LA-based Astro-Nomical Entertainment is setting up a new office in Beijing, headed by experienced producer and film industry executive Jay Ahn (The Nut Job 1 & 2, Spark: A Space Tail) from Hollywood, and Chinese entertainment industry vet Wanzhi Li. Ahn has 25 years of experience in the biz, and co-founded Astro-Nomical with longtime animation pro Chris Henderson (producer, Return to Never Land).
The Beijing outpost will help facilitate partnerships between Astro-Nomical’s Hollywood office (established in 2016) and Chinese animation studios, oversee the company’s film slate in China, and build relationships with local content creators, distributors and investors for content co-development and co-production.
“We are very excited to open a branch of Astro-Nomical in Beijing,” commented Ahn. “China is an extremely promising market, and Astro-Nomical’s know-how and experience in developing and producing global content offers significant value in this market, both as a co-production partner and as executive producers. We very much appreciate that we have a unique creative storytelling approach to serve the Chinese audience which has lived in a very different environment from the west, culturally and historically.”
“The traditional relationship where Hollywood companies outsource to Chinese animation companies is quickly evolving into a more collaborative relationship, with co-production, co-finance, and co-distribution aimed for a global market, with high-quality projects flowing in both directions,” noted Henderson.
Astro-Nomical’s projects include Mean Margaret (with Pelagius Ent.), a $30M CG-animated feature with top talent attached including Barry Cook (director, Mulan) and Carter Goodrich (character designer, Despicable Me franchise); an untitled project with Gulfstream Pictures; Songhua (Pelagius) with director Tony Bancroft (Animal Crackers); and Dinostar with Jonathan Su.
The studio is already in talks with Revo Films, in association with Dadi Century (Beijing) — one of the largest cinema chains in China — on an international slate of animation and live-action projects.
Learn more at astro-nomical.com.
 from Hollywood, and Chinese entertainment industry vet Wanzhi Li.){kind=link}