Light Chaser Animation Studios
Light Chaser Animation Studios (Chinese: 追光动画; pinyin: Zhuī Guāng Dònghuà) is a Chinese CG animation film studio based in Beijing, China. The studio was founded in early 2013 by Gary Wang, the founder and ex-CEO of the popular Chinese video sharing website Tudou.com.
 | |
| Industry | |
|---|---|
| Founded | March 2013; 12 years ago |
| Founder | Gary Wang |
| Headquarters | , China |
| Website | www.zhuiguang.com |
Light Chaser Animation Studios (Chinese: 追光动画; pinyin: Zhuī Guāng Dònghuà) is a Chinese CG animation film studio based in Beijing, China. The studio was founded in early 2013 by Gary Wang, the founder and ex-CEO of the popular Chinese video sharing website Tudou.com.
History
[edit]In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on March 12, 2013,[1] Gary Wang announced Light Chaser Animation, a movie studio to produce animated feature films targeting the rapidly growing Chinese movie market, which grew by 30% in 2012[2] and was widely expected to overtake the U.S. market in size by 2020.[needs update][3] He cited the lack of quality domestically produced animation content, a rapidly growing domestic market, and improving environment for movie distribution, promotion and copyrights in China as the main reasons behind his decision.[1]
Light Chaser's website states that its main goal is to "create world-class animated films".[4]
Their first animated feature, Little Door Gods, directed by Wang, opened in China on January 1, 2016. It premiered in the United States on May 20, 2017, at the Seattle International Film Festival.[5]
Light Chaser's second feature film, Tea Pets, was released in China on July 21, 2017. In the United States, Vision Films distributed the film as Toys & Pets. An airline safety video was made for Hainan Airlines starring this film's characters.[6]
Their third feature film, Cats and Peachtopia, was released in China on April 5, 2018. In the United States, Viva Pictures released the movie as "Cats" on DirecTV Pay-per-view in late 2019, and distributed the movie theatrically on January 24, 2020.[7]
Their fourth feature film, White Snake, directed by Amp Wong and Zhao Ji, was released on January 11, 2019, in China.[8] The film received a limited release in the United States and Canada on November 15, 2019, with GKIDS acting as the distributor.[9] It also debuted in France at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.[10] The film is a co-production with American studio Warner Bros. Warner Bros. has rights in China and is credited as a co-producer due to its significant involvement in the creation of the film. The film won the Golden Angel for "Best Chinese & American Co-Production Animation Film" at the Chinese American Film Festival.[11]
Their fifth film, New Gods: Nezha Reborn, was released in February 2021. A works-in-process feature about the film was to premiere at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival.[12]
The company has been focusing on animation production technology since its establishment, and is building its own render farm and developing technology.[13] In addition, the software has introduced Maya, Houdini, ZBrush, and Arnold.[clarification needed][14]
Filmography
[edit]| Title | Release date(s) | Budget(s) | Box office gross | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Little Door Gods | January 1, 2016 | $12 million | $11.9 million | N/A | N/A |
| Tea Pets | July 21, 2017 | $5 million | N/A | N/A | |
| Cats and Peachtopia | April 5, 2018 | $10.5 million | $20.5 million | N/A | N/A |
| White Snake | January 11, 2019 | $11.2 million | $61.6 million | 68% (22 reviews)[15] | 60 (6 reviews)[16] |
| New Gods: Nezha Reborn | February 12, 2021 | N/A | $70.4 million | N/A | N/A |
| Green Snake | July 23, 2021 | N/A | $90.7 million | N/A | N/A |
| New Gods: Yang Jian | August 19, 2022 | N/A | $82.3 million | N/A | N/A |
| Chang'an | July 8, 2023 | N/A | $258.2 million | N/A | N/A |
| White Snake: Afloat | August 10, 2024 | N/A | $56.4 Million | N/A | N/A |
| Curious Tales of a Temple | July 12, 2025 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Osawa, Juro (March 12, 2013). "Tudou Founder Eyes Big Screen". Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Lai, Alexis (February 20, 2013). "Blockbuster growth in China's film industry". CNN.
- ^ Child, Ben (November 29, 2012). "China will be the world's biggest film market by 2020". The Guardian.
- ^ About Company, archived from the original on 24 July 2013
- ^ "Xiao men shen". IMDB.
- ^ "Tea Pets". IMDB.
- ^ "Cats". IMDB.
- ^ "Chinese Authorities to Further Restrict Foreign Content Programming". China Film Insider. 2018-09-21. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
- ^ Zahed, Ramin (2019-06-10). "GKIDS Charms China's White Snake for N. America". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
- ^ Cox, Chris (July 22, 2019). "Infestation: Annecy Animation Festival 2019: White Snake". One of Us.
- ^ Gui, Ming. "2019 GOLDEN ANGEL AWARD". Chinese American Film Festival. Archived from the original on 26 June 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- ^ "中国电影《新封神：哪吒重生》入围"动画界奥斯卡"：定档暑假". sina. 21 May 2020.
- ^ 小晚wan. "梦想家与独裁者：王微和"中国皮克斯"的创业故事". www.huxiu.com. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- ^ "中国皮克斯追光动画，前土豆网创始人王微任性挥霍前路如何？_小夜游". www.sohu.com. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- ^ "White Snake". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media.
- ^ "White Snake Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive.
External links
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