Australian film producers are looking to deepen ties with China as the world's film industry faces uncertainty following U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs on all non-Hollywood productions.
In Adelaide Oval, a film crew prepares for a shoot while the Port Adelaide Australian Football team practices for an upcoming match. The team has cultivated links to China since 2014, eventually bringing the uniquely Australian game to Shanghai in 2019. Film producer Paul Ryan, who participated in that effort, has also actively cultivated ties with China over the years, which he says began with a personal fascination.
"I just became really kind of captivated by the Chinese industry and Chinese people and being in China. I was a real sort of novelty to start with," said Paul Ryan, producer and founder of 57 Films.
Ryan built on that fascination, forging connections and working on joint productions. That includes "If Time Flows Back", starring Chinese actor Jin Dong, and "Speed", the first-ever Chinese drama shot in Adelaide.
"That presented a great experience for us because we had a number of people that worked on that project and the Chinese component represented 200 cast and crew that came here for well over 6 weeks or so," Ryan said.
Australia's film industry has established a global reputation, renowned for its exceptional locations, skilled crews, and state-of-the-art facilities. It has actively sought international productions, offering incentives for overseas crews.
"A lot of kind of partnerships were struck where companies were like, alright we want to keep making films here on the Gold Coast so they committed to long-term production slates, not just kind of one off productions," said Mark Ryan, professor in Film and Television with the Queensland University of Technology.
Earlier this year, Trump proposed imposing 100 percent tariffs on productions made outside of the United States.
"I think it would be tremendously negative for the Australian screen industry and I think we would see many many great filmmakers exit the industry," said Peter Hegedus, associate professor at Griffith Film School under Griffith University.
"There's no way that we've got the economies of scale in Australia to make things that would ultimately get to a budget level that is just for an Australian audience. It needs to have international audiences, and I've always been hopeful that [it] would be China. It didn't have to be European, western, American [audiences]," said Paul Ryan.
Australian filmmakers turn to Chinese market to counter US tariffs
Australian filmmakers turn to Chinese market to counter US tariffs
