Studios Banned In China

The Chinese government has decided to suspend its cooperation with three major Hollywood studios because of the critical portrayal of that country in three films the studios have released or plan to release this year.

The Chinese Ministry of Radio, Film and Television singled out “Seven Years in Tibet” (TriStar), “Kundun” (Disney) and “Red Corner” (MGM) as films that “viciously attack China and hurt Chinese people’s feelings,” in a memo made public on Friday.

Disney, MGM and TriStar are targets of the Sept. 29 memo which was addressed to several Chinese film offices including the China Film Archives, the Shanghai Film Festival Office and the China Film Corp. It bans those three studios from doing business in China at least temporarily.

“Although all kinds of efforts have been made, those three American companies are still pushing out the above films,” the memo states. “In order to protect Chinese national overall interests, it has been decided that all business cooperation with these three companies to be ceased temporarily without exception.”

While the memo regarding films appears to raise questions about China’s willingness to cooperate with the United States, Motion Picture Association of America chief Jack Valenti said it was no reason to panic.

Under a Chinese quota, only 10 American-made films per year may be imported. While the memo states that the latest ban is “temporary,” it gives no indication of what that means. The memo specifically bans film imports from the three studios as well as film or television co-productions or “other new cooperation projects.”

Valenti said he plans to visit Hong Kong in December during a five-nation trip. He said he plans to discuss the implications of the ministry actions with the Chinese and try to persuade China to open its markets to more U.S. films.