Why Bank Film Financing Remains Muted in Asia
variety.comPatrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefIn the early years of the 21st century, bankers to the film industry set their eyes on East Asia and headed for Hong Kong and Beijing.
They could see that mainland China’s decision to open the film business to the private sector had the potential to be a game-changer.
Multiplexes were being built, box office was growing and trans-Pacific co-productions were starting.But the revolution failed to happen, Asian film financing refused to become Westernized and debt financing of filmmaking remains a minority activity in the region.Film production in East Asia continues to be built on a foundation of corporate balance sheets (or self-finance) with a generous sprinkling of private equity.
Large, structured funds remain rare outside South Korea and the region does not have the same subsidy culture as Europe. Location incentives have grabbed headlines in an array of countries (Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, mainland China, Mongolia and the Philippines) over the past decade, but governments have not always followed through.
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