China seeing 'Star'
Gov't allows early release for digital 'Clones'
George Lucas' epic is set to launch in mainland theaters July 12, a shorter than usual interval after its U.S. and international debut. And it will be the first foreign film to be screened digitally in China.
The U.S. majors have been urging China Film Group, the sole importer and national distrib, to speed up approvals so that films go out as soon as possible after their domestic bow to curb rampant video piracy.
That tactic worked on "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," which unspooled on 1,200 screens in China Jan. 30. Although DVD copies were available in China within days of its Nov. 16 U.S. preem, Warner's pic has since grossed a healthy $7.5 million.
"The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" didn't have an accelerated release -- it bowed April 11-- but has so far rung up a nifty $6.5 million.
Chinese fans of "Spider-Man" will get their first chance to see Sam Raimi's pic when it hits theaters July 26. Also approved is John Woo's WWII drama "Windtalkers," which is slated for August.
As a key element of its national release, "Clones" will play in 10-12 digitally-equipped cinemas in a handful of major cities.
At last February's ShoWest convention in Las Vegas, Chinese officials unveiled plans to build a chain of 100 digital theaters over the next two to three years. The goal was to have 20 D-screens operating by this month.
That announcement surprised and puzzled some U.S. execs, since the rest of the world is in no rush to make the costly upgrades to digital, and technology and piracy issues are far from settled.
One U.S. rep has questioned whether the Chinese can secure sufficient digital prints to service up to 100 cinemas. Also, it's not clear whether these D-films will have to fit under the present quota of 20 imported films per year, or whether they'll be regarded as a separate category.
