Headlines from China: Meet The Chinese Partner Behind ‘Why Women Kill’

Image from Douban.

Meet The Chinese Partner Behind ‘Why Women Kill’

American drama series Why Women Kill: Season 1 just won over audiences around the world. Produced by Imagine Entertainment and CBS Television Studios, the show starring Lucy Liu scored 65%/100%  by critics and 94%/100% by audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. On IMDb and China’s Douban, it scored 8.2/10 and 9.3/10, respectively.  As to the backers of the show, few people realized that Chinese company CMC (China Media Capital) is involved. Compared to the increasingly common model of Sino-Hollywood  collaborations in film co-productions, it is still rare that a Chinese company taps into TV production in the US. Since March 2016, CMC has become a shareholder of Imagine Entertainment. In July 2017, Imagine Entertainment partnered with Hong Kong-based TVB, in which CMC also owns stake, to found a joint venture that focuses on American drama series.  TVB, bringing US$100 million into the company, will own the distribution rights of all the original projects in the Great China region. Why Women Kill is one of the recent projects under this joint venture. Sources familiar with CMC also said that the company and TVB are considering a local remake of the hit show. Read more on duojiaowenyu

Taylor Swift Joins in Alibaba’s Gala for 11.11 Global Shopping Festival

Taylor Swift will perform at Alibaba’s 11.11 Countdown Gala On November 10 in Shanghai, the live show that leads up to the company’s biggest shopping event – 11.11 Global Shopping Festival. It will be the first time that Swift goes back to China to meet fans in 4 years since her world tour in 2015. Apart from Swift, international celebrities, such as A-listers Nicole Kidman, Mariah Carey, as well as sports star Kobe Bryant, and local stars will also participate in the show. The Gala is jointly produced by Youku and Zhejiang Television and will be broadcast live on Zhejiang TV, Dragon  TV, Youku, and multiple TV and online channels. Tickets for the Gala, however, will not be on public sale. Read more on hxnews