AFM: ‘Adventurers’ Heads IM Global’s Expanded China Sales Slate
Patrick Frater
Asia Bureau Chief
COURTESY OF IM GLOBAL
NOVEMBER 2, 2016 | 06:00PM PT
Having recently enjoyed a substantial injection of Chinese capital, IM Global is upping its Chinese film sales credentials.
The company has picked up global rights to Chinese romantic comedy adventure film “The Adventurers” and is unveiling it for sales at the American Film Market.
The film stars Jean Reno, Andy Lau, and “The Assassin” star Shu Qi under the direction of Shu’s husband, Stephen Fung.
Currently in post-production after shooting in Asia and Europe, the film tells the story of a thief (Lau) who steals two pieces of valuable jewelry during the Cannes Film Festival. Shu’s character is used as bait by detective (Reno) to lure the thief to Macau.
It is produced by Terence Chang, who spent over a decade in Hollywood as John Woo’s production partner, with Gravity Pictures, a production and distribution company that is on of the portfolio companies of Li Ruigang’s China Media Capital.
It is also one of the first films to emerge from Flagship Entertainment, the Chinese film production joint venture between Warner Bros., China Media Capital, and Hong Kong’s TVB.
IM Global will handle global rights with the exception of China, Thailand, The Philippines, and Singapore.
The company, which has an output deal with Huayi Bros. as well as sales and distribution support offices in Beijing, also has two other Chinese-language films on its current slate.
Starring Zhang Ziyi and Tadanobu Asano, “The Wasted Times” is a thriller about the 1930s Shanghai gangster Du Yuesheng. The film is in post-production and has been pre-sold to China Lion for the U.S.
Also on the slate is “Shanghai Express,” from Fundamental Films, the Chinese company that recently acquired a quarter of Luc Besson’s EuropaCorp. The film is an action comedy about a cycle courier in Shanghai who is dragged into a cat-and-mouse treasure hunt. It is directed by Song Xiao, and stars Chen He, Korea’s Song Ji-hyo and David Belle.
Majority ownership of IM Global was recently acquired by Chinese-U.S. entertainment conglomerate Tang Media.
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