The burgeoning animation market on the Chinese mainland and worldwide is creating immense opportunities for Hong Kong's animation producers, as more talents from the SAR are banking on creative programs across the border to serve as a bridge between the mainland and global markets.

Mandarin Films Distribution Co (MFD) - an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Cheung Wo International Holdings - last week signed a memorandum with Shenzhen City Long Chuang Yi Culture Communication Co (LCY) at the 12th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industries Fair.

Established in 1991 by Hong Kong film producer Raymond Wong Pak-ming, MFD was invited to be the global distributor for the mainland animation movie Legend of Master Situ.

Eddie Chan Shu-chi, executive producer of LCY, believes it's an unavoidable trend for animation producers to reach out to the international market, saying the globalization of the country's economy is promoting the international integration of culture.

LCY has created three original animation movies so far, but Legend of Master Situ is its first movie to be launched worldwide.

Despite its global ambitions, LCY is not familiar with the global market, said its vice-general manager Yang Shuangyong. For this reason, the company needs to take advantage of MFD's more than two decades' of experience in international film distribution, particularly in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, he said.

Lin Guangshu, MFD's operations director, said he hoped the two companies can form a powerful alliance to penetrate the global market. While LCY can make use of MFD's resources in the international film industry and develop its own publishing channels of animation programs, MFD can plunge into the animation industry through their cooperation.

With a production budget of about 35 million yuan ($5.4 million), Legend of Master Situ is expected to be another masterpiece after the highest-grossing Chinese animation film Monkey King: Hero is Back, which set a record for the mainland's 3D-animation movie overseas market sales with pre-sales of $4 million in more than 60 countries and regions.

Chan, who's also a Hong Kong Film Awards committee member, expects Legend of Master Situ's box office to hit up to 1 billion yuan as a result of the mainland's booming animation industry.

"I've never seen such a rapid development in the Chinese mainland's animation industry until in the past two years, and the mainland industry has a knack for competition on the international stage," he said.

The total value of the Chinese mainland's animation production exports reached 1.02 billion yuan in 2013, while overseas licensing of original intellectual property (IP) has become a major profit channel.

Chan said that instead of making its traditional contributions in animation products to its clients, LCY is testing the water in a fresh "blue ocean" market - a new market chain driven by original IP - to profit not only from the new film itself, but also from games, music and other film-related products.

grace@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 05/17/2016 page7)