An “HB town” in Changsha, in central China’s Hunan province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
As China grabs a growing share of the global box office, more investment and talent are being attracted to the domestic film industry. Huayi Brothers, a comprehensive private entertainment group founded in Beijing, began to explore new development modes by combining cinema with tourism and global cultural elements.
In 2017, HB Real-Scene Entertainment experienced rapid expansion, with increased cultural interactions at home and abroad.
The idea is to create “cinema cities” in different cities in China. Each of these locations will first serve as a filming location for movies or TV series, then will be transformed into local landmarks imbued with the glamor of celebrity and showbiz.
For example, the Suzhou project will be used for filming the eight hundred, while Jinan HB Realm will be used for filming Mystery of Antiquities.
In 2017, nine national major projects successively underwent construction work, followed by three new projects in Wuhan, Yangjiang and Shenyang in 2018. All the projects will integrate film and television intellectual properties with local historical architecture and the intangible cultural heritage.
