China Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief A restored edition of Chen Kaige’s “Yellow Earth” is one of the highlights of the selection for the 8th edition of China’s boutique Pingyao International Film Festival. The film, which helped put Chinese art-house cinema on the map overseas and signaled a new era of Chinese directors, now referred to the FIfth Generation, was originally released 40 years ago. The festival, which runs Sept.

Temu is known for offering its shoppers a wide range of products at very budget-friendly prices. From mops to cat stickers and literally everything in between, if you’re after something random, quirky and cheap, the Chinese company probably has it.

Pingyao International Film Festival (PYIFF) has announced the line-up for its eighth edition, including its Crouching Tigers and Hidden Dragons sections, and opening film A River Without Tears. 

Fiercely independent Chinese filmmaker Wang Bing spent five years filming young workers in Zhili, an industrial region near Shanghai where around 18,000 garment workshops churn out cheap clothes for the domestic market. The workshops run on cheap labor from the provinces; around 200,000 make the long trek from their home villages for six-month periods, living in the workshop dormitories and working 15-hour days. They are only  paid at the end of each six-month bout and have no idea how much they will get; the wages are calculated on piece-work rates so depend on how many units they turn out of their sewing machines, but also on sales, cash flow and their bosses’ whims. Often enough, it seems, they get next to nothing.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Paris-based sales and distribution company Les Films du Losange has boarded “Resurrection,” a sci-fi detective movie directed by Chinese director Bi Gan, whose 2018 film “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” played at Cannes. Headlined by Chinese stars Jackson Yee (“Better Days”) and Shu Qi (“The Assassin”), the movie just wrapped the second part of its shooting.

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, the sixth installment in the Wallace & Gromit stop-motion franchise from Aardman Animations, is set to world premiere on the closing day of AFI Fest, screening at the TCL Chinese Theatre, as part of the festival’s Red Carpet Premieres section, on October 27.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Lloyd Lee Choi’s feature adaptation “Lucky Lu” will begin filming in New York City later this year. Based on Choi’s live-action short, “Same Old,” “Lucky Lu” tells the story of a Chinese delivery driver in New York City who discovers his e-bike has been stolen.

EXCLUSIVE: The L.A.-based Screamfest Horror Film Festival has unveiled the first wave lineup for its 24th edition, taking place at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood from October 8-17.

Black Myth: Wukong launched just a few weeks ago, August 19, but it’s already due to get an expansion, a report confirms.Black Myth: Wukong sold quickly and became the second-most concurrently played game of all time on Steam with 2.2 million players. It sold 18 million copies since its launch, making it one of the fastest-selling games ever.Forbes reports that developer Game Science will be capitalising on the game’s success by releasing an expansion, although there is currently no indication what this expansion will entail, when it will come out, or how much it will cost.Black Myth: Wukong is based on the Chinese novel Journey to the West, and has done exceptionally well in China, which accounts for around 85 to 90 per cent of its total players.These huge sales records have come despite the game only launching on PlayStation 5 and PC.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Specialty sales and finance firm Rediance has picked up international sales rights to “Bound in Heaven,” the directorial debut feature of experienced Chinese screenwriter Hou Xin. The tragic love story will have its world premiere this week in the Centerpiece section of the Toronto International Film Festival. It will subsequently travel to San Sebastian for its European debut. Adapted from the novel of the same title by Liu Xiuwen, the drama centers around a successful young woman who lives in the city with her abusive fiance and a lonely terminally ill man running a noodle shop in Wuhan.

Woosung of South Korean band The Rose has announced his upcoming 2024 ‘B4 We Die’ world tour, featuring concerts in Asia, Europe, the US and more.Today (September 5), The Rose frontman Woosung took to his social media accounts to announce his upcoming 2024 ‘B4 We Die’ world tour with the release of its the official poster. The tour will kick off this October in Asia, with shows in Bangkok and Macau.In the same month, the singer will also bring his tour to Oceania, with two performances in Australia and one in New Zealand.

A new study published in the BMJ Mental Health Journal suggests that mental resilience might be the secret to a longer life.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has said his clash with Elon Musk over social network X shows that the world is not “obligated to put up with [the tech mogul]’s far-right anything goes [agenda] just because he is rich.”

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Nikki Haley, who challenged Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination before exiting the race and endorsing him, has been hired as an adviser to PR giant Edelman. Edelman on Wednesday announced the appointment of Haley as vice chair of the firm. She had held the post of U.S.

EXCLUSIVE: WME has unveiled the 2024 lineup for Futurefest, a student short film showcase in its second year, which is taking place today and on September 11 at the agency’s Beverly Hills offices.

Netflix has unveiled plans to bolster its Chinese-language content slate, anchored by the streamer’s hub and partnerships in Taiwan.

Squid have cancelled their upcoming tour dates following a member of the band being involved in an accident, the band have shared in a social media statement.Earlier today (September 3) the Brighton post-punks took to Instagram to make the announcement about upcoming shows in China and Malaysia. The band had been set to play a series of shows in the two Asian nations beginning with a set at Sonic Jam Festival in Xi’an, China, on September 8.Describing themselves as “extremely sad” to make the announcement, Squid explained that “one of us was involved in an accident and has multiple facial fractures.” They said they were told it would be unsafe for the unnamed band member to fly, and that while they had looked into getting a replacement to fill in, “the nature of our music means that this is very difficult to arrange at a few days’ notice, and we would be unable to procure the necessary work permits in time.”They continued, “We were massively looking forward to playing in these new cities and meeting our fans who have been so supportive, and this outcome is very disappointing to us all.

Robert Zemeckis’ “Here” as the Centerpiece Screening at this year’s AFI Fest. The festival will present “Here” at the TCL Chinese Theatre Oct. 25.

The American Film Institute (AFI) announced today that the World Premiere of Robert Zemeckis’ Here has been selected as the Centerpiece Gala at this year’s AFI Fest.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Chinese director Lou Ye’s pandemic-era docu-drama film which has its North American premiere this week at the Toronto International Film Festival will have a commercial release in the market in early 2025.North American rights to the film, which premiered in Cannes in May, have been picked up by indie distributor Film Movement. Sales are handled by the film’s co-producer The Coproduction Office. Plans for the film’s North American roll-out include a 2025 theatrical release, as well as distribution on leading digital platforms and in the home entertainment marketplace. Set in January 2020, “An Unfinished Film” follows director Xiaorui who convinces his cast and crew to resume the shooting of a film halted ten years earlier.

A mum-of-two has told how postpartum psychosis made her think she was in a real life version of Squid Game.

Naman Ramachandran The Philippines‘ Quezon City Film Commission and QCinema have revealed the lineup for the second edition of the QCinema Project Market (QPM). Twenty projects were selected from 63 submissions across the Philippines and Southeast Asia. The market aims to connect filmmakers with international partners and offers approximately $300,000 in grants and prizes.

Tomris Laffly Some attend couples’ therapy to save their marriage after a case of infidelity. Others appoint a “mistress dispeller,” a shrewd for-hire professional who embeds themselves with the duo (and the “other woman”) for a few months, both to break up the affair and repair the damaged bonds of the domestic union. At least that’s how it seems to work in China lately, as the title cards in Elizabeth Lo’s elegantly haunting and strangely romantic “Mistress Dispeller” reveal.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Alien: Romulus” claimed a third weekend win at the mainland China box office. And Thai comedy “How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies” climbed into the top five on its second week of release in the Middle Kingdom. But those bright spots for imported titles underlined the currently poor performance of Chinese-made films which have dragged the Chinese summer season lower. “Alien: Romulus” earned RMB63.4 million ($8.9 million) between Friday and Sunday, according to data supplied by consultancy firm Artisan Gateway.

Refresh for latest…: While the calendar has clicked over to September, summer vibes are still being felt at the global and international box office. In yet another ascent, and on its 12th weekend of release, Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out 2 has now grossed $1.666B+ globally, overtaking 2019’s The Lion King to become the 9th biggest movie ever at the worldwide box office. The cume through Sunday is an estimated $1,666.2M.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief A love triangle involving a middle-aged couple and a younger woman is exposed and scrutinized from every angle when a professional breakup agent is employed in Elizabeth Lo’s “Mistress Dispeller.” The Chinese-U.S. documentary, which plays in Venice’s Horizons section, is extraordinary for both the candor of the subjects and the film’s exceptional fly-on-the-wall setup. The film’s static opening shot, depicting a woman quietly weeping under the dryer as she gets a new hairdo, sets the tone.

Tourists visiting 'Britain's prettiest village' have been branded vile by fuming locals after they were confronted about blocking residents' driveways. Locals living in Bibury in the Cotswolds claim they have been threatened by visitors - and even punched and kicked by coach drivers.

Alien: Romulus,” a gory sci-fi thriller that earns its R rating, has been a welcome surprise. The newest chapter in the long-running horror saga has been the rare bright spot among American imports with $82 million and counting in mainland China. It’s expected to reach $114 million (RMB819) by the end of its theatrical run, according to forecast from Chinese ticketing agency Maoyan.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The enduring strength of family bonds amid ecological mayhem and fears wreaked on humanity by ongoing wars are the standout themes among more than 60 projects being unveiled at the Venice Production Bridge gap-financing market which kicks off Aug. 29. As examples of this trend, Pascal Diot, who heads the VPB, as the Lido’s indie film market is known, cited Polish director and anthropologist Aga Woszczyńska’s “Blackwater,” which involves two brothers and their partners who become trapped by an ecological catastrophe on a Baltic sea island; and Yegor Troyanovsky’s doc “Cuba & Alaska,” which follows military paramedics from Cuba and Alaska as they risk their lives in war-torn eastern Ukraine.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Canada’s Oscar entry “Universal Language,” a critically acclaimed movie directed by Matthew Rankin, has been acquired by distributors in most major territories ahead of its North American premieres at Toronto and New York Film Festival. Represented worldwide by Brussels-based company Best Friend Forever, the movie world premiered at this Cannes Directors’ Fortnight where it won the inaugural People’s Choice Award. Following Toronto and New York, the movie will go on to play at Fantastic Fest and Festival du Nouveau Cinema as the festival opener.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Cheng Pei-pei, the beloved Chinese actor who died last month, will be honored with a lifetime achievement award at the Golden Horse Film Awards in November. Cheng, considered a pioneer of martial arts roles for female actors, died in the San Francisco Bay Area after suffering from a degenerative brain disease. She was 78.

Meg Ryan is enjoying a rare day out with her daughter.

Christopher Vourlias Fran Borgia of Singapore’s Akanga Film Asia (“Tiger Stripes”), who’s at the Venice Film Festival this week with Yeo Siew Hua’s Golden Lion contender “Stranger Eyes,” has unveiled two new projects on his production company’s fast-growing slate, including a limited series from Yeo, whose “A Land Imagined” won the Locarno Film Festival’s top prize in 2018. “We are excited to announce that we are expanding our horizons beyond Southeast Asia, embarking on ambitious new projects in collaboration with partners from China, Japan and India,” Borgia told Variety.

Take one conservative anti-Trumper, add a liberal Hollywood filmmaker, toss them in a Hot Tub Time Machine, and what comes out? One of the most talked-about documentaries set to premiere at next month’s Toronto Film Festival.

Films by veteran Asian filmmakers Brillante Mendoza, Rima Das and Tom Lin have been selected for the Busan International Film Festival‘s Jiseok competition section.

Katcy Stephan UTA has signed Hong Kong writer-director Tiger Ji for representation in all areas. Ji first gained recognition at age 19 with his award-winning 2020 short, “Wuhan Driver,” executive produced by Jonathan Sanger (“Vanilla Sky,” “Elephant Man”). It follows a Chinese Uber driver in New York as he struggles to make ends meet at the onset of the pandemic.