Chan, Tong plot Yuefai TV series

Recently greenlit by China’s State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT), the series is scripted by late Taiwanese writer-director Ding Shan Xi and will be produced and distributed by Chan’s JC Group China. 

“Producing Yuefei, will fulfill at least two dreams. One, is that I always dreamt of playing Yuefei as an actor, I have a special feeling for this hero and it will be an honour to cast the role. The second, is a greater honour, to fulfill the dream of director Ding Shan Xi who wrote the series,” said Chan.

Taipei-based distribution veteran Steve Chicorel is helping raise the $15m budget of the series, which will be dubbed into multiple languages for international distribution. “When done right, today’s high tech ADR is seamless, whether German, French, Japanese, Korean, English or Hindi, and we’re already in negotiations to make Yuefei the first Chinese prime-time series in these markets,” says Chicorel.

Chan and Tong plan to start production by the fourth quarter of 2010 and have already started casting and early pre-production in Beijing.

Yuefei was an accomplished military man in the 12th Century who helpedbChina’s Song Dynasty resist attacks by various tribes. His loyalty was questioned by the Chinese high court, resulting in his execution at the age of 39, although he was posthumously cleared when a new emperor rose to power.