philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

Chinese Movie Mogul Promises New Party Leaders Will Open Market to Hollywood

...pan-Pacific movie makers gathered to read the latest tea leaves in Los Angeles on October 30 at an invitation-only dinner to watch a rare public exchange between two of the industry's heaviest hitters, Lewis Coleman, president and chief financial officer of DreamWorks, and Han Sanping, president of the China Film Group, the nation’s monopoly film importer, leading distributor and all around industry heavyweight.

The mood of the day was cautiously upbeat. After all, China soon will become the world’s largest overseas consumer of tickets to big-budget American-made movies, and Coleman, with DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg, is planning to open the doors of the new US$350 million joint venture animation studio Oriental DreamWorks in Shanghai early in 2013. ...

“After the 18th Party Congress,” which will announce the China’s new top leaders on November 8, Han told the audience, “China’s media market will be more dynamic. China’s resources will serve your needs and you will make money in China.”

But the video clip Han showed next was puzzling. Taken from an early reel of a battle-heavy animated fantasy called NeZha, replete with dragons and other mythical Chinese beasts — it was a far cry from anything one could imagine DreamWorks wanting to produce.

It begged the question that underpins any discussion about international film industry cooperation — what sorts of stories are going to bring China and Hollywood together? ...

The success of the second [Kung Fu Panda] film, which grossed US$93 million in China, also sparked a debate in China’s filmmaking community. “After all, here was an American company telling a very Chinese story that starred their national icon,” Coleman said. “Why weren’t these movies made in China?” ...

Coleman also said China’s animation education system is focused on quantity not quality and is supported by prodigious state subsidies and a huge labor pool that helps it churn out cheap films fast. ...

Read the full story here: http://asiasociety.org/blog/asia/chinese-movie-mogul-promises-new-party-leaders-will-open-market-hollywood