Jodie Foster, Breslin set course for "Nim's Island"

SYDNEY - Jodie Foster and Abigail Breslin ("Little Miss Sunshine") have signed on for the family-oriented feature "Nim's Island."

Written and directed by husband-and-wife team Mark Levin and Jennifer Flackett, "Nim's Island" is based on Wendy Orr's award-winning book, which tells the story of a young girl who inhabits an isolated island with her scientist father and communicates with the reclusive author of the novel she's reading.

The Walden Media production is set to begin shooting in the Australian state of Queensland in early July, according to Queensland Arts Minister Rod Welford.

"Nim's Island" will be shot on tropical and island locations in Far North Queensland as well as at the Warner Studios on the Gold Coast.

The "Nim's Island" shoot follows the announcement earlier this month that the Australian government had upped its incentives for foreign production in Australia to a 15 percent tax rebate as of June 30. That's in addition to state-based incentives that are attracting more footloose production.

As a result, Queensland and the southern state of Victoria are experiencing something of a production boom: Filming on Baz Luhrmann's epic "Australia" recently started in the Queensland town of Bowen, while HBO's big-budget miniseries "The Pacific" is in preproduction in Melbourne and will use some Queensland locations later in the year. In addition, the thriller "Daybreakers," to star Ethan Hawke, will begin shooting in Queensland in July.