Flick over a few reel skills | Auckland Entertainment | Events, Movies and TV Guide for Auckland

An Auckland film-maker sees big opportunities in getting together with Chinese producers, reports Joanna Davies.

Steven O'Meagher is a busy man. Between several phone calls and meetings, the film producer manages to sit and catch his breath.

"Today is just insane," he says as his phone rings again. This morning he's already had one meeting, and it's still only 9.30am. Between producing two television shows, he's squeezed in a trip to China to look for prospective co-producers for yet another  project.

"There are marked differences in how New Zealand and China do business," says Mr O'Meagher. "But there is potential for wonderful relationships with the Chinese film industry."

Last month, Film Auckland and the China Film Association signed a memorandum of understanding, which will allow film-makers  to exchange ideas and skills.

"For me, it has cleared the way and shown me what I need to do to work with a Chinese co-producer," says Mr O'Meagher. "People like Peter Jackson and Richard Taylor have given other producers here a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity because Chinese producers want to use our skills."

Mr O'Meagher - who produced local film Out of the Blue - says Chinese film-makers want to make Western stories with Chinese values. "The three films that they've used as examples to me are Life is Beautiful, Forrest Gump and Kung Fu Panda. "This puzzled me at first, but what Chinese audiences want are real-life stories of the West. Because of their communist past, they have gaps in the history of the West, and my advice to anyone wanting to make a film for the Chinese audience is to set it in the 1960s, because that's what they're missing."

That relationship will bring Chinese film-makers to Auckland to use crews and skills.

Film Auckland's chief executive, Michael Brook, says the memorandum of understanding will help establish relationships between the two industries.

"The China Film Association is very positive about getting co-productions started in New Zealand," he says. "Chinese producers are very interested in our expertise and they want to come here and work with our production companies."

Mr Brook says only 20 foreign films  a year are released through China's box office. "China makes 500 feature films a year and if we make co-productions with a Chinese company that means it can be a general release at the box-office, rather than one of only 20 foreign films."

The China Film Association's international liaison officer, Qi Song, says the signing is a big step between two industries. "It opens a new chapter in cooperation between film professionals from China and New Zealand and it will encourage the exchange of ideas and promotes better mutual understanding."