SOUTH Australia is reclaiming its title as a major film industry location, with three major movie projects and big stars expected here from mid year.

Acclaimed British actor Martin Freeman, who played Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit and Dr Watson to Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock Holmes, will spend up to six weeks in Adelaide from late August filming a zombie thriller set in the Australian outback.

Called Cargo, the Hollywood-backed project is one of three films expected to be made in South Australia, bringing an influx of industry jobs and showcasing the state-of-the-art Adelaide Studios, and outback locations.

South Australian Film Corporation chief executive Annabelle Sheehan confirmed that one of the films, Bad Blood, starring Adelaide actor Xavier Samuel, would be shot entirely in SA with sound post-production at Adelaide Studios.

“Interest in filming in South Australia is currently very high,” she said.

“Experienced crews, diverse filming locations and the state of the art Adelaide studios are all proving strong drawcards among producers and directors.”

media_camera Emma Greenwell and Xavier Samuel in a scene from the film, Love & Friendship.

Arts Minister, Jack Snelling said the films were more great news for the SA industry.

“Once all are confirmed, these films would lead to jobs for more than 200 cast and crew, and inject more than $10 million into the economy,” Mr Snelling said. .

The Cargo — which is very close to being signed off — has been attracted to South Australia following international acclaim for the low-budget dark thriller about a single mother and son, The Babadook, which filmed at Adelaide Studios in 2013 and starred Essie Davis.

One of The Babadook’s producers, Kristina Ceyton, said the LA-based production company Addictive Pictures saw The Babadook and approached her over expanding what was a short film about a zombie pandemic into a full-length feature. The short had attracted more than 10 million YouTube views online.

media_camera Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch from Sherlock.

Ms Ceyton said Martin Freeman was their top casting choice from the outset.

“I guess we felt he is not necessarily the traditional alpha male,” she told The Advertiser. “He represents a little bit more the everyman, with complexity, and he has a lot of heart.”

While the film is a zombie thriller, it is also a more layered, complex story of a father, played by Freeman, who is infected by the zombie virus and faces a 48-hour race against time to find a safe home for his 12-month old baby before he converts.

“So it’s really about the connection, the family values and survival and losing someone that you love,” she said. “He (Freeman) also has a fantastic following and a great profile and I think fans love his work.”

Film Trailer: 'The Man Who Knew Infinity' Watch the film trailer for "The Man Who Knew Infinity," starring Dev Patel, Jeremy Irons, Devika Bhise and Stephen Fry. Photo: IFC Films

A third film, Hotel Mumbai, a major Hollywood-backed thriller with a South Australian director, Anthony Maras, has British actor Dev Patel on board as an actor and co-producer. It is understood to be on track to film here later this year. Hollywood star Armie Hammer, who played twins in The Social Network, is attached, as is Iranian beauty Nazanin Boniadi.

After a year of relative quiet at the $48 million Adelaide Studios — the Wolf Creek television series filmed there late last year — Bad Blood, will move in on June 6. The three-week shoot which will create around 50 industry jobs, will see Xavier Samuel, who has just finished a Jane Austen period piece, Love and Friendship, film here for the first time since his 2006 debut in 2.37.

Australian actor Morgan Griffin, his co-star in the psychological thriller about a woman unsure who to trust when something goes wrong on a weekend away, has just finished another film with Samuel, Spin Out, about the ute-driving characters who attend the legendary outback Bachelors and Spinsters Ball.

Cargo, which secured UK distribution in Cannes last week, will be shot in the remote outback, possibly Wilpena Pound, the Flinders Ranges and the River Murray, and at Adelaide Studios. While details are close to being finalised the SAFC, which along with Screen Australia is financing the film, was unable to comment.

Mr Snelling said the shoots in regional South Australia would showcase the state’s towns and landscapes and would bring opportunities to regional businesses.