China’s film industry grinds to a halt because of Fan Bingbing tax scandal
Star’s disappearance and concerns about tighter Communist Party controls caused investors to pull the plug on new productions, insiders say
The scandal over Fan Bingbing’s tax affairs coupled with the Communist Party’s tighter controls on China’s entertainment industry will have a significant impact on the number of locally produced films and television shows in the next one or two years, insiders said.
Tenky Tin Kai-man, the head of the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers, said the slowdown started about three months ago soon after Fan first disappeared from public view.
“Most of the production work on both movies and television series was put on hold,” he said.
The tax-dodging superstar “reappeared” on Wednesday with a grovelling apology and a bill for 884 million yuan (US$129 million) covering fines and unpaid dues. More importantly for the industry, China’s State Taxation Administration said that in the wake of the scandal it was rolling out a campaign to tighten its tax policies and collection methods within the television and film business.
“In the face of the uncertainty, everybody is choosing to wait and see, rather than start shooting,” Tin said, adding that it was inevitable there would be a severe supply shortage in the months and possibly years ahead.
The slump in production activity had also had a major impact on Hong Kong’s filmmakers, large numbers of whom work on the mainland, Tin said.
