BEIJING, Feb. 9 -- The most expensive Chinese movie ever made doesn't have a distribution deal in North America and was recently left of the nomination list for this year's Academy Awards, leaving some industry insiders to wonder if producers will ever cover their costs.

    A PR official for the producers blew off those concerns yesterday, however, saying he is very confident the movie will make a profit.

    The Chen Kaige fantasy epic "The Promise," which boasts an A-list cast from Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, cost more than 340 million yuan (US$41.9 million) to produce, surpassing Zhang Yimou's US$30 million "Hero."

    The movie has been a box office hit in China, but industry sources say there is no way to cover the massive budget without large amounts of money from foreign distributors.

    While producers are preparing to open the film in South Korea and Japan, attempts to find a North American distributor fell apart in December. The film will play at this year's Berlin Film Festival, which opens today and should help attract European audiences.

    Since opening in China in mid-December, the movie has taken in 190 million yuan to the domestic box office. Shanghai United Cinema Lines, the city's leading cinema chain, has sold more than 23 million yuan in tickets for the film.

    According to the previous media report, in addition to the domestic box office, the movie should gain about US$20 million from its overseas copyright sales, 16 million yuan from audio-video products in the domestic market, plus other revenues from byproducts such as books and computer games.

    "Actually with so many competitors such as 'A Chinese Tall Story' and 'Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles,' our movie has performed well at the box office," said the PR official surnamed Huang.

    Producers hoped to sign a North American distribution deal with the Weinstein Company - a firm owned by Miramax founders Bob and Harvey Weinstein - but those plans fell apart late last year when the two sides couldn't agree on the scale of the release.They are looking for a new distributor.

(Source: Shanghai Daily)