Production House in Sri Lanka l Film Directors

NKAR Film Eye – Sri Lanka’s outstanding service provider for film locations, combines rich experiences in the varied aspects of film production. From planning to execution, our production house in Sri Lanka offers the skills and expertise for the most challenging and rewarding work – in front of and behind the camera.

Whatever the demand – from features, documentaries, cine dramas, historical and period films and TV serials, to travel, wildlife and beach specials, sports, high end commercials and many more NKAR Film Eye can provide an exciting range of shooting possibilities.

The record shows Sri Lanka’s success in meeting the production expectations of the most demanding film makers from Hollywood, Bollywood, the United Kingdom, Europe, the Far East and many more with very special needs.

NKAR Film Eye provides access to the land of historic locations that has been used in films that made their mark such as “The Bridge on the River Kwai”, “Elephant Walk” and “The Purple Plain”. It provides the feel of history itself in ancient cities rich with location possibilities; settings of nature, scenic landscapes, beautiful scenery and tracks in the wild that have enthused and continues to inspire directors and cine-photographers.

We offer specialist assistance, from those who have experience in making films and are continually involved in the industry. We know the special needs required for film location work; bringing together people with a lifetime association with quality film production, and a known ability to serve the needs of producers and directors, evaluating the best locations, meeting the demands of stars and helping technicians produce the best results.

Beside this par excellence, the relatively low production cost in Sri Lanka helps you to be cost effective as well.

Here’s your key to Sri Lanka’s classic opportunities for the most demanding film makers.

The Legacy Continues

NKAR Film Eye gained its focus from a memorable name in Sri Lankan cinema.

Yasapalitha Nanayakkara who made his first film in 1967, which was his own production, went on to produce and direct 27 films in a career that spanned 17 fruitful years.

It was a career that explored what was daring in the search for new approaches to the cinema in Sri Lanka. Though there were many ups and downs, there was also a determination to produce the most entertaining films for Sri Lankan film audiences in an increasingly competitive world of cinema.

A man with an instinctive love for the cinema and the art of film, he made a major contribution to Sri Lankan cinema with pioneering zeal in bringing new cinematic experiences that enriched the quality of local films.

His films bore important social messages, which came from his own interest in social change. This later saw Yasapalitha Nanayakkara enter politics in Sri Lanka where he made his own path in a crowded arena. He entered electoral politics from his village council in the southern city of Galle and later won election to the Western Provincial Council in 1988. He was active in working for the interests of both the people and the cinema, bringing together the abundant experience of economic hardship and social strains of the people and the constant needs of the film industry in Sri Lanka.

He brought a stamp of quality to his cinematic works, which had great popular acclaim and often had good results in the box office. He was able to bring in the best of Sri Lankan stars and other cinematic talent to work on his films that covered the wide ranging social realty in Sri Lanka. He always went in search of new locations and faced new challenges in film production.

He also made films in India with prominent directors there and had the rare distinction of making films both in Sinhala and Tamil – in different cultures and social and geographic backgrounds in Sri Lanka. Film directors such as Yasapalitha Nanayakkara truly brought out the multicultural aspect of local communities.

His youngest brother Nilmin Nanayakkara is the Managing Director of NKAR Travels & Tours Pvt Ltd, a destination management company that sets benchmarks in the hospitality industry for their creative programmes coupled with precise logistics management.

Nilmin works together with Ranjeewa Nanayakkara, the eldest son of Yasapalitha who has tremendous exposure in the Sri Lankan film industry. The most trusted assistant director of late Mr .Yasapalitha Nanayakkara, Lal Priyadewa also has an enormous passion for the industry and has helped to create a platform whereby the film shoots in Sri Lanka can be branded as NKAR Film Eye.

We continue his explorative interests in cinema with our own contribution to quality film production, as an outstanding resource centre for film locations. Our services provide you with all the needs of the producer and director, the assurance of the best conditions for stars and the highest in technical expertise.

It is a tradition we are glad to continue from the inspiring film personality of late Mr. Yasapalitha Nanayakkara. An emotional attachment with the work of Yasapalitha Nanayakkara continues with the presence of his son Ranjeewa – who assisted him both in production and direction and his long standing Assistant Director – Lal Priyadeva – who has worked on ten of his films. With strong backing of NKAR Travels & Tours (Pvt) Ltd, they both carry ahead this commitment to quality cinema giving new meaning to the search and supply of the best in film locations and services.

Profile of Ranjeewa Nanayakkara

Ranjeewa as a Singer

Following in the footsteps of the father, Ranjeewa first entered the film industry by performing as a playback singer in the Sinhala cinema; he did playback singing for 23 songs for 6 movies, one background song in a tele-drama series and 4 other audio songs for general listening pleasure.

Ranjeewa as an Actor

He has acted in seven Sri Lankan films, four of which were his own father’s movies and has also acted in a Malayalam film. In 1992 Ranjeewa was named the best up and coming film actoras he emerged the winner in the Sri Lankan film awards.

All his movies were commercially successful in the box office as well.

Ranjeewa’s Talent in Script Writing

He was able to convince his father to produce two movies on two different strong scripts written by him and eventually the son father combination led to box office hits.

Like father like son

He continued to be highly involved and engaged with his father in the national film industry and created links and set a broad outfit for himself having assisted the father. He worked as an editor in three movies and as the assistant director in two. While the late Mr. Yasapalitha Nanayakkara was a largely accepted personality in the Sri Lankan film industry, his son Ranjeewa too has closely followed in his footsteps.

Profile of Lal Priyadeva

In Lal Priyadeva’s Blood

Lal Priyadeva’s father was a film director too and in 1971 Lal stepped into the film industry by playing a character of a child in his father’s film.

In 1987 then a young lad with immense passion for the film industry, Lal emerged as a scriptwriter and his scripts have had immense success.

By this time he turned out to be an emerging personality in the Sri Lankan film industry and became a renowned and well accepted scriptwriter who spoke the Hindi language fluently.

His passion towards movies made him to follow the Bollywood path. Having displayed talents in the areas of scriptwriting, editing and assisting in film direction he eventually teamed up with late Yasapalitha, the vibrant local film director and became his trusted assistant director.

Having further mastered the subject Lal Priyadeva became a well recognised film director at the national level with the 1st movie under his direction winning the Presidential Award.