China’s richest man to build world’s largest film studio
September 22, 2013, 1:21 pm

Wang(right) acquired the America-based cinema operator AMC last year [Xinhua Images]

The property and entertainment conglomerate intends to invest 30 billion yuan (around $5 billion) in the Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis, which will consist of 20 studios including one – which Wanda says will be the world’ s largest – of 10,000 square meters and a permanent underwater stage.

According to a report in Hollywood Reporter, the ceremony in China to announce the Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis complex was attended by Hollywood’s elite including the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Leonardo DiCaprio, Nicole Kidman, John Travolta, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Ewan McGregor, Kate Beckinsale, Christoph Waltz and Harvey Weinstein.

“With the huge potential that comes with a population of 1.3 billion, the global film industry will recognize that the sooner you partner China, the sooner you make more money”, Wang said.

The 540-hectare park will include a movie theater, wax museum, exhibition center, yacht club, hotels and other cultural and tourist facilities.

The film complex is expected to open in 2017.

Wang has already signed agreements for the park to host around 30 foreign production groups and at least 100 domestic teams annually.

Wang, who acquired the America-based cinema operator AMC last year, has high hopes for China’s film industry, estimating the nation’s box office will surpass that of the United States by 2018.

He expects domestic film revenue to be double that of the US by 2023.

Wang also announced that the Academy of Motion Pictures had signed an agreement supporting an annual Qingdao International Film Festival every September starting from 2016.

Wang said the center is part of a cultural development strategy and an attempt to create a “Chinese cultural brand”.

Source: Agencies