Zhang Yimou’s ‘Impasse’ Sets China Release Date, Ramping Up Labor Day Competition

Zhang Yimou's period thriller Cliff Walkers is set to open theatrically in China and North America on April 30. It's the Chinese filmmaking legend's first attempt at the spy genre, taking place in the snowy, shadowy world of 1930s Manchukuo, the puppet state set up in northern China by pre-WWII imperial Japan.

EXCLUSIVE: BBC Africa and Nat Geo (Latin America) are among a number of international broadcasters to board the Fremantle-distributed water crisis film Day Zero, which narrator Chiwetel Ejiofor says brings urgency to an environmental issue that is not fully understood.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefMainland China youth drama “The Day is Over” was named the best Chinese-language film in the Firebird Young Cinema competition at the Hong Kong International Film Festival.

Rebecca Davis editorZhang Yimou’s historical spy thriller “Cliff Walkers” will hit North American cinemas on April 30, day-and-date with its China release.“Cliff Walkers” was previously title “Impasse” in English. Its Chinese title translates to “On the Cliff.” It will be distributed abroad by CMC Pictures.The film marks Zhang’s first foray into the spy genre.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefBBC Studios, the commercial arm of the British Broadcasting Corporation, has appointed Phil Hardman as senior VP and GM of its operations in India, South East Asia, Japan and Korea.The move is a streamlining of operations under Jon Penn, executive VP for the APAC region.

Rebecca Davis editorUniversal’s “Fast & Furious 9” has passed Chinese censorship to receive official approval for release, the company announced on Wednesday. A specific China release date has not been set yet.“See you on the big screen!” Universal Pictures said on its official Weibo social media account, alongside a Chinese version of the poster.“F9” debuts the U.S.

Godzilla vs Kong which has already released in a few countries like China, India and more, has been enjoying good box office collections. The film has managed to emerge as one of the biggest successes in the pandemic phase and recently also became the highest-grossing international release in China since the pandemic began.

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.

Rebecca Davis editorThe “Lord of the Rings” film trilogy will be re-released successively in Chinese theaters throughout April in restored 4K, Imax and 3D versions, just in time for the 20th anniversary of the first movie’s China debut.The re-runs come just after James Cameron’s 12-year-old “Avatar” returned to Chinese screens on March 12 for an unexpected box office boost that has allowed it to regain its title as the highest-grossing film in movie history, stealing the crown back from

inaccurate, Americanized version of one of the most beloved tales in Chinese culture.

Zack Snyder has revealed that there was a plan to give Atom a spinoff movie.

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

Rebecca Davis editorLegendary documentarian Wang Bing is at HAF this year with his new project “I Come from Ikotun,” which follows two Nigerian families with a foothold in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou over the course of the pandemic.Known for his epically long, unflinching works that have previously tackled sensitive issues like China’s brutal re-education camps, Wang will this time turn his lens on a more cross-cultural subject.

subtitled trailer for “Demon Slayer – The Movie” above.Also Read: 'Avatar' Overtakes 'Avengers: Endgame' as Highest Grossing Movie Ever After China Re-ReleaseAniplex of America and Funimation are handling the North American distribution plans.“Demon Slayer – Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train” is directed by Haruo Sotozaki and features an original story by Koyoharu Gotoge with a screenplay and animation production by studio ufotable.

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.

Also Read: Brie Larson Reveals All the Movies She Auditioned for and Didn't Get, From 'Pitch Perfect' to 'Avatar' (Video)“Avatar” is also the first Hollywood film to top the Chinese weekend box office charts in 2021, following a February in which multiple local films pushed Lunar New Year grosses to a record $1.2 billion as the market has fully recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic.