed knowledge of the world shows in its unusual destinations, innovative itineraries and in its commitment to responsible travel throughout Southeast Asia and the world. Visit www.khiri.com
About Asia Film Fixers
Asia Film Fixers are the SE Asian leaders in Production Fixing and Support. The company has worked with the world’s biggest film and television brands. Asia Film Fixers is an experienced production support, fixing, location management and location scouting service that specialises in supporting international productions throughout South East Asia and the Pacific, including Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Papua New Guinea. Visit www.asiafilmfixers.com