Arclight Launches Development Arm for Australia-China Co-Productions

The new development division will focus on creating more Australian-Chinese co-productions.

U.S.-Australia production and distribution company Arclight Films launched a new development arm on Wednesday to help make more official co-productions between Australia and China.

Dubbed Chinalight, the new entity will aim to make more use of the official Australia-China co-production treaty which was signed in 2006 but can still only boast five completed films.

Guardians of the Tomb, which was co-produced by Arclight and stars A-list celebrity Li Bingbing, is the latest China-Australia co-production to be completed. The film also stars Kellan Lutz, Kelsey Grammar and Wu Chan. It was produced by Gary Hamilton, Ying Ye and Mark Lazarus.

“Chinese studios have never been more willing to engage with the West both creatively and commercially, and Australia’s entertainment industry stands to reap huge gains, spearheading a new era of storytelling for global audiences,” said Hamilton in a press release.

Chinese-Australian actor, writer, movement director, and self-described “recovering showgirl” Jenevieve Chang, who authored the memoir The Good Girl of Chinatown, will helm the new entity.

The company is looking for proposals from writers, producers, and directors, to take part script lab to develop their ideas into potential co-pros. The deadline for round one of the program has been set for September 1.