Cory Yuen To Exec Produce Action Pics For HBO Asia; China Film Co Gets IPO OK – Global Briefs

Hong Kong action director Corey Yuen (The Transporter series, Rise Of The Legend) is set to exec produce the first two movies in an anthology being developed in partnership with HBO Asia and China Movie Channel. The films are due to premiere at the end of the year on CMC’s channels and across 23 Asian markets via HBO and RED by HBO. Set in ancient China at the end of the Qing dynasty, the martial arts films will be populated by a cast of Chinese actors professionally trained in MMA, kung fu and muay thai. Principal photography has begun on both Master Of The Drunken Fist: Beggar So and Master Of The Shadowless Kick: Wong Kei-Ying, with choreographer and director Guo Jian Yong (So Close) helming. CMC is a key investor in Chinese films and has exclusive deals with all of the Hollywood majors. Its flagship channel, CCTV-6, is the only national movie network in China reaching over 1.09B people. It also has three premium subscription channels with over 2.8M subscribers.

China Film Co Ltd, the commercial arm of state-run behemoth China Film Group, has received regulatory approval for an initial public offering on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. An IPO has been in the offing for several years with this the 4th time the company will make an attempt. Last year, it postponed an offering when the Chinese market took a hit. China Daily reported in April that CFC planned to list 467M shares to raise about 4.6B rmb ($687M). About 27% of the capital would be invested in movie and TV production with a further 26% going towards building digital cinemas. CFC is involved in film production, distribution and exhibition and also produces television shows. CFG is the overlord of all film activities in China and controls distribution in the market. One of its most recent investments was Legendary’s Warcraft which has grossed upwards of $220M in the Middle Kingdom.