Donald Tang on Chinese Investments in Hollywood

Donald Tang, the founding and managing partner of Tang Media Partners, whose portfolio includes IM Global in the U.S., discussed the future of Chinese investment in Hollywood at APOS.

China is projected to overtake the U.S. in terms of theatrical box-office revenues in the next few years, Tang noted, giving it significant power in the global media sector.

“For the last several years, the Chinese have been coming to Hollywood and buying up a lot of different assets,” Tang noted. He added that “we may have reached an evolution phase, an inflection point, where we really start to look for not only adaptation but also cooperation between China and Hollywood.”

On Hollywood’s attempts to make films catered to the Chinese market, Tang noted, “No one can answer the question of what is the Chinese sensibility. [It has to go beyond] having a Chinese actor, having a Chinese setting, having a Chinese story.”

The company’s strategy includes creating its own IP with studios in China and the U.S. and then using IM Global as a worldwide distribution platform.

On the future of Chinese investment in Hollywood on the heels of Wanda’s abandoned Dick Clark Productions takeover, Tang noted, “the regulatory environment for doing those transactions has been a challenge.”