Moving Pictures, October 2001
Chan himself is also slated to direct WAITING, based on National Book Award-winner Ha Jin's novel of the same name. But the director of COMRADES, ALMOST A LOVE STORY and LOVE LETTER (for DreamWorks) revealed that the project was still waiting for finance. "We're in talks with the US, and we need a bigger partner than usual for this type of film - shot in English and using a big star," said Chan about the US$15-18 million budgeted epic set to star Chow Yun-Fat.
In the meantime, Applause is wrapping up its five co-productions since the company was formed in April 2000 to make Asian films designed to appeal to the whole Asian market. Chan himself is about to direct the last installment of a three-tale ghost epic called KAI DAN. The first two parts of the $1.5 million three-hander have been finished by Korea's Kim Ji-woon (THE FOUL KING) and Thailand's Nonzee Nimibutr (NANG NAK) whose erotic tale JAN DARA, also backed by Applause, is now selling in the markets (London Screenings and Mifed).
Applause is also weeks away from wrapping THE EYE, co-produced by Singapore's Raintree Productions, and directed by the twin PANG BROTHERS (Bangkok Dangerous), who were born in Hong Kong but raised in Thailand. An effects-based thriller, THE EYE will be handled by Fortissimo Film Sales, who have also taken on JAN DARA and Applause's $800,000 THE MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE, debuting at Mifed and directed by Huang Jianxin. Applause's other finished co-production (with Japan's Excite and CJ Entertainment in Korea) made in the 18 months since the venture was announced is ONE FINE SPRING DAY. It had a $2.2 million opening weekend last month in Korea.
A pretty quick start-up, acknowledged Applause's Chen, who came up with the idea for a pan-Asian house with director Teddy Chen and the former head of Hong Kong video company Panorama Allan Fung, after Hong Kong's domestic market took a battering in the Asian economic crisis. "We've spent our time forging alliances with players all over Asia" says Chan, "with the aim of making Asian movies which don't just play well in one Asian territory but which can travel. We want to expand the market." It's been difficult, he acknowledges, to set up something new in a business that is " all about what has been done before" but they've been helped by Korean inroads into the Hong Kong market and the pan-Asian success of Thai movies such as THE IRON LADIES.
He has also, he acknowledges, had to come to terms with different working practices across Asia, such as the Thai way of building sets before the movie has been cast. "As they don't actually have any film stars, casting is one of the least important parts of the process," he laughs. Applause has set up an informal first-option deal with Fortissimo on sales, and will target Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore to add to its roster of productions in China, Hong Kong, Korea and Thailand, said Chan. Noted Fortissimo's chairman Wouter Barendrecht: "This is a very exciting new production company going beyond borders, and realizing that the only way for Asian cinema to survive is to co-operate with surrounding countries. Their taste is eclectic and therefore we will see all kinds of different movies coming from them, from arthouse to genre, from commercial to festival-driven."
