Hishow Entertainment picks up Chinese rights to French movies \u201cChristmas & Co.\u201d and \u201cGaston\u201d from France\u2019s Gaumont.<\/b>
\nChina\u2019s Hishow Entertainment has picked up mainland Chinese rights to \u201c Christmas & Co.\u201d and \u201c Gaston .\u201d Both films were acquired from France\u2019s Gaumont .
\u201cChristmas & Co.\u201d stars comedian Alain Chabat and Audrey Tautou, who is pictured above, and directed by Chabat. Mixing live action and animation, the film tells the story of Santa Claus\u2019 attempt to cure his sick reindeer in time to deliver gifts on Christmas Eve.
\u201cGaston, \u201d produced by Gaumont and UGC, is a film adaptation of Andre Franquin\u2019s cult comic strip franchise Gaston Lagaffe. \u201cGaston\u201d will be mostly shot in live action with some animation, provided by French VFX studio MacGuff.
Pierre Francois Martin-Laval is directing the picture on a budget of $21 million (19 milion euros) , making it one of the biggest-budget films from France for 2018. Martin-Laval also stars in the film as Gaston, alongside Theo Fernandez (\u201cThe Tuche Family\u201d) and Alison Wheeler (\u201cGoing to Brazil\u201d) .
The deals stem from the continuing relationship between Hishow and Gaumont. Hishow previously acquired Gaumont\u2019s \u201cBallerina.\u201d It was released in China in January as the only foreign-language title allowed in the normally Chinese-films-only period of Lunar New Year.
\u201cWith these two new titles, Hishow keeps on bringing more diversity to Chinese audiences and strengthens its partnership with Gaumont again, \u201d a Hishow spokesman said.
Earlier during the Cannes Film Festival, Hishow announced the acquisition of mainland Chinese rights to European animated feature \u201cTall Tales, \u201d from PGS and ON Animation.
Based in Beijing, with offices in Hong Kong, Los Angeles and Bangkok, Hishow positions itself as an international film investor and co-producer, not simply a local distributor.
In Berlin, it paid some $10 million for Chinese rights and investment positions in two Nu Image\/Millennium Films, \u201cHunter Killer\u201d and \u201cEscobar.\u201d Hishow was previously involved with \u201cThe Imitation Game, \u201d starring Benedict Cumberbatch, and 2015\u2019s Franco-Chinese drama \u201cNight Peacock\u201d (\u201cLe Paon de Nuit\u201d) , directed by Dai Sijie and produced by Hishow\u2019s Wang Haiyi.
SEE ALSO: UGC, Gaumont Team on ‚Gaston‘ Adaptation (EXCLUSIVE)<\/p>\n

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