雪中悍刀行呼延观音:U.S. film producers are engaging the Chinese

来源：百度文库 编辑：九乡新闻网 时间：2024/10/05 21:34:00

U.S. film producers are engaging the Chinese

It's not about détente, it's about making money. The partnerships give the American firms better access to the country's growing movie market.


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2011-8-25 14:24
Chinese children pose for photos near an advertisement for the Hollywood movie "Transformers" during an animation fair held in Beijing in July 2007. The latest "Transformers" sequel has sold more than $159 million worth of tickets in China this summer. (Ng Han Guan / Associated Press)




China bought $91.9-billion worth of U.S. goods last year, including boatloads of medical devices, precious metals and electrical equipment. But when it comes to America's most celebrated cultural export — Hollywood movies — crossing China's borders has proved more difficult than climbing the Great Wall.


After years of frustration with the Chinese government's severe limits on how many imported movies can play in its theaters, several prominent American film producers are cutting ambitious deals with Chinese firms that provide alternative routes into the country's exploding movie market.


"There's no reason we should have Chinese films and American films anymore. There should be global films," Ryan Kavanaugh, the chief executive of Relativity Media, said when unveiling his independent studio's joint venture in Beijing this month.


Film finance and production firm Legendary Pictures detailed plans for its own China joint venture called Legendary East on Sunday, and other independent U.S. studios like Nu Image are actively seeking coproduction deals in the country.


Such moves give the firms, which don't have the clout of major studios like Warner Bros. and Paramount Pictures, better access to the lucrative Chinese market. The deals also offer filmmakers access to a potentially huge source of capital: Chinese investors, who face significant restrictions on sending their money overseas. However, partnerships in China also mean U.S. producers must work closely with the country's Communist government and its censors.


"There is a big difference between announcing a quick deal and forming a company in China with a solid business strategy and strong Chinese partners," said Skip Paul, of Centerview Partners who advised on the formation of Legendary East. "The key to success is tapping into deep relationships to help navigate the politics and culture."


The U.S. push into China comes at a critical time for Hollywood: With income from some longtime cash cows, including DVD sales, collapsing, China is one of the globe's biggest untapped revenue sources.


"Our ideal is to make as many of our movies co-productions as possible … and for them all to get a release in China," said Kavanaugh.


SkyLand's backers include SAIF Partners, an Asian private equity firm with $3.5 billion under management, and IDG China Media, the Chinese arm of Boston-based technology and publishing giant International Data Group.


Legendary East, which will produce English-language movies in China and export them globally, is partnered with Asian entertainment conglomerate Huayi Brothers Media Corp.


But in order to qualify for a co-production, American scripts must be approved in advance by the government, which can be unpredictable in what it censors and what it doesn't. "No one really knows where the boundaries are," said Trevor Short, Nu Image's chief financial officer.


Still, no major Hollywood studio has formed a long-term partnership to co-produce films with Chinese companies. However, they have found some ways to release a few movies in the country outside of the 20-import quota.


To boost the rollout of high-tech projectors in the country's theaters, China in 2007 began allowing several pictures per year into the country on a revenue-share basis if they played only in digital theaters. Since 2008's "Journey to the Center of the Earth" kicked off the program, digital projection has become so common that movies like "Toy Story 3" and "Shrek Forever After" received nationwide releases in China by utilizing the exception.


"Show me another country where you can release a movie 100% in 3-D digital," said Jeff Blake, the vice chairman of Sony Pictures. The studio's animated film "The Smurfs," which in China is playing solely in high-tech digital theaters, has grossed $26.1 million since opening Aug. 10.


One other way for U.S. filmmakers to earn money in China is by making Mandarin-language productions in the country, which yielded Fox International's hit "Hot Summer Days" and Disney's flop "High School Musical: China."


Ultimately, American film companies don't want to have to find ways around the quota — they want to eliminate it. And though such a development isn't likely in the near-term, some believe it's inevitable.


"I'm optimistic," Imax's Gelfond said. "So much is being invested in the infrastructure in Chinese exhibition. And I think the government is going to want to support the infrastructure."  (LA Times)
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