China’s Xu Lei, Ning Hao Hit HAF With Rural-Set Film Project ‘The Peacemaker’

Rebecca Davis editorEvery cinema in China must schedule and actively promote at least two screenings of propaganda films per week beginning this week until the end of the year, Chinese authorities have declared, announcing the first batch of eligible titles Friday.Theaters that are part of the National Alliance of Arthouse Cinemas or the “People’s Cinema” circuit — a group of more than 5,000 venues with special halls dedicated to propaganda films or that employ specific strategies like

Marvel legend Stan Lee.The film will be an adaptation of Monkey Master, an unreleased comic book series that Lee and his longtime collaborator Sharad Devarajan created in 2016 loosely based on the Chinese legend of The Monkey King.According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film will follow New York City archeologist Li Yong as he discovers an ancient prophecy about the Monkey King, which brings him to India where he uncovers a hidden power that transforms him into a modern-day superhero, The

Rebecca Davis editorChina’s Huace Pictures this week unveiled its upcoming film lineup, which includes a new project from young arthouse filmmaker Bi Gan (“Kaili Blues”) and sequels to its Chinese New Year hit “A Writer’s Odyssey.”Founded in 2014, Huace Pictures is the newer outgrowth of Shenzhen-listed, Hangzhou-headquartered Zhejiang Huace Film and TV, founded in 2005.

Naman Ramachandran Celebrated action filmmaker John Woo will produce a live action adaptation of Stan Lee’s “Monkey Master,” from a superhero story created by Lee and collaborator Sharad Devarajan.Based on an unreleased comic book series and story created by Marvel maven Lee and Graphic India co-founder and CEO Devarajan, the film will follow New York City archeologist Li Yong who discovers an ancient prophecy about the Chinese legend of The Monkey King that brings him to India where he

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.

In March of 2020, at the top of the pandemic, when former reality show host Donald Trump referred to the coronavirus as the “China Virus” and “Kung Flu”, violence and harassment against Asians and Asian Americans started to surge.

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.

Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings movies are headed back to China's cinemas. The beloved fantasy trilogy has been scheduled for a staggered rerelease in China throughout April, according to local media reports.

Peter Luo, CEO of Starlight Media, came to industry attention in Hollywood at a somewhat awkward moment for an ambitious Chinese film financier. Starlight began making waves in the business in mid-2017, when a slew of development and co-financing deals it had done with prominent Hollywood directors came to light.

The Beijing International Film Festival, which typically takes place in mid-April but has yet to announce its plans for 2021, is considering a postponement to August. Organizers are hoping that by late summer the pandemic will have subsided to an extent that international filmmakers and guests are able to travel to China to participate in the event, sources in contact with organizers of the government-backed festival told The Hollywood Reporteron Friday.

Rebecca Davis editorTop Chinese director Feng Xiaogang will step in front of the camera alongside Chinese-American actor-director Joan Chen in a local adaptation of the 2009 Hollywood tearjerker “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale,” which began shooting Thursday.It is currently set to premiere on New Year’s Eve.Feng is best known for his work as a director on films such as “Youth,” “I Am Not Madame Bovary” and “Cellphone,” but he has also frequently taken on acting roles, with his most recent starring role in

The daughter of the legendary Bruce Lee on Wednesday linked the drastic rise in violence against Asian Americans to the language used about the pandemic, specifically by former President Donald Trump and his supporters. Trump was heavily denounced for repeatedly calling the novel coronavirus the "China virus" and "kung flu" duringrallies; critics said such terms could lead toAsian Americans being targeted for hate crimes.

March 2021 has been full of reminders of the one-year anniversary of the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. “The Last Cruise” trailer invokes one of the earliest indicators that something was about the change — the Diamond Princess Curse ship.

Naman Ramachandran A new documentary from Bhutan will share the Himalayan Buddhist kingdom’s unique philosophy of Gross National Happiness (GNH) with the world.Bhutan’s King Jigme Singye Wangchuk came up with the phrase in 1972 when he said that GNH is more important than Gross Domestic Product.

Rebecca Davis editorChinese director Cai Chengjie will follow up his Rotterdam prize-winning first feature with “Splash,” a new project that daringly takes on the topic of sexual assault.

Rebecca Davis editorThe Shanghai International Film Festival will take place this year from June 11 to June 19.The news comes less than two weeks after Gao Yunfei, the head of Shanghai’s municipal film administration and vice-minister of its propaganda department, stated at a press conference that the city was considering pushing the event back to July.Registration for the 24th annual event is now open to “Chinese and foreign filmmakers and industry people,” the festival said, implying a door

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefChinese indie sales agency Blossoms Entertainment returns to FilMart with a slate of large-scale commercial pictures sourced from a clutch of China’s biggest film studios.The agency, operated by former IM Global staffers Vicky Ding and Leslie Chen, is pre-selling “Railway Heroes,” a tale of heroism and wartime sabotage which is targeting a National Day release in October.

“Avatar” has reclaimed its crown, and is once again the film with the biggest box office in Hollywood history.

James Cameron‘s 2009 film Avatar has become the highest-grossing film of all-time at the global box office – again!