Asian films in major deals.

Asian film producers made their presence felt at the prestigious 59th International Cannes Film Festival, despite showing fewer movies this year. Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai became the first Chinese president of the Cannes Film Festival Jury, with one Chinese mainland film winning an important prize and another stirring up controversy.

All of this did not divert Hong Kong's film makers from pursuing some major deals at Cannes, with 11 Hong Kong movies screened during the Festival itself.

Yet the Festival saw fewer Asian candidates in competitive entries overall, with only the controversial Summer Palace up for the top prize, the Palme d'Or, compared to three Chinese mainland films last year. The Palme d'Or was eventually won by British film director Ken Loach with The Wind That Shakes the Barley.

However, Chinese director Wang Chao's Luxury Car, about a retired teacher searching for his lost son, won top honours in a secondary Cannes competition, Un Certain Regard. The film was one of the few Asian productions selected in competition.

Wong Kar Wai among few Asian producers.

Focus on Asia.

Asia's presence shows shifting global trends

Prestige film event.

Jerome Paillard, director of the Cannes Market, the business end of the Festival, said that in 2006, "the focus will be on Asia, [which had] the biggest increase in attendance."

With a 23% increase in visitors, Asia is in fact the second largest region represented at the market in terms of attendees (16%), after the US (with 17%) but ahead of host country France (with 14%).

As arguably the world's most prestigious Film Festival, Cannes is a high-profile event. The population of the city increased from 70,000 to some 200,000 over the two weeks, and some 350 TV crews and 4,000 journalists attended this year.

While the Festival is the glamour event, the serious business is done next door at the Marché du Film (Film Market), where international buyers, distributors and producers meet and deal.

Although this Cannes Market reached a milestone with 10,000 participants, nearly 3,000 companies and 86 nationalities, it was still a quiet festival, industry observers said.

That didn't stop Hong Kong distributors from being satisfied with the results.

Lammy Li, assistant manager, sales and marketing for Golden Network Asia, a four-year festival veteran, said: "it is good, but it is quieter than in previous years."

Still, argued Li, European and American buyers are putting more emphasis on Asia movies. Hong Kong's Golden Network Asia Ltd showed two films at the festival, Ghost Game, a horror movie, and the Hong Kong comedy McDull, The Alumni.

Li: Cannes is quieter.

Lam: 2006 a good year.

At the next booth, Alvin Lam, chief operation officer for Hong Kong firm, Universe International Holdings Ltd, said: "it is going okay this year, as good as last year. We are doing quite well, but I do not want to give a dollar sum."

Hong Kong emphasis on international market

Re-cycle selected for screening.

Universe's major offering for 2006, Re-Cycle, was the closing film in the Un Certain Regard category and was the Pang Brothers' most expensive Asian production.

Hong Kong's Universe Entertainment and Thailand's Matching Motion Picture co-financed Re-Cycle's US$5 million budget. The movie was one of two Hong Kong films selected to screen in competition this year, with Johnnie To's Election 2 shown in the Midnight Screenings category.

"We want to sell Re-Cycle all over the world," Lam said. He is optimistic about Hong Kong films on the international stage: "year by year it is encouraging. The outlook is better and better as long as we produce good work." Key to this is the fact that Hong Kong companies are focusing on international projects, with greater regard for quality in all departments, he believed.

Universe sold Re-Cycle in Italy ahead of its Cannes screening and its premier on the closing night. Russia, Greece, the Czech Republic, Scandinavian and other regions are also markets which have purchased the horror film, and it was presold in most European and Asian countries.

Universe completed deals on Pang movies currently in production, Diary and Forest of Death.

Hong Kong films on international stage.

Lai: sales to France and the US.

Joseph Lai, chief executive officer with Hong Kong's IFD Films and Arts Limited, confirmed that Hong Kong companies did well in business at this year's event which closed on the 28th of May.

"This is a major market for Hong Kong companies. I think this year is better for us. Hong Kong companies sold to France and the US here in Cannes," said Lai.

The company produces martial arts films and animation. "We do low budget pictures, less than US$1 million," says Lai, standing before posters of two of his productions, Hero the Great and Phoenix from Shaolin.

Cheung: Cannes market too long.

The company is now co-producing, with Thailand, a US$1.5 million film tentatively called Girl Fighter. "We are developing the script and choosing the cast. We will film it in China and Thailand, in Mandarin and Thai," reports Lai.

Gordon Cheung, executive vice president, acquisitions and distribution, Celestial Pictures, also found Cannes to be a useful market. "It is a good place to meet most of the European buyers, as now some of them do not go to Los Angeles," he explained.

However, Cheung believed the 12-day Cannes Market was too long. "Four to five days is more suitable. The market starts on a Wednesday and it is biggest and busiest on the first weekend. European distributors especially come down on Friday and go back on Tuesday," Cheung explained

Donnie Yen is star and choreographer.

Other Hong Kong movie executives echoed this sentiment, saying that even the streets seemed quieter on the second week of the market. Still, a number of deals were "inked," as the trade press reported.

Mandarin Films announced that it sold its kung fu epic Dragon Tiger Gate for distribution in Brazil, India, Vietnam, Japan and the Middle East early in the week. The US$10 million movie, adapted from one of Hong Kong's most popular comic books, Dragon and Tiger Heroes, stars Donnie Yen, who was also action choreographer.

The Weinstein company acquired US rights to a package of six films from HoMei Ah Entertainment, including Johnnie To's PTU and Daniel Lee's Dragon Squad.

More relaxed Hong Kong presence

Tented village location.

The HKTDC changed its strategy at Cannes this year. Instead of a Hong Kong party, it decided to sponsor a tented pavilion in the International Village.

The beach-side pavilion had space for film professionals to meet clients and the media to hold interviews, featuring a complimentary business centre with space to screen films and distribute promotional material.

For several days, the pavilion was reserved for interviews with Hong Kong filmmakers. Dragon Tiger Gate star and action director Donny Yen was kept busy with press and TV reporters, shooting him against a background of giant white yachts floating on the Mediterranean behind him.

Conspicuous at the pavilion were producers and directors following up on contacts made at the Hong Kong Asia Financing Forum (HAF) which took place in Hong Kong in March 2006.

Launched in 2000, HAF is a project market to set up private meetings between Asian filmmakers and financiers, producers, bankers, distributors and buyers from across Asia and the world. The ongoing three-day event has been held in conjunction with the Hong Kong FILMART since 2005.

Montejo: following up with agents.

The Standard Chartered Bank set up a new service in conjunction with these events and was in Cannes, where the bank signed an agreement with producer Bill Kong to provide financing for the production of Zhang Yimou's Curse of the Golden Flowers, now shooting on the Chinese mainland.

Cherry Montejo of Factory630, a New York based producer, was at Cannes following her participation at the HAF forum this year, promoting her feature film A Breath Away, to be directed by Kit Hui. Shooting will start in Hong Kong in March 2007.

"We met with a lot of European sales agents, production companies and others at the HAF forum in March [2006], and I am following up with a lot them, which is great," Montejo said, taking a break from her intensive networking at the Hong Kong pavilion.

Talking the talk on intellectual property rights

Desperation leads down unknown roads.

While Hollywood may glamorise pirates in its movies, the industry is concerned with piracy of a different type. The 20th Annual Conference on International Audiovisual Law, Film Distribution, New Technology and Piracy also met at Cannes 2006.

Under the theme "Thriving in a brave new world," delegates discussed challenges which the industry faces in an increasingly digitalized world, how new technologies affect traditional film distribution methods and what can be done to fight film piracy.

Said Celestial Pictures' Cheung: "the biggest problem in Asia is [the Chinese mainland], Vietnam and Southeast Asian countries. It is a concern for every company."

Cheung said that technology will help stop piracy, especially when pictures are delivered directly to the home. However, that will create other challenges for the film business.

"Another problem stemming from technological developments is the growth of other entertainment, such as games for kids," he explained. "They go on the web instead of going to the cinema."

Need for multifaceted projects.

The industry has to be aware that projects they develop today must be multifaceted, delivering games and merchandise, as well as films, for added revenue.

"We are thinking about this, because we have a big library of Shaw Brothers films. We can work on these titles with a multi-media creative concept, games, comic books, cell phone downloads," Cheung explained. "This is much broader than just bringing content in the cinema."

TV is growing quickly, with cable and pay for view films, so the content will get to the home much easier. With the powerful delivery system of the Internet, movies will no longer involve just cinema. New technology will cost less and be more efficient, said Cheung.

Korean wave to ebb?

South Korea remains one of the top Asian producers, with its box office beating 2005 records and a 59% market share of the local film market. The country could produce as many as 100 films this year, movie analysts believe. With investment pouring in, business is still booming, setting off fierce competition for experienced crew and equipment.

However, some observers warn that the Korean wave may be ebbing. The head of the Korean Film Council (KOFIC) cautioned: "we cannot say Korean movies are experiencing a 'Golden Age' at this time. At most, it can be said they are in a 'blooming stage'."

Dionnet: Chinese production business progressing fast.

Jean-Pierre Dionnet, president of desFilms, the most significant buyer of Asian movies in France, does believe that Korea has peaked as a film making centre. "Korea was big a few years ago. Now they just aim for Japan," he believes. "This year, I only saw one good Korean film. Before, there were 10 a year."

Dionnet detects that the Chinese mainland production business is progressing much faster than most observers appreciate. "I think the future is in co-productions between [the Chinese mainland] and Hong Kong. They will be "king"," he added. "Thailand is coming with some good directors, but they do not have a lot of money, so they make small movies."

Certainly, Hong Kong filmmakers are receiving worldwide recognition. French Culture Minister Donnedieu de Vabres awarded Wong Kar Wai the prestigious insignia of the Legion of Honour at a ceremony in Cannes on 21st May.

Before the festival, Cannes artistic director Thierry Fremaux said that choosing Wong as jury president "represents a strong signal which we wished to send out: from an artistic [standpoint], a great festival can no longer exist without Asian films.

from special correspondent Garry Marchant, Cannes