Celina Jade
Celina Jade to Star in Mahua Funage’s New Film
American-Hong Kong actress Celina Jade, who is best known for starring in the 2017 blockbuster Wolf Warrior 2, has joined Mahua Funage’s new film Hello, Mrs. Money as Mrs. Money. Yesterday, Jade attended the opening ceremony of the 8th Beijing International Film Festival with her crew members from Mahua Funage. Based on Mahua’s hit stage play of the same name, Hello Mrs. Money is centered around a man’s engagement party and people’s interactions with his wealthy aunt (Jade). Hello, Mrs. Money has been set to release during China’s National Day holiday, one of the country’s more lucrative cinematic seasons. Read more on Mtime
‘Annihilation’ Opens in China with Disappointing Box Office Number
2018 science fiction horror film Annihilation debuted in China on Friday and earned 26.7 million yuan ($4.25 million) after two days. Rampage, another American science fiction film that opened in China on the same day, made over 200 million yuan within the same time period. Before its release, Annihilation was highly anticipated by Chinese moviegoers. However, after watching the film, some audiences complained that the plots were hard to understand and full of flaws. In addition to polarizing reviews and competition from Rampage and Ready Player One, the film’s poor box office number might have also been caused by the fact that some Chinese audiences had watched it on Netflix or its pirated version somewhere. Read more on yuledujiaoshou
Tao Piaopiao to Spend 300 Million RMB Promoting Arthouse Films
Alibaba’s online ticketing platform Tao Piaopiao recently announced its strategic partnership with China’s National Alliance of Arthouse Cinemas. In next three years, Tao Piaopiao will spend 300 million yuan ($48 million) promoting 20 upcoming arthouse films to be released through the Alliance. The 20 films will include new productions by Alibaba Pictures, Dirty Monkey Pictures, Youku Pictures, and Beijing Culture, etc. In the past, Tao Piaopiao has successfully used big data to help arthouse films, such as Twenty Two and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, to reach a broad audience in China. Read more on Sohu
Pear Video Raises $1 Billion in Series A Financing Led by Tencent
Pear Video announced today that the company had completed its series A financing, receiving $1 billion funds from Tencent and Baidu. The funds will be used to enhance its content creation and improve its business model. Launched in November 2016, Pear Video is a digital platform that provides short news videos in the length of 30 seconds to 3 minutes. Occasionally, the platform also releases 10-minute long documentaries. Currently, the platform produces roughly 1500 short videos and generates about 1 billion views daily. In addition to Tencent and Baidu, Pear Video’s investors also include China Media Capital (CMC) and People.cn. Read more on TMT Post
