Written by on Apr 22, 2014. Posted in On Location

Paramount Pictures partners with China Film Group on Marco Polo feature film

Paramount Pictures has partnered with China Film Group for a feature film based on the life of the 13th Century traveller Marco Polo. The news comes days after China Film Group’s announcement that it will be co-producing Warcraft and Seventh Son with Legendary Pictures.

This production of Marco Polo is separate from the drama miniseries of the same name that The Weinstein Company is currently filming for Netflix at Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studios and in Italy and Kazakhstan.

Paramount is building on its relationship with China, having filmed scenes in Hong Kong and elsewhere in the country for the upcoming Transformers: Age of Extinction. Securing co-production status in China enables films to bypass the country’s strict annual quotas on international movie releases, giving them better access to the lucrative Chinese market.

China Film Group's deal with Hollywood-based Legendary Studios to co-produce Warcraft and Seventh Son was the group's first arrangement with a Hollywood studio.

In September this year the inaugural US China Film & TV Industry (UCFTI) Expo will take place in Los Angeles and will offer information and panel discussions on how best to navigate the production process in China.

Paramount is building on its relationship with China, having filmed scenes in Hong Kong and elsewhere in the country for the upcoming Transformers: Age of Extinction.

The sudden popularity of the Marco Polo story follows on from the success of other historical dramas filming in global production hubs around the world. While HBO’s Game of Thrones is loosely inspired by England’s 15th Century dynastic clash known as the War of the Roses, History Channel has produced Vikings and Starz produces pirate drama Black Sails in South Africa.

Rival pirate drama Crossbones is underway in Puerto Rico and a miniseries based on the exploits of Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca is also in development.