National Alliance of Arthouse Cinemas to Release ‘Maria by Callas’ on May 31
Maria by Callas, a 2017 documentary film about legendary Greek-American opera singer Maria Callas, has been set to release in China on May 31. The film will be released through over 3000 movie theaters under the banner of China’s National Alliance of Arthouse Cinemas. Following the success of Bohemian Rhapsody in China, the Alliance is bring the life story of another extraordinary artist to Chinese audience. The film was premiered in China last year at the Shanghai International Film Festival. All five screenings at the SIFF were sold out. Read more on Mtime
Zhang Ziyi to Chair the Jury of 32nd Tokyo International Film Festival
At an event hosted during Cannes Film Festival by the organizing committee of the Tokyo International Film Festival, it was announced that Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi will chair the jury of the upcoming 32nd Tokyo International Film Festival. This is the fourth time a Chinese filmmaker chairs the jury of Tokyo Festival. Previous chairmen include director Zhang Yimou, director Chen Kaige and actress Gong Li. Chinese actresses Zhao Wei and Fan Bingbing severed as jurors of the festival before. The 32nd edition of the Tokyo International Film Festival is set to take place this year from October 28 to November 5. Read more on Mtime
China-New Zealand Co-productions Are Going Strong
As China is on its way to become the world’s largest film market, its presence at this year’s Cannes Film Festival is also quite strong. At the China Pavilion, two major events just took place on the same day. China Film Fund brought six selected Chinese producers and their projects to the Pavilion to meet with distributors and sales firms from around the world. Meanwhile, a forum on co-production policies and international distribution of Chinese films took place at the same venue. At the forum, an executive from New Zealand Film Committee expressed New Zealand’s strong interest in co-producing with China. He mentioned that about RMB 2.5 billion are used in recent three years for China-New Zealand co-productions, including works by renowned directors such as Feng Xiaogang and Wuershan. Read more on Mtime
