China Opens $690 Million Animation Facility Near Beijing

[Mika]

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/c ... ion-193067

BEIJING – China has opened a 4.5 billion yuan ($690 million) animation facility in Tianjin, the port city nearest the capital, Beijing, giving the domestic cartoon industry a much-needed boost just as Kung Fu Panda 2 reminds China how far behind Hollywood it is.

More than 180 firms have signed up for animation production and related services at the state-backed 190 acre base, located in the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city, about 30 minutes by high-speed rail from Beijing, the Xinhua news agency reported over the weekend.

Kung Fu Panda 2’s opening on Saturday to packed cinemas in Beijing was a strong reminder that no animated Chinese feature has ever made it big outside China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, yet Hollywood is able to co-opt a Chinese symbol and laugh all the way to the bank.

In 2008, DreamWorks Animation’s original Kung Fu Panda was the first animated feature to gross more than 100 million yuan at China’s box office, which, three years ago, equaled about $15.2 million.
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