"Fruit's pattern for international financing is close to that of Taiwanese filmmakers," Wong added. That is to say, to go to the film festivals, seeking European markets and then come back for Asian or domestic markets.
No company knows more about the niche market for Asian films than Fortissimo, an international film sales company that handled Wong Kar-wai's (王家衛) films, Hou Hsiao-hsien's (侯孝賢) Millennium Mambo (千禧曼波) and Tears of a Black Tiger by Thai director Wisit Sasanatieng and Lover Letter by Japanese director Iwai Shunji.
For the company's founder, Wouter Barendrecht, the uniqueness of these filmmakers means their films will always find a market.
"We all know that Wong Kar-wai's box office in Hong Hong is never that good. But he has over 1.2 million people in France going to see his In the Mood For Love (花樣年華). Who cares now about the Hong Kong market?" said Barendrecht.
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