Berlin Winner ‘Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy’ Closes Spain, China, Brazil, Hong Kong for M-Appeal (EXCLUSIVE)

TheHong Kong International Film Festivalhas scrapped its opening-night world premiere of Where the Wind Blows, a widely anticipated crime thriller directed by local industry veteran Philip Yung.

Bloomberg).But the move comes amid reports that China’s Communist party told all local media outlets to downplay live coverage of the ceremony stemming from the nomination of the documentary short “Do Not Split,” which focuses on the 2019 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, and past comments made by Chinese-born “Nomadland” director Chloé Zhao.Other local TV broadcasters in Hong Kong also do not have the broadcast rights, as reported by the Hong Kong news outlet The Standard.Also Read: Why

Despite securing its first Oscar nomination since 1993, Hong Kong looks set to not broadcast the Academy Awards this year after local station Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) opted not to renew its deal.

Better Days,” the territory’s leading free-to-air TV network Television Broadcasts (TVB) will be dropping television coverage of the Oscars ceremony.The network Monday confirmed that it did not have rights to broadcast the show this year.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefIn Hong Kong, where unsmiling mainland Chinese authorities have asserted their “comprehensive jurisdiction,” satire has become a dangerous form of humor. But at least one new satirical segment is soon set to brave the Special Administrative Region’s airwaves.From next month, activist and broadcaster James Ockenden is launching “The Alphard Wars” on RTHK.

Rebecca Davis editorEven though Chinese consumers are arduously calling for a boycott of Western brands concerned about potential human rights abuses in the country’s Xinjiang region, they apparently had no qualms about supporting Hollywood.Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment’s “Godzilla vs.

Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment's Godzilla vs.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentFresh off bullish sales on Berlin Festival Grand Jury Prize winner “Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy,” sales company M-Appeal has just swooped on world rights to Brazilian Marcela Lordy’s “The Book of Delights” (“O Livro dos Praceres”) – part of a brace of first features from a new generation of young female Brazilian directors that is one of the most interesting new phenomena currently seen in Latin America movies.Marking also the first fiction

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorBleecker Street has acquired U.S. rights to Maria Schrader’s “I’m Your Man,” which won the Berlinale’s Silver Bear for leading performance for Maren Eggert.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefDespite a period of recent worries for Chinese tech firms, video entertainment firm Bilibili has confirmed details of its secondary share listing in Hong Kong. It set a maximum price of HK$988 per share, some 12% higher than the $113.31 Tuesday night close for its ADR form shares which are traded on the NASDAQ.At that price the company is expected to raise $3.2 billion (HK$24.7 billion).

The Oscar for "best documentary short subject" tends to be somewhat overlooked amid the glitz and glamor of the Academy Awards ceremony. But the under-appreciated category is fast becoming a major sticking point in China this year.

Hong Kong protests was nominated for an award, according to a new report. The Communist Party’s propaganda department issued the order to all media outlets, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources.

The Chinese government has told local media to curb its coverage of the Oscars ceremony next month due to its concerns about the political views of Best Director nominee Chloe Zhao and the nomination of a short documentary about the Hong Kong protests.

Vivienne Chow Hong Kong’s local streaming platform HMVOD enjoyed a 200% surge in usage following the COVID-19 pandemic. Now it plans to invest more in original content production and increase licensing of Japanese drama and animation.Cantonese-language original content proved to be successful during the pandemic as many people turned to online entertainment while they remained at home, says Tracy Ho, HMVOD’s CEO.

Vivienne Chow Television Broadcasts, Hong Kong’s leading TV group, is set to boost its variety and music programs following a recent management reshuffle. It aims to bring back veteran entertainers who have experience and profile on the mainland Chinese market in order that the station can expand its foothold in the Greater Bay Area.The new appointments come after a difficult year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Peter Debruge Chief Film CriticWhen Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi made his return to fiction after time away in the realm of documentary, he dispensed with the idea that stories must conform to feature length.

Rebecca Davis editorChina on Friday said it would revamp Hong Kong’s electoral system to tighten its grip on the city, a strong move against the region’s democratic governance and freedoms that has incited backlash from critics abroad.Beijing’s rubberstamp parliament, known as the National People’s Congress (NPC), convened for the first day of its annual week-long meetings on Friday.

Leo Barraclough International Features EditorSales agent M-Appeal has closed further territory deals for Japanese filmmaker Ryūsuke Hamaguchi’s “Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy,” which just won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the Berlin Film Festival.Benelux rights have gone to September Film, and StraDa Films has picked the film up in Greece. September Film plans to release the title theatrically post pandemic.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefImax China, the supplier of giant screen cinema facilities and services in Greater China, is one of the purest plays on the mainland Chinese movie exhibition market available to investors.

Rebecca Davis editorJapanese writer-director Ryusuke Hamaguchi may be known for his deep explorations of women in love, but he never set out to specifically chronicle female intimacy.The filmmaker made his name with 2015’s epic five-hour-long “Happy Hour,” which follows the friendships and lives of four middle-class women in their thirties, followed by the unconventional love story “Asako I & II,” which competed for the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2018.He has returned to similar territory in a new