Headlines from China: Tax Shake-up Stirs Up Anxiety in China’s Film & TV Industry

Tax Shake-up Stirs Up Anxiety in China’s Film & TV Industry

On November 29, many film & TV studios in China received notice from the country’s tax authorities, being requested to self audit taxes of the past three years and pay taxes by the end of this year. In the wake of tax scandal surrounded Chinese actress Fan Bingbing, China launched a campaign at the beginning of October to regulate the payment of taxes within the film and TV industry. The campaign has stirred up anxiety among film industry professionals. Some studios are afraid that they don’t have enough money to pay past three years’ taxes and will have to suspend production projects, lay off employees, or even file bankruptcy. Some industry insiders predict that the whole industry might have a downtime for up to 3-4 years due to this campaign. Read more on yuleguan001

Fan Luyuan to Become Chairman of Alibaba’s Digital Media and Entertainment Group

On November 26, Alibaba CEO Zhang Yong announced the company’s new organizational changes. In the cultural and entertainment division, Fan Luyuan will become the new rotating Chairman of Alibaba’s Digital Media and Entertainment Group. Founded in 2016, the Group’s founding chairman was Yu Yongfu who stepped down in last November to take another position at Alibaba’s strategic investment unit. Since then, the Group has decided to rotate its chairmanship and appointed Yang Weidong as the first rotating chairman. Read more on yuledujiaoshou

Russian Action Comedy ‘Naparnik’ Scores December 14 China Release

It’s announced today that Russian action comedy Naparnik has scored a December 12 China release. In the film, a special operations Major wakes up after a botched drug bust to find he is now inhabiting the body of a baby. But crimes still need to be solved, he hitches up his diaper and gets back to work. The film is directed by Aleksandr Andryushchenko and stars Elizaveta Arzamasova, Sergey Garmash and Yang Ge. Read more on Mtime