Veteran actress and first-time movie producer Zhou Xun admits the job is taxing. (Photo : Reuters)
After years of male domination, China's movie market welcomes female filmmakers and producers to challenge the movie status quo.
Local actress Zhou Xun, practically a household name in all of China, is among the few local actresses to get international attention when she announced that she is a producer of the movie "A Journey, Through Time, With Anthony."
Zhou expressed nervousness as she promotes the movie, saying this is her first time to market a film as a producer instead of as an actress playing a role. The popular actress, now also a producer, admitted that being a producer is like being a cook, where you select and mix all the right ingredients to make a perfect dish.
Zhou further said that the movie, which is an adaptation of a best-selling novel, is a heart-warming story that features pain and happiness of youth.
Zhou said: "The novel's simple and earnest writing style attracted her. As producer, finding the right lead actor was my first major task."
Supermodel Liu Chang, who became famous three years ago modeling in the fashion industry, will play the role of Anthony, the main character whose tales are inspired by true-to-life stories of Ma Liang, the author of the book being adapted.
Ma Liang is a designer based in Australia, popular to his Chinese following as Anthony. Ma became popular writing essays and novels for Zui, a popular Chinese literary youth magazine.
In 2009, Ma was considered the eighth richest Chinese writer, with annual income of 9 million yuan ($1.43 million) from royalties. He has 2.2 million fans on China's social media site Sina Weibo.
