Videoage International December 2019

16 December 2019 V I D E O A G E (Continued from Cover) Media Reform in China vision (CCTV), Jiangsu Television, and Shanghai Media Group, who showcased a wide range of program genres destined for international televi- sion channels. The MIPCOM event had been supported by the Chinese government, and Ma Li, director general of the International Cooperation Depart- ment of the National Radio and Television Administration, indicated that her country had emerged as a major producer of content with the confidence and capacity to play a leading role in the international TV industry. Recently, there has been a growing number of Asian TV shows up for sale at MIPCOM and MIP- TV, but making Chinese content acceptable to international markets still has a long way to go. In the country of the dragon, many broadcasters focus on the production of content targeted at the domestic market and this is sometimes done at the cost of sacrificing international potential. There is, however, a need to create local TV programs which shoot in beautiful places such as Yunnan, Inner Mongolia, and Sichuan, and present the richness of diversity within this colorful and multiethnic country. But in order to sell Chinese productions overseas, there is also the necessity to harmonize with other cultures in the production phase. Hiring more foreign actors, showing deep intercultural interactions, and creating compelling stories will result in something that people in Shanghai, Dubai, or Paris will want to watch. This process reflects the need to incentivize a new creative development, one that should include more foreign input when telling China’s stories to the world. A positive example is Huayi Brothers Media Group, which has produced successful television series, following the desire of Wang Zhongjun, co-founder of the company, to offer unique stories respectful of Chinese culture, but that could fit well within the global market. Wang told the media about his desire to develop Huayi Brothers into a studio with its own products, production lines, and distribution channels overseas, following a specific internationalization strategy. In 2014, the company established a wholly-owned subsidiary in the United States to produce and distribute movies and television shows. The globalization of Chinese content has been helped by recent reforms that led to the creation of China Media Group (CMG), founded through the merger of China Central Television, China National Radio, and China Radio International. This merger has been reshaping the local and international strategy for state-owned Chinese broadcasters, and a key factor to consider is the appointment of Shen Haixiong as president of CMG. Shen has collaborated for years with Japanese and Korean media, studying different cultures in depth, and is considered one of the main reformists in the promotion of international cooperation within the audiovisual industry. He recently explained how China Media Group will present to global audiences a vivid, realistic, and comprehensive view of China in the new era. This transformation will be accomplished by focusing on international cooperation and by launching multilingual projects. State broadcaster China Central Television Alessandro Valentini China-based Alessandro Valentini has been working in China for eight years, involved with state-owned institutions for the Internet and entertainment sectors. He is a former professor of cross-media management at Rome-based Link Campus University, and has also worked as an investment banker. He created television shows and negotiated international co-productions. (now part of CMG) has historically been one of the leading exporters of Chinese content. CCTV has dominated the Chinese-language cable TV offerings in global markets and has now rebranded its international networks under the name China Global Television Network as part of a push to consolidate its worldwide reach. Promotion plays a very important role in this age of heated competition, and Chinese companies that produce original content will have to significantly increase their investment in advertising their productions through international trade media. This can be done by setting up branch offices abroad, and launching marketing campaigns on a vast scale. They will also need the financial support of the central government or institutional investors active within the media industry in China. China is a nation with a 5,000-year history and with a vast multitude of creative managers, but there is a necessity to produce more intercultural content that fully embraces the international marketplace’s requirements. Shen Haixiong, president of CMG In the country of the dragon, many broadcasters focus on the production of content targeted at the domestic market and this is sometimes done at the cost of sacrificing the international potential. China in Cannes Chinese television’s push into the in- ternational arena began in earnest at MIP- TV 2018, culminating with it being named the Country of Honor at MIPCOM in Cannes a few months later. At MIP-TV 2018, CCTV was extremely active. It hosted an Exchange Forum, and the Chinese Pavilion sponsored a MIPDrama Buyers Networking buffet luncheon at the Majestic Hotel for about 150 guests. It also hosted a showcase. The Forum was hosted by China’s Film and TV Import and Export Association, a 43-member organization of Chinese production companies. CCTV is China’s state broadcasting organization, which at MIP-TV 2018 was headed by general manager Jianing Shen, and Zheng Yang, deputy director general of the State TV Drama Department. To complement those efforts, CCTV hired an American PR firm with expertise in international content sales, which will have to persuadetheChinesetocut theirgovernment- linked umbilical cords (as Latin and Turkish companies were able to do before achieving international success), and to showcase pro- grams withmore international appeal. DS