CHINA UNMASKED:
HOW A LOCAL DISTRIBUTOR IS PIVOTING
THIS WEBINAR WAS BROADCASTED ON:
April 30, 2020 @ 6:00 PM LOS ANGELES TIME
MAY 1, 2020 @ 9:00 AM BEIJING TIME
This webinar is now on-demand for $15.00.
Buy now and “Return to Merchant” for viewable link once you have completed payment.
With closed cinemas, cancelled festivals and postponed movie releases, it’s become a huge undertaking to function within the film ecosystem. Yet somehow, independent film aggregator and marketer David U. Lee and his team at Leeding Media have found a way to not only survive through it all – but actually thrive in it. Join us for this special webcast from Beijing and discover how David has been pivoting as a Chinese film distributor through challenging circumstances.
During our conversation, we will dive into:
The state of China’s film industry
Utilizing historical perspectives
Strategies to pivot under the current market
Working with popular platforms such as Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent and Bilibili
The future of business opportunities and practices between China and the U.S.
Attend our webinar and gain valuable industry insight. Discover practical and innovative ways to pivot your film business on a global level.
The conversation will be moderated by Katherine Winston, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Winston Baker.
ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS:
David U. LeeFounder and Chief Executive Officer
Leeding Media
David U. Lee is the founder and CEO of Leeding Media, a production, finance and distribution company that serves as a bridge between the U.S. and Chinese entertainment industries. The company works with American studios, filmmakers and rights holders as well as Chinese investors, distributors and media companies to identify, negotiate and execute mutually beneficial initiatives. Lee’s expertise on business opportunities and practices in China and the U.S. film entertainment industries is highly sought after by prominent companies in both countries.
Since its formation in 2007, with offices in both Los Angeles and Beijing, Leeding Media has become a premier independent aggregator and marketer of world-class films. In collaboration with its partners, Lee most recently executive-produced Brandon Cronenberg’s Possessor, which made its world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Prior to this, Netflix wrapped the company’s sci-fi action thriller, Outside the Wire starring Anthony Mackie. And last year, Leeding Media’s comedy drama The Professor starring Johnny Depp was released in conjunction with DirecTV. The company has marketed 14 feature films theatrically and controls exclusive digital distribution rights to nearly 500 titles in China. These include such award-winning and critically acclaimed films as Million Dollar Baby, Whiplash, Nightcrawler, Rush, Bobby, Only the Brave and Kinsey, as well as blockbusters including the Divergent series, Ender’s Game, Ghost Rider 2, Underworld, Malcolm X, GI Jane and The Wedding Planner.
Under Lee’s leadership, the company sells and distributes its content through leading distributors in China including all three B.A.T. (Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent), Mango TV, Bilibili, China Film Group, Huaxia, Perfect World Pictures and Huayi Brothers Pictures.
Lee has played instrumental roles in many groundbreaking film productions in China. Most recently he served as executive producer on Shanghai Fortress starring Shu Qi and Lu Han, which was released in China on August 9, 2019. Prior to this, Lee served as U.S. post-production producer on director Jiang Wen’s Gone with the Bullets. In 2011 he produced Inseparable, starring Daniel Wu. In 2009 Lee advised China Film Group Corporation on the structuring of its co-production with Sony Pictures Entertainment on The Karate Kid, starring Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith. Lee is a co-executive producer of Shanghai starring John Cusack, Gong Li and Chow Yun-fat, and The Forbidden Kingdom, one of the most successful China-U.S. co-production in history, starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li.
In 2009 Lee was named an inaugural member of The Hollywood Reporter’s Next Generation Asia, which honored rising young stars of Asia’s media and entertainment industry. He is frequently invited to speak at major China-U.S. entertainment industry conferences as well as some of the leading film and business colleges in the world including University of Southern California, University of California Los Angeles and Beijing Film Academy.
Lee was born in Taipei and raised in Los Angeles. He received his bachelor’s degree from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California before starting his entertainment career at Miramax and serving in various positions at Telemundo, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Revolution Studios. After returning to USC and receiving his MBA in 2004, Lee moved to Beijing where he joined the venture-capital arm of American publishing firm IDG Asia. As director, and later vice president of business development for IDG, he oversaw the launch of the Chinese edition of entertainment-industry trade paper Variety.
Katherine Winston
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
WINSTON | BAKER
Katherine Winston has been at the forefront of event production, marketing and emerging trends for nearly twenty years. As co-founder and managing partner of WINSTON | BAKER, she oversees business operations, event production, marketing strategies, and new initiatives. In her previous role as Director of Marketing for RealD, she was in charge of creative advertising, supervised public relations, and organized event participation, product launches, and screenings. Prior to RealD, Winston was Senior Marketing Manager for GoTV Networks, where she was responsible for all aspects of marketing strategy and execution, including corporate and consumer marketing, web-to-mobile advertising, print, online, and experiential marketing, public relations, and managing brand partnership deals. Before GoTV, Winston was Conference Producer for Strategic Research Institute where she was responsible for producing high profile investment conferences for various sectors, including e-commerce, nanotech, defense & aerospace, biotech, law, real estate, and entertainment, among others. Winston earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology with honors from the University of Washington and is a Phi Beta Kappa and National Association of Professional Women member. As a fervent advocate of entrepreneurialism, Winston is dedicated to connecting innovators with seasoned professionals who can fuel development and growth.
In support of the independent entertainment community, Winston Baker will be offering webinars for free or at highly discounted rates so that you can continue to acquire strategic knowledge and connect with industry leaders through these challenging times. Space will be limited so we can allow our attendees time for questions after each webinar.