Across mainland China entire towns have been constructed around producing movie and TV content. For “Once Upon a Time in Shanghai,” I visited over a dozen major film production sites, though many more exist. The title refers to the origin of China’s film industry in Shanghai, but film and tv production occurs in many locations. Local governments often invest in construction such facilities, hoping to attract business and also tourism.
Here are some of the production sites represented in the book:
Beijing Film Studio: The original studio in central Beijing was used for classic films such as The Last Emperor (1987) and Farewell, My Concubine (1993). By the time I got there, the back lot had been closed for some time and slated for demolition, though some sections of the sets remained, rapidly decaying and overgrown with weeds.
China Film Group State Production Base: The China Film Group Corporation is the largest state-owned film production and distribution company in China. It is the only official importer of foreign films to China and has had a hand in numerous large scale co-productions bringing foreign stars to China, including Matt Damon in The Great Wall and Keanu Reeves in Man of Tai Chi. The production base in Huairou, outside Beijing, includes state-of-the-art digital production facilities, sixteen sound stages, equipment and props warehouses, and large outdoor studio lots.
Hengdian World Studios: Reportedly the world’s largest film production facility, Hengdian World Studios is made up of several distinct film villages, including a full-scale replica of the Forbidden City, a massive ancient walled fortress, traditional lakeside towns, and a neighborhood of Hong Kong and Guangzhou colonial streets. A once-remote small town, Hengdian has exploded in the past ten years. The majority of the studio’s revenue now comes from tourism, with millions of visitors annually.
Huayi Brothers Movie World: Huayi Brothers opened their first theme park in July 2018 in Suzhou, China, after six years of construction and at a cost of over $50 million. Similar to Disneyland or Universal Studios, the park is based around the company’s major creative properties, including the Detective Dee film series.
Shiqiu Film and Television Base: The local Shiqiu town government, outside Nanjing, took on the cost of constructing a Roman Catholic cathedral for Zhang Yimou’s Flowers of War (2011) with Christian Bale. While the site apparently failed to attract other large-scale productions, the cathedral remains among landscaped green lawns and is now used for weddings and special events.
Shanghai Film Park: The Shanghai Film Park is based around a full-scale replica of Nanjing Road, Shanghai’s famous shopping high street, circa 1930s. An oddly diverse set of film and video productions have made use of the set, including Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution (2007), Kung Fu Hustle (2004), The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008), video artist Isaac Julien’s Ten Thousand Waves, and even a Prada commercial directed by Chinese artist Yang Fudong.
Xiangshan Film and TV City: The Xiangshan studios opened in 2005 on an undeveloped peninsula of fishing villages south of Ningbo for The Return of the Condor Heroes (2006), based on the Wuxia novel by Jin Yong. The site was also used for Chen Kaige’s historical drama Sacrifice (2010) and for the popular TV series Nirvana in Fire (2015). A Republic of China section added later was used in the ill-fated WWII film Air Strike with Bruce Willis.
Zhenbeipu Western Film City: Constructed on the ruins of an old fortress outside Yinchuan in northwestern China near the edge of the Gobi desert, the Western Film City has been used in numerous epic historical films. The 1982 film The Herdsman, based on a story by Zhang, was the first feature film made here and one of the first Chinese films to get international recognition. Zhang Yimou’s Red Sorghum (1987), starring Gong Li, and Wong Kar-Wai’s Ashes of Time (1994) were also made here.
Zhongshan Movie & Television Town: Located in Guangdong Province next door to the childhood home of Sun Yat-sen, first President of the Republic of China. The town is based around landmarks from Sun’s life and travels, including a London police office, an English church, the San Francisco Chinese Expats Club, and the family’s residence in New York. It was created by the local government for the shooting of a 2001 biographical TV drama.