MUMBAI: Imax Corporation and Imax China (HK.1970) today announced the completion of the formative agreements to establish the IMAX China Film Fund with partner China Media Capital ("CMC"). The China Film Fund, which will initially be capitalized with $50 million, will co-finance approximately 15 Mandarin-language tent pole films over three years. The Fund will target productions that can leverage the IMAX® brand, technology, relationships, and release windows.
The China Film Fund will take advantage of favorable trends in the Chinese market, strengthening the IMAX brand and capitalizing on relationships with studio, exhibitor and local distribution partners, as well as content creators. The Fund will enhance an already successful IMAX slate of Chinese DMR films and leverage CMC's experience within China's content creation industry.
The Fund will target contributions of between $3 million and $7 million per film, and will operate under an IMAX-CMC greenlight committee. IMAX and CMC may potentially bring in other investors to increase the size of the Fund.
"Our strong relationships with China's most acclaimed studios and filmmakers mirror those we've established in Hollywood, thanks to the support of our valued partner CMC," said IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond. "The Fund will further deepen our ties in the China film industry and allow us to generate the highest-quality Mandarin content for Chinese and international audiences alike. Our commitment to the success of our business in China and its filmmaking community is unwavering. Together, we are excited to launch a new and exciting chapter of filmmaking in China."
"The appetite for premium Chinese content among the nation's moviegoers continues to grow. The Fund is an outgrowth of CMC's privileged capability and extensive connections in the Chinese film industry and IMAX's beloved brand and differentiated cinematic experience. We hope this will support the creation of more tentpole Mandarin-language films," said CMC ChairmanRuigang Li. "Together we are thrilled to play a strategic role in shaping the future of filmed entertainment in China."
"Our early involvement in the Chinese cinema industry has afforded us tremendous brand value and has helped cement IMAX as the go-to format for blockbuster movies," added Jiande Chen, CEO, IMAX China. "The Fund is a part of our continued growth and evolution within China that coincides with the nation's growing cinema industry and trend toward locally-produced blockbuster content, which along with CMC we will now help to finance."
