Hollywood faces threat with the recent success of Chinese animated films. (Photo : Reuters)
Beijing-based China Film Group Co. recently announced its new strategy in investing into Hollywood productions, which is to capitalize on film titles that have no links and connections to China.
Industry analysts regard the announcement as a bold move for a state-owned entity's unit that is known for filtering which overseas movies could enter the tightly controlled market in China.
As the firm faces tougher competition, China Film took an approximately 10-percent stake in the record-breaking blockbuster "Furious 7." It also had a small stake in the Legendary Picture LLC's "Seventh Son."
Both movies are American-made and are not shot in the country.
According to Peking University investment professor Jeffrey Towson, production has been the state-backed company's perennial problem, noting that the company is not that competitive when it comes to producing hit films.
China Film Group is currently in talks with other Hollywood firms for other U.S. film titles.
According to one of the company's executives, chosen films will be assigned with their own "preferred dating." This statement has earned concern from analysts, saying that it could give the firm the power to bestow its own films preferential treatment.
The matter has been raising alarm to the alleged U.S. studios' politics, wherein U.S.-based firms eagerly enter the fast-growing Chinese film market.
Industry experts claim that the China Film has the capacity to influence a film's status in the country via different means, one of which is selecting the release date and the number of film screenings.
The new strategy follows the China Film's plan to publicly sell shares under the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The firm reported that its 428-million-yuan profit in 2013 has decreased by 24 percent from its 2012's 560 million yuan.
The first quarter of 2015 saw a rise in China Film's earnings from its movie releases. Film research firm EntGroup stated that the company pulled in 5 billion yuan compared with the 3.7 billion yuan it earned during the same period last year.
