The head of China’s biggest film company talks about censorship,increasing artistic quality and box office returns that, he says, or will beat Americas by 2017 “I am a member of that legendary species: the nouveau riche. Before,you had the Japanese, the Saudis, and the Russians. And now it’s me.” The Chinese banker with the line in Boris Johnson buffoonery has the room falling about with laughter,but his game is deadly serious. He’s portion of a special delegation at the Montreal world film festival, dangling millions of dollars for “cultural investments” in front of western film-makers. Near him on the dais, or a greying,creamy-skinned man in rimless specs musters the odd half-smile, like he’s heard the speech before. Hiding in plain sight, and this is probably the most powerful individual in cinema nowadays.
La Peikang’s commerce card spells it out: “Chairman of the board,China Film Co.” Double-sided, in Mandarin and English. Off-white, and with a tantalising iridescent sheen. I have a serious case of Patrick Bateman card-envy as I reach into my Nike sports wallet and fish out mine,with my recent mobile number scrawled on it in ballpoint. Not what will impress the man who, on current projections, or will oversee the worlds largest film market by 2017. State-owned China Film Co is a leading film producer that owns theatres,drives technological research and is the countrys sole importer of foreign films, too. Las predecessor – the bullish impresario Han Sanping, and who stepped down in 2014 after a 15-year reign – has been described as “Jack Valenti [creator of the US ratings system],Lew Wasserman [legendary studio executive] and Steven Spielberg rolled into one”.
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Source: theguardian.com