China Daily: Storytelling is key to movie magic

The day after Asia emerged as the largest film market outside of North America, a group of industry experts gathered in Hong Kong to discuss the future of the industry. On the agenda were issues including how a new generation of filmmakers can overcome challenges, ride the wave of growth and reach larger audiences both at home and internationally.

According to numbers released by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) on March 25, box office revenues in Asia reached $35.9 billion in 2013, surpassing all other regions outside of North America.

Consumer spending linked to the film industry in Asia is now the largest in the world outside North America, said Zhou Li, publisher and editor-in-chief at China Daily Asia Pacific, at the opening of the latest China Daily Leadership Roundtable on March 26.
Titled “The Next Generation Film Industry in Asia: Challenges and Opportunities”, the event brought together a group of filmmakers, producers and top-tier industry stakeholders at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. The event is co-organized by China Daily Asia Pacific and the Hong Kong International Film & TV Market (FILMART).

“Films from China, South Korea, India and many other Asian nations not only continue to appeal to local audiences but are growing in popularity around the world as well,” said Zhou. “Complex regulations and censorship can be a great hindrance for many films … But where there is a challenge there is also an opportunity.”

The reality is that films from across the region are increasingly popular with audiences around the world. The Chinese mainland and South Korea are producing more films than ever before, even if the industries in places like Hong Kong and the Philippines have lost some of their luster.

Outside of the United States and Canada, China had the largest market with revenues of $3.6 billion, about a third higher than a year earlier. The Chinese market was dominated by domestic films, which accounted for about 71 percent of total revenue across the 18,000-plus movie screens throughout the country, a rise of about 5,100 screens in a single year.

Japan was the second-largest market, earning $2.4 billion. Other Asian markets in the top 10 included India with $1.5 billion and South Korea with $1.4 billion.

“There is incredible growth from this region,” said Edward Neubronner, senior vice-president and regional operations officer for the Asia Pacific at MPAA.

One of his favorite markets in the region at the moment is Malaysia, a market where filmmakers are increasingly active, new screens are opening up and production values are improving.

“As the market grows, the local industry grows,” said Neubronner.
The highest-grossing films around the world are still made in Hollywood, however. Asian films, for the time being, are increasingly successful as a group and in their domestic markets but are not the biggest earners individually.
Asian filmmakers have some other issues to contend with, a key one being access to films. In some countries, notably Indonesia, there are very few screens compared to the size of the population, said Neubronner. More screens would invariably lead to a larger and more productive domestic film industry.

A second concern is content theft, which remains quite prominent across the region.
Nevertheless, an optimistic view was palpable among the speakers. But that, said one successful South Korean producer, may be a cause for concern.

“When everybody becomes very optimistic ... I become a little bit worried,” said Joo-ick Lee, executive producer and CEO at Boram Entertainment in South Korea. “It reminds me of what happened 30 years ago in Japan.”

Back then, a number of Japanese conglomerates were investing heavily in Hollywood. But now, said Lee, Japan’s film industry has pulled back to its domestic market. Virtually no Japanese movies now reach outside the country’s borders.

On the other hand, the film industry in South Korea is making ever-increasing forays into other regional markets. In particular, South Korean filmmakers are looking to China for a much larger market with deep pockets and plenty of consumers. To ensure long-term and sustainable growth, a steady flow of high-quality products is key, said Lee.

“Nobody can deny that the China market is growing. But we should focus more on how we can make high-quality products instead of how quickly we can proceed,” he said.

Another market in Asia Pacific beginning to step out of the shadows is Thailand. One film last year broke box office records in the country. Pee Mak Phra Khanong, a ghost comedy, earned as much as $30 million in Thailand last year, said Kong Rithdee, a film writer at the Bangkok Post. To put this in context, the international hit Iron Man 3 earned about $10 million there.
But in this industry, as in most others, not everyone comes out a winner. The film business in Hong Kong, for example, has lost out to the growth in the Chinese mainland.

“The Hong Kong film industry continues to decline,” said Cheung Chi-sing, vice-chairman of the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers. Most of the major movies released in the last few years are co-productions with producers on the mainland. Less than 30 films made in Hong Kong last year were filmed locally, and they were all small productions.

This trend is driven by the fact that on the mainland there are three categories of movies including domestic movies and imported movies. Films made in Hong Kong are considered imported movies and have less access to the mainland market. By contrast, coproductions and content filmed on the mainland may have greater access to screens and the market.

But, warned the veteran industry players, Chinese growth involves some issues that need to be considered. For example, said Cheung, in the past couple of years, the number of screens has grown faster than the industry, which means that earnings per screen is lower and it is increasingly hard to make money as profit margins drop.

At the end of the day, the question that producers need to ask themselves as they invest in films is: Where are the greatest opportunities?

“There is no doubt that in the future, the Asian region will be the biggest box office market. It will surpass North America in a couple of years,” said Liz Shackleton, Asia editor at Screen International, a UK industry magazine. “But the future is about partnership and collaboration. Asia doesn’t want to be just a market. It wants to be a content producer.”

http://www.chinadailyasia.com/asiaweekly/2014-03/28/content_15127758.html