Busy Shanghai Film Festival Signals Strong Post-Pandemic Rebound

Endeavor China, which just named a new group CEO, Thursday announced the acquisition of Shanghai-based Mailman Group, a digital agency for sports brands and rights holders.

Rebecca Davis editorEndeavor’s China offshoot announced Thursday that it has acquired the Shanghai-headquartered digital marketing agency Mailman Group and its Seven League subsidiary. Prior reports estimate the deal to be valued at $60 million.The move comes as Endeavor seeks to expand its footprint in the sports marketing space in China and the broader Asia-Pacific region.

Rebecca Davis editor‘Mulan’ actor Gong Li will serve as the chairman of the international jury doling out the top Tiantan Awards at this year’s Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF), the event said Tuesday.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“F9” has the box office in overdrive. The ninth installment in Universal’s action-packed “Fast and Furious” franchise has surpassed $500 million in global ticket sales, solidifying its place as Hollywood’s biggest theatrical hit of the pandemic era.Other than “Hi, Mom” ($822 million) and “Detective Chinatown 3” ($686 million), which were both produced in China, “F9” is the only movie to cross the $500 million milestone since 2019.

Refresh for latest…: Universal’s F9 is gearing up to hit the $500M mark globally, a milestone it will cross on Monday as it becomes the first Hollywood movie to do so during the pandemic era, and the first since any studio film originally released during 2019. The Justin Lin-helmed title will also join China’s Hi, Mom and Detective Chinatown 3 as only the third film of any provenance to get there in 2020 and 2021. The worldwide cume through Sunday is $491.5M.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefBig-budget mainland Chinese propaganda film “1921” is set for distribution across a raft of English-speaking countries, including the U.S. and U.K.The film enjoyed a wide general release in mainland China from Thursday as part of the ongoing celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China.

Rebecca Davis editorChinese propaganda film “1921” grossed $13 million on its opening day Thursday, outperforming debuts from Hollywood releases like “Cruella,” “A Quiet Place Part II” and “Peter Rabbit 2.”Patriotic titles “1921” and “The Pioneer” kicked off China’s summer season with a nationalist splash with Thursday premieres.

Vertical Entertainment has acquired North American rights to Rushed, an indie thriller directed by Vibeke Muasya that stars Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Robert Patrick, Jake Weary and Peri Gilpin. A theatrical release is planned.

Rebecca Davis editorEndeavor’s China subsidiary has appointed Sum Huang as its chief executive, the company said Tuesday.Huang was most recently the co-founder and partner of Shanghai-headquartered content provider XG Entertainment, which raised capital from Alibaba CICC and YF Capital during his tenure.  He helped the company build its content development and production business, produced live concerts, and established a branded content team that formed a TikTok-based multi-channel media

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefFrance- and Dubai-based sales agency Cercamon has picked up international rights to Chinese crime drama “Streetwise,” which will have its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, in the Un Certain Regard section. Before that, Cercamon has released a trailer.The film (aka “Gaey Wa’r”) is the debut feature effort of Na Jiazuo, who is a graduate of the Beijing Film Academy and had previously directed shorts.

Rebecca Davis editorStar-powered propaganda flick “1921” hit number one at the Chinese box office this week, bringing in $11.6 million from pre-screenings ahead of its July 1 debut, according to Maoyan data. The historical drama debuted earlier this month as the opening night title of the Shanghai Intl.

Rebecca Davis editor“Moneyboys,” the China-set first feature from up-and-coming helmer C.B. Yi, dropped its first trailer Wednesday.

Rebecca Davis editorA new report from the China Internet Audiovisual Content and Service Association delineates the changes that have taken space in the Chinese online streaming and short video spaces during the past pandemic year.It defined users engaging with online streaming, short video, online audiobook or radio, or live streaming services collectively as “internet audiovisual users.”As of December 2020, 95% of all people online in China (944 million people) are using such online

Billie Eilish is facing backlash for allegedly mocking Asians in past videos that a fan has posted to Tik Tok. User @lcxvy posted undated videos of Eilish in which the "Bad Guy" singer allegedly mocks an Asian accent.

One person assembles plastic bottle pumps, another paints areola on sex dolls, and a different individual takes a business etiquette class to learn the proper way to smile (one shows eight teeth…the top ones). All of them are Chinese citizens struggling to find and maintain a foothold in their country’s race towards global domination, and in “Ascension,” they give audiences a peek at what increasingly appears to be a devil’s bargain.