UCFTI Expo at LA Convention Center
In mid-September I attended the UCFTI Expo held at the LA Convention Center. The Red Carpet opening reception at the J.W. Marriott Hotel was catered by the famous Wolfgang Puck.
After networking, dinner, and a very encouraging speech by the President (re: the future of co-productions between the two countries) a full awards ceremony followed.
The major take-aways from the next two days of intensive panels and seminars are:
- the predicted stats in China are said to be at a 33% growth rate per year over the next 3 years.
- China is in serious need of content and wanting their content to be global like the US.
- Even with all the serious obstacles of their governments’ imposed restrictions, China is certainly a market to tap.
- You need to find a partner (US) bank with “boots on the ground” in China to have any hope of getting your project made.
Admittedly there are differences between the US and Chinese taste. However, the biggest shows in China are Two Broke Girls, Walking Dead, The Big Bang Theory, House of Cards and Breaking Bad was huge.
The language is different but Chinese audiences are very cosmopolitan by global standards. China today is open to the world of ideas not just western ideas but all ideas.
If this is a market that interests you for film or TV it is worth considering.
