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Vivienne Chow

Financing for future movies hinges on how latest releases fare

This summer is shaping to be a make-or-break season for the local film industry,  which hopes that a host  of new releases will rekindle the flickering interests of cinema-goers.

Of more than 30 films  lined up between now and  August,  at least six are local productions.

Among the most eye-catching  are Initial D and Seven Swords. Directed by Infernal Affairs' Andrew Lau Wai-keung  and Alan Mak Siu-fai, Initial D is the screen adaptation of a hit comic book about car racing starring Taiwanese singing sensation Jay Chou Jie-lun  in his screen debut.

Seven Swords is Tsui Hark's long-awaited martial arts epic starring Leon Lai Ming.  It is slated to  open the 62nd Venice International Film Festival, but  production company Film Workshop said they  could not accept any invitations yet as the film has not been passed by mainland censors.

John Chong Ching, executive director of Media Asia Entertainment Group, said  the next six months would be a critical period for the film industry.  Early next year would also be crucial.

'The box office for this year's first season has dropped by 40 per cent, compared with the same time last year,' Mr Chong said.

'Thus this summer is very important.

'The success of Initial D and Seven Swords will be a  decisive factor for coming film investment. Investors still have a wait-and-see attitude.'

Batman Begins and Tom Cruise's War of the Worlds will kick off the big Hollywood battles this summer.

Cinema-goers will also be offered choices of art-house productions, animation such as Madagascar and Valiant, as well as Korean and Japanese films.

'People are more willing to try [out different films] during summer. If there are more choices, there's still a chance to stimulate the box office,' said Woody Tsung Wan-chi,  chief executive of the Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Territories Motion Picture Industry Association.

He said summer was an extremely important season for the industry, as it accounted for 30 to 40 per cent of the annual box office.

'It seems that the overall sentiment in Hong Kong is better. A good summer is possible,' said Nansun Shi,  executive director of Film Workshop, who  hoped Hong Kong's new chief executive would continue to   nurture its creative industries.

Mr Chong was also optimistic the box office would improve. 'It will only get better,' he said. 'Just like in 2002 when there were Infernal  Affairs, Hero and Golden Chicken, and all of them did very well.'

Irene Yuen Wing-yan, manager of Intercontinental Film Distributors,  said the company  was scheduled to bring in two more films this summer.

'No matter whether it's us, or other film companies, we are making efforts in  dubbing as a film dubbed in  Cantonese can bring in an extra $4 million to $5 million,' she said.



Filmmakers face a critical summer