Co-productions and cross-media convergence would bring more business opportunities to the worldwide entertainment industry, according to a survey conducted by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (TDC).

Two giant movie posters of Chinese epic Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon and An Empress and the Warriors are placed in front of a UA Cinema yesterday. Action is the most popular movie genre in Hong Kong. Peggy Chan

The council, interviewed 338 industry players from around the world who attended the Hong Kong International Film and TV Market and the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum on March 17-18.

About 74 percent of the respondents found that the overall business over the past 12 months was good, compared to 64 percent last year.

"Though we have less (film) productions this year, as a hub for overseas buyers, Hong Kong still has great potentials for development," said Peter Lam, vice president of the Hong Kong Televisions Association.

Ninety-two percent agreed that co-productions between Hong Kong and the mainland are the trend in the industry, while 55 percent expected Hong Kong to form closer partnership with the mainland.

"There is a huge pool of Chinese-speaking audience (on the mainland), so it is an inevitable trend which Hong Kong producers will follow," said Hong Kong Film Development Council secretary-general Wellington Fung.

He said the trend actually started in the end of the 1990s.

Lam added China is a big market and with the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA), Hong Kong companies have greater access to the mainland market.

He said Southern China is screening Cantonese films and the box office has been satisfactory.

Crucindo Hung, chairman of Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Territories Motion Picture Industry Association added that the action genre is the most popular among co-productions, particularly those set in the ancient world.

Risky Liu, a local director, agreed that co-productions between the city and the mainland bring immense business opportunities.

Comparatively the mainland can provide more spectacular landscape and more capital, he said.

In addition, Liu found that local productions are often bound by commercial elements.

Over 80 percent of the respondents noticed that the digital entertainment industry has the greatest growth potential in recent years.

Seventy-four percent expressed the will to invest in digital technology for production, broadband broadcasting and interactive technology for viewers in the coming three years.

Players in the industry also found mobile devices such as mobile phones beneficial in investment as they see the prospect of cross-media convergence.

Yet he added this may give rise to piracy problems and strangle the survival of cinemas.

"I think audiences should go to cinemas as a respect for filmmakers," he said.

Meanwhile, the survey pointed out creative talents, strong distribution networks and world-class industry events in Hong Kong make it the center for content production, distribution, trading and financing in Asia, as well as the best platform to reach other Asian markets.

"Though Hong Kong cannot compete with China in terms of low-cost productions, it would remain as the hub for filmmaking," Fung said, adding that the city is strong in attracting investment for entertainment activities.

                                                              (HK Edition 03/21/2008 page1)

(HK Edition 03/21/2008 page1)