Bona Film Group Company Limited (simplified Chinese: 博纳影业集团有限公司; traditional Chinese: 博納影业集團有限公司, formerly known as Beijing Polybona Film Distribution Co. Ltd. (保利博纳电影发行有限公司) ), also known as Polybona Films or the Bona Film Group, is a Chinese production company and distributor of films from mainland China and Hong Kong. It is run as a subsidiary of the China Poly Group, and is one of China's largest share-holding film distribution companies.

Bona Film Group Company Limited
Company typePublic
IndustryChinese cinema
Founded1999; 25 years ago (1999)
FounderYu Dong
Headquarters,
Key people
ProductsFilm
Websitewww.bonafilm.cn

It was named "the Chinese Miramax" by Screen International in 2005, and its CEO, Yu Dong, was described as one of "the future’s most influential filmmakers" by The Hollywood Reporter in November 2006.[1][2]

History

edit

Founded in 1999, Polybona was the first domestic private firm to receive a film distribution license from the SARFT. In November 2003, it merged with the China Poly Group, a wealthy business conglomerate wing of the Chinese military, the People's Liberation Army, to form PolyBona Film Distribution.[3]

The company has distributed over 120 domestic and foreign films, including Confession of Pain, Protégé, The Myth, Initial D, and Dragon Tiger Gate, generating over RMB 1 billion (approximately US$130 million) in box office revenue, capturing over 20% of the overall market share for five years running.

It has also co-produced over 20 feature films, including The Warlords, Red Cliff, Flash Point, and After This Our Exile.

In 2007, Variety recognized the successful growth of Polybona Films, and wrote highly about its transforming from Miramax to Paramount.

In 2014, the company had a 10% share of the Chinese box office, earning CN¥3 billion from 12 films released.[4]

In 2014, the company was the fourth-largest film distributor in China, with 5.99% of the market.[5]

As of April 2015, the company was worth US$542 million.[6]

In Q1 of 2015, it had a gross profit of US$45 million, a revenue of US$117.6 million, and a box office gross of US$257 million.[7]

In November 2015, it was reported that Bona invested US$235 million in TSG Entertainment, resulting in a stake in six films distributed by 20th Century Fox, including The Martian (2015).[8]

In 2016, the company had a market share of 9%, with a gross of CN¥3.7 billion (US$532.2 million).[9]

Filmography

edit

Released

edit
Year Title Director Co-production company(s) Distributor(s) Box office Ref.
2014 From Vegas to Macau Wong Jing $95,900,000 (China and international) [10]
2014 The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom Jacob Cheung $64,200,000 (China and international) [10]
2014 The Taking of Tiger Mountain Tsui Hark $141,248,984 (China and United States) [11]
2015 From Vegas to Macau II Wong Jing $156,850,000 (China) [12]
2016 Operation Mekong Dante Lam $170,482,937 (China) [13]
2015 Sword Master Derek Yee [12]
2015 Bride Wars Tony Chan [14]
2015 Secret Treasure Ronald Cheng, Gordon Chan [12]
2016 Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk Ang Lee TriStar Pictures
Studio 8
LStar Capital
Film4 Productions
The Ink Factory
Marc Platt Productions
TriStar Productions
Sony Pictures Releasing [12]
2016 Phantom of the Theatre Raymond Yip
2017 Paradox Kill Zone Bangkok Wilson Yip [12]
2018 Operation Red Sea Dante Lam [15]
2019 A Dog's Way Home Charles Martin Smith Columbia Pictures
Pariah Productions
Sony Pictures Releasing [12]
2019 Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Quentin Tarantino Columbia Pictures
Heyday Films
Sony Pictures Releasing [16]
2019 Ad Astra James Gray Regency Enterprises
Plan B Entertainment
RT Features
Keep Your Head Productions
MadRiver Pictures
20th Century Fox
2019 Midway Roland Emmerich Summit Entertainment
Centropolis Entertainment
RuYi Media
Starlight Culture Entertainment Group
Street Entertainment
AGC Studios
Entertainment One
Lionsgate
2020 Bloodshot David S.F. Wilson Columbia Pictures
Cross Creek Pictures
Original Film
Valiant Comics
Annabell Pictures
The Hideaway Entertainment
Sony Pictures Releasing
2020 Enter the Fat Dragon Kenji Tanigaki and Wong Jing Mega-Vision Pictures (MVP)
2021 The Battle at Lake Changjin Chen Kaige
Tsui Hark
Dante Lam
August First Film Studio
Huaxia Film Distribution
China Film Co. Ltd.
Shanghai Film Group
Alibaba Pictures
Beijing Dengfeng International Culture Communications Company
$909,596,236 (China and international)
2022 The Battle at Lake Changjin II Chen Kaige
Tsui Hark
Dante Lam
August First Film Studio
Huaxia Film Distribution
China Film Co. Ltd.
Shanghai Film Group
Alibaba Pictures
Beijing Dengfeng International Culture Communications Company
$626,571,697 (China and international)
TBA Operation Leviathan Dante Lam

References

edit
  1. ^ Polybona Films - About Us
  2. ^ Landreth, Jonathan (17 November 2010). "China's Bona Film Group Files IPO". The Hollywood Reporter.
  3. ^ Variety (Asia) Magazine
  4. ^ Xu Fan (China Daily) (June 18, 2015). "Internet Giants Move From Behind the Camera to Front". english.entgroup.cn. EntGroup Inc. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  5. ^ "China Film Industry Report 2014-2015 (In Brief)" (PDF). english.entgroup.cn. EntGroup Inc. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 15, 2015. Retrieved October 15, 2015.
  6. ^ Patrick Frater (April 9, 2015). "Chinese Media Stocks Stage Major Rally in U.S. and Asian Markets". variety.com. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  7. ^ Kevin Ma (May 11, 2015). "Bona reports record results for 2015Q1". Film Business Asia. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  8. ^ Patrick Frater (November 4, 2015). "China's Bona Film Invests $235 Million in Fox Movie Slate". Variety. Retrieved November 7, 2015.
  9. ^ Brzeski, Patrick (December 20, 2016). "Alibaba Pictures, Tencent Lead $360M Funding Round in China's Bona Film Group". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  10. ^ a b Nancy Tartaglione and David Bloom (January 10, 2015). "'Transformers 4′ Tops 2014's 100 Highest-Grossing International Films – Chart". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  11. ^ "THE TAKING OF TIGER MOUNTAIN". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  12. ^ a b c d e f Clifford Coonan (May 7, 2015). "China's Bona Film Group Racks Up Record First-Quarter Earnings". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  13. ^ "Operation Mekong". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
  14. ^ Kevin Ma (June 19, 2015). "Bona announces giant slate in Shanghai". Film Business Asia. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  15. ^ "Bona Film Seeks Status as Chinese Major Ahead of IPO". variety.com. 6 November 2016. Retrieved 2017-03-04.
  16. ^ Brzeski, Patrick (January 27, 2019). "China's Bona Film Group to Co-Finance Tarantino's 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
edit