Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, Hollywood in China, China, Mao Zedong, Tiananmen Square, Chinese Propaganda, Jeffrety Katzenberg, Bob Iger, Disney, Legendary East, Ang Lee, Zhang Ziyi, Rich Gelfond, Silicon Valley, Paul Graham, Oriental Dreamworks, China Film Group, China Mainstream Media National Film Capital Group Hollywood Group, The Long March, The Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution

Is Hollywood Funding Chinese Propaganda?

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, Hollywood in China, China, Mao Zedong, Tiananmen Square, Chinese Propaganda, Jeffrety Katzenberg, Bob Iger, Disney, Legendary East, Ang Lee, Zhang Ziyi, Rich Gelfond, Silicon Valley, Paul Graham, Oriental Dreamworks, China Film Group, China Mainstream Media National Film Capital Group Hollywood Group, The Long March, The Great Proletariat Cultural RevolutionHollywood is so desperate to grow their businesses in China they would almost do anything.

Look the other way while the Chinese government continues to abuse the basic human rights of its citizens?  Check.

Alter the content or severely edit a movie in order to pass Chinese censors?  Check.  (Reminder – theater owners in Utah often want to edit the content of a movie and movie studios tell them to go F themselves.)

There are even allegations (but we know it’s true) that Hollywood pays bribes to Chinese officials in return for preferential treatment when it comes to filming in China and getting their films into China.

Is 1.3 billion people and their growing disposable income really that important to major media companies around the world?

Unfortunately, yes.  And it has always been this way.

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, Hollywood in China, China, Mao Zedong, Tiananmen Square, Chinese Propaganda, Jeffrety Katzenberg, Bob Iger, Disney, Legendary East, Ang Lee, Zhang Ziyi, Rich Gelfond, Silicon Valley, Paul Graham, Oriental Dreamworks, China Film Group, China Mainstream Media National Film Capital Group Hollywood Group, The Long March, The Great Proletariat Cultural RevolutionHollywood didn’t even criticize China after the Tiananmen Square massacre in which thousands of innocent protesters were mowed down by PLA tanks and guns.

That was 23 years ago and they’re still trying to crack that horribly corrupt market.  (At right:  Imagine the lone protester symbolizes Hollywood – the tanks are China.)

Reality check:  It’s never going to happen in the way that you would like, Hollywood.  

China can sign whatever contracts you want signed – but, in the end, they will not honor them and you will leave, beaten, with your tails between your legs.

Chinese officials know this and are laughing at you as you put so much pride and resources on the line time after time.

Now there is a new disturbing trend that has popped up recently.  The co-funding of Chinese local language films by U.S. companies.

Does this mean, as all Chinese-made films and scripts must be approved by the Chinese Central government, that Hollywood is funding Chinese propaganda?

Of course.  This is truly an amazing, laughable coup by China.

I can just imagine some of the conversations with producers about story ideas:

  • New film about Chairman Mao and his glorious early days on The Long March?  (Hollywood:   “No problem.  We’ll fund half of that if you let us shoot our next superhero blockbuster in the middle of Shanghai.”)
  • New film about how The Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution was actually a tremendous success?   (Hollywood:  “Um… weren’t millions killed or persecuted?  Wasn’t that a horrific–“)  China:  “Do you want to shoot on the Great Wall or not?”  (Hollywood:  “Uh… OK, I guess a few revisions to your script are fine by us but legal would like our logo taken off the finished product.”)  China:  Deal – can we get that check now?

Manka Bros., Khan Manka, OnMedea, Jill Kennedy, Hollywood in China, China, Mao Zedong, Tiananmen Square, Chinese Propaganda, Jeffrety Katzenberg, Bob Iger, Disney, Legendary East, Ang Lee, Zhang Ziyi, Rich Gelfond, Silicon Valley, Paul Graham, Oriental Dreamworks, China Film Group, China Mainstream Media National Film Capital Group Hollywood Group, The Long March, The Great Proletariat Cultural RevolutionGranted, it’s not quite that simplistic – but it’s not that far off either.

I worry that Hollywood  is getting taken advantage of by their dumber and less savvy “partners” across the Pacific.

It’s similar to the way Silicon Valley is attempting to undermine Hollywood by just grabbing whatever high-end premium content they need (without much payment) to make their devices cooler.

The bottom line is this:  Let’s take human rights and actual motives involved out of the equation and look at it from a purely business standpoint.  No matter what percentages are negotiated and no matter how many movies Hollywood gets into China – China is not going to pay what they owe and contracts mean nothing.

But, in the end, it’s 1.3 billion people with growing disposable income.  And an attempt must be made, I suppose.  In theory, there is A LOT of money there.

So… here’s how it plays out… China is going to build the world’s largest film industry off of the creative and technical knowledge of Hollywood and then… they’re going to send Hollywood home… without a check.

Accel Partners, Ben Silverman, Bob Iger, Chris Hughes, David Kirkpatrick, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Gerald Levin, Greylock Partners, HBO, Jeff Bewkes, Jeff Zucker, Jill Kennedy, Joanna Shields, Jon Miller, Khan Manka, Li Ka-shing, Manka Bros., Mark Cuban, Mark Zuckerberg, Matt Cohler, MySpace, Nicolas Carlson, OnMedea, Owen Van Natta, Paul Buchheit, Peter Thiel, Rupert Murdoch, Sheryl Sandberg, Sumner Redstone, Toy Story 3Jill Kennedy – OnMedea

 

 

26 comments

  1. Gordon Matheson · May 3, 2012

    I am excited about the recent changes. My film scripts have Chinese and American lead characters. Some with male some female. All use both Mandarin and English dialogue. I especially like my current one, working title is “Tai Shan”, a love story set in Beijing, featuring a young Chinese man and young American woman. The storyline blends the cultures as their relationship struggles and grows.

  2. Emmanuel Benbihy · May 3, 2012

    Just by saying this, you shoot yourself in the foot. And who cares as long as your studios get richer. Do not think one minute that you have the same concerns (as a person) as these large US corporations. And it is true for most US conglomerates… just look at you food and energy industries…the main value is quite clear, and it’s not life. Finally, what did Hollywood finance in the last 70 years… if not US propaganda. You should read about the Blum-Byrnes agreement in 1946… that will be a good start.

  3. Stan · May 3, 2012

    The damn Chinese is growing stronger by the day, now they’re even building their own space station.

    Shouldn’t we stop weeping and crying foul, or worse, continuing citing Tiananmen Square, and start asking: what the hell is it that the Chinese is getting it right to become ever so powerful, and what should we do in order not to play 2nd fiddle in 5 – 10 year time from now.

  4. Katherine Mahael · May 3, 2012

    Hi There Mankabros,
    Thanks for your thoughts, Many different types of companies are using texting for their businesses i.e. to promote offers etc. What companies should use it and for what reasons? Which companies shouldn’t use it and for what reasons?
    Cheerio
    to your success! http://Www.fundinspirer.com

  5. Katherine Mahael · May 3, 2012

    Hi There Mankabros,
    In addition to your post I was wondering, 1. You have to be against capital punishment, but support abortion on
    demand.

    2. You have to believe that businesses create oppression and governments
    create prosperity.

    3. You have to believe that guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens are
    more of a threat than U.S. nuclear weapons technology in the hands of
    Chinese and North Korean communists.

    4. You have to believe that there was no art before federal funding.

    5. You have to believe that gender roles are artificial, but being
    homosexual is natural.

    6. You have to believe that the AIDS virus is spread by a lack of federal
    funding.

    7. You have to believe that the same teacher who can’t teach 4th-graders how to read is somehow qualified to teach those same kids about sex.

    8. You have to believe that hunters don’t care about nature, but PETA
    activists do.

    9. You have to believe that self-esteem is more important than actually
    doing something to earn it.

    10. You have to believe that Mel Gibson spent $25 million of his own money
    to make “The Passion of the Christ” for financial gain only.

    11. You have to believe the NRA is bad because it supports certain parts of
    the Constitution, while the ACLU is good because it supports certain parts
    of the Constitution.

    12. You have to believe that taxes are too low, but ATM fees are too high.

    13. You have to believe that Margaret Sanger and Gloria Steinem are more
    important to American history than Thomas Jefferson, Gen. Robert E. Lee, and Thomas Edison.

    14. You have to believe that standardized tests are racist, but racial
    quotas and set-asides are not.

    15. You have to believe that the only reason socialism hasn’t worked
    anywhere it’s been tried is because the right people haven’t been in charge.

    16 You have to believe that gay parades displaying drag queens and
    transvestites should be constitutionally protected, and manger scenes at
    Christmas should be illegal.

    17. You have to believe that this message is a part of a vast, right-wing
    conspiracy.

    18. You have to believe that we as parents are too stupid to raise our own children, but the village collective is better.

    19. You have to believe that tobacco is out of control and just smelling it will kill you but the HIV virus is controllable and cheaper to treat.

    20. You have to believe that Mother Earth is crying for our help and that the rich right wing SUV drivers are the ones killing it.

    21. You have to believe that only the rich are Republicans and that everyone else is oppressed by the rich including rich Hollywood.

    22. You have to believe that Government Hand Outs do more for society than a hand up.

    23. You have to believe that the Rules of Engagement and UN control wins wars eventhough our enemy does not comply.

    24. You have to believe that saving a kanagaroo rat’s life is more important than being self sufficient with our own oil.

    25. You have to believe that it was President Bush’s fault for the bridge collapsing and not just poor maintenance.

    26. You have to believe that Hurricane Katrina wiping out New Orleans is President Bush’s fault and not the fact that it sits below sea level on a vulnerable coast line.

    27. You must protest against your own millitary and hand over it’s control to the UN instead of supporting them and their fight for our freedoms.

    28. You have to believe that the New World Order is the safest place to be and not the United States of America or One nation under God!

    29. You have to believe that Spanish is a much better language speak than English
    Cheers
    to your success! http://Www.fundinspirer.com

  6. Robert Powers · May 3, 2012

    Wow, how unsubstantiated is all of this. Did you do any interviews? Have you ever been in the room with negotiations between US and China?

  7. Sarah · May 3, 2012

    Didn’t George Washington participate in the genocide of Native Americans? How’s that any different from what Mao did?