Latest update January 1st, 2016 3:17 PM
Zentropa And Jetavana To Make The First Danish-Chinese Co-production
Ivy Zhong and Shu Huan at the press conference.
Dec. 15, 2015 – BEIJING Zentropa just announced to make the first Danish-Chinese co-production “My Best Friend Andersen” with Jetavana Entertainment, founded by Ivy Zhong, former head of Galloping Horse.
Best known for initiating the Dogma 95 movement and its founder Lars von Trier, Zentropa took part in Bridging the Dragon with a film script, which impressed SHU Huan, one of China’s most wanted screenwriters. It was in Locarno that Shu Huan decided to help realize this co-production, so he came back to Beijing and brought Ivy Zhong on board, whom he met years ago and was in an urgent need of promising international film projects.
In China, almost every child was once a reader of the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen whose fairy tale wonderland would be the backdrop of this comic co-production, whose protagonist will be a Chinese girl, introduced Shu Huan. “We hope to visualize a cross-cultural romantic miracle based on Andersen’s masterpiece.”
Shu Huan is the key writer of China’s two highest grossing 2D films: LOST IN THAILAND and LOST IN HONG KONG. He is also the script supervisor for this summer’s small-budget blockbuster JIAN BING MAN. These three films totals a box office of over 600 million USD in China.
Shu confessed that so far, the best-sold comic films all feature male protagonists in the China market, whereas the top female-led comedy raked in less than 100 million USD. So judged by the present audience preference, this story would have its built-in limit. But he also expressed a wish that this comic family film could earn 100 million USD when released in 2017.
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The original Danish script is now being rewritten to accommodate the Chinese market. Shu will also be one of the producers and invest with his film company Shengwei Media. The cast and director are yet to be decided.
Zentropa China’s CEO Rikke Ennis said: “We want to revitalize Hans Christian Andersen for the Chinese audience, where Shu has a very important role. Obviously, this is a great opportunity to introduce the universe of Hans Christian Andersen, in a way that has never been done before in China, so we look very much forward to that. I cannot underline it enough how important this is for the cultural exchange between Denmark and China, between Europe and China, because we know there is a huge curiosity for content here in China and vice versa. We hope this collaboration will only be the first within a long-term relationship when we’ll make many films together.”
Ivy Zhong thanked Shu and Ennis in bringing this project to Jetavana and expressed her determination to present a high-quality film. Besides producing films, Jetavana also has plans in bringing Broadway shows to China and building a film fund, etc.
The film will be partially shot in Odense, Denmark, Anderson’s hometown. Its mayor also attended this press conference and promised to offer assorted support. Mind you, film location tourism has been on the rise in China in recent years.
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It is believed that this project will witness more collaboration between China and the Nordic countries, whose chill style, mystic music, royal actors and remote landscape have a growing number of die-hard fans in China.
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