Sophie Changhui Shi Joins EST N8 As Acquisition & Production Executive
20.09.2023 - 15:53
/ deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: EST N8, the international finance, production and sales company launched by EST Studios and Bangkok-based N8 Studios at Cannes this year, has hired Sophie Changhui Shi as acquisition and production executive, based in Los Angeles.
Reporting to EST N8 Head of Studios Tenten Wei, she will focus on forging partnerships with Asian production studios, and representing Asian and Asian-American feature films for sales at international film markets.
Shi negotiated the deals for EST to acquire international sales rights for Chabak, Surf Nation and Cannes market title The Harvest, as well as selling Chabak to Southeast Asia. She is now in the process of bringing on new titles for the upcoming Busan, Tokyo and AFM markets and festivals.
On the production front, Shi will also develop and produce features for EST N8 and is currently working on an untitled action sci-fi film set in Southeast Asia for the company. Outside of EST N8 she is producing indie feature Outbound, written and directed by Ziyao Liu, which is currently in post-production.
Prior to EST N8, Shi worked as a creative executive at current AMPAS President Janet Yang’s production company, where she was involved in the development of the upcoming Bruce Lee biopic, directed by Ang Lee. She also worked at HBO on the projects Staircase and We Own This City and on the second season of Good Girls for NBC Universal.
“We are very excited to welcome Sophie to our team. Her international profile and market knowledge will certainly be beneficial to us as we continue to grow our content sales and acquisition activities in Asia and worldwide,” said Jaeson Ma, chairman of EST Studios.
EST Studios and N8 Studios continue to operate separately outside of their joint