娱乐英语新闻:Shaw Studios returns to film, marking 50 years of production

BEIJING, Nov. 26 -- Shaw Studios, founded by Hong Kong media mogul Sir Run Run Shaw, has announced its return to the film industry after a 22-year absence, with 72 Tenants of Prosperity currently under production. The film, to be released during Spring Festival, has gathered 174 film stars from Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and Taiwan.

    Having dominated much of the Asian film market in the 1960s and 70s, Shaw Studios has not only produced films significant to Asia, but most of the world. Directors including Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez have publicly acknowledged the influence that Shaw films have had on them and their careers. Shaw stopped film production in 1987 and turned to television, creating Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) and grew it into one of the world's top five television producers.

    To honor the 50th anniversary of Shaw Studios' founding, the 101-year-old Sir Shaw announced his return to the film business and the production of three films, one of which is 72 Tenants of Prosperity.

    Produced by Eric Tsang and co-directed by Tsang and rising director Patrick Kong, the film is an adaptation of Yuen Chor's 1973 classic The House of 72 Tenants with the theme of appreciating friends and family in modern society.

    Formerly an employee of Shaw Studios, Tsang said shooting the film felt like returning home and that it was a film "suitable for the whole family to watch together." As another Hong Kong film industry mogul, he cast a record 174 stars, including Jacky Cheung, Anita Yuen, Kelly Chan and Tony Leung.

    According to Tsang, the film is scheduled to complete shooting on December 4 and will screen during Spring Festival.