Pearl Studio

Pearl Studio[2] (formerly known as Oriental DreamWorks) is a Chinese film production company owned by CMC Capital Partners. The company was founded as a Chinese-American joint venture in 2012 by DreamWorks Animation and Chinese investment companies. The company mainly produces Chinese-themed animated and live-action films and their derivatives for distribution within China and worldwide. In 2018, CMC (China Media Capital) acquired NBCUniversal's stake in the studio.

Pearl Studio
Native name
Pearl 东方梦工厂
Formerly
Shanghai Oriental DreamWorks Film & Television Technology Co., Ltd. (2012–2018)
Subsidiary
IndustryFilm industry
FoundedAugust 6, 2012 (2012-08-06)[1]
Founder
Headquarters
Xuhui District, Shanghai[1]
,
China
OwnerChina Media Capital[2] (2018–present)
Number of employees
250 (2014)[3]
Websitewww.pearlstudio.com

History
Oriental DreamWorks logo.

On February 17, 2012, DreamWorks Animation announced a joint venture with China Media Capital, Shanghai Media Group and Shanghai Alliance Investment to build a Shanghai based family entertainment company named Shanghai Oriental DreamWorks Film & Television Technology Co., Ltd. or Oriental DreamWorks for short. The new venture was expected to develop and produce original Chinese animated and live-action content for distribution within China and worldwide. The company also produces live entertainment content, theme parks, games and consumer products. Oriental DreamWorks, owned 45% by DWA and 55% by the Chinese partners,[4] launched on August 6, 2012,[1] with the cash and intellectual capital worth $350 million.[5] To produce animated films, 37 Entertainment, a Chinese animation studio with 175 employees, which had already worked on some of DWA's television productions, has been acquired.[6]

Beside producing its own content, Oriental DreamWorks acts also as a distributor for DWA's productions. Releasing The Croods in 2013, ODW became the first company in 20–30 years that got a license to import Western films.[7]

On November 25, 2015, Peilin Chou was appointed as the head of creative for feature animation at Oriental DreamWorks.[8]

The studio's first animated feature film, Kung Fu Panda 3, was released on January 29, 2016,[9] and was made in co-production with DWA, with 1/3 of the film being produced in China.[6] The studio's first original film, titled Abominable, followed in 2019.[10] On March 15, 2017, it was reported that NBCUniversal would sell off its stake in Oriental DreamWorks for restructuring and possibly face problems with Chinese antitrust investigation.[11]

A film adaption of The Tibet Code, co-produced by China Film Group, was announced, but was cancelled.[12][13][14]

On September 26, 2017, Peilin Chou was promoted to the role of Chief Creative Officer.[15]

On February 1, 2018, CMC Capital Partners announced that they have taken the full ownership of Oriental DreamWorks and renamed it as Pearl Studio. Universal Pictures and DreamWorks Animation still continued to collaborate with Pearl Studio for Abominable in 2019. Frank Zhu was appointed CEO.[16]

On September 29, 2019, it was reported that Abominable had ranked in $30 million worldwide during its opening weekend.[17]

Productions

Feature films

Oriental DreamWorks

Pearl Studio

Dream Center

Part of the deal with the Chinese partners was also an entertainment and culture complex called Dream Center. Built in Shanghai with an investment exceeding $2.7 billion,[5] it would feature series of theatres, cinemas, shopping areas, galleries, hotels, restaurants and the world's largest IMAX screen, and was expected to open in 2017 (may be delayed).[1] As of May, 2017, the future of the Dream Center is unknown, and has most likely been scrapped.

References
  1. DreamWorks Animation (August 6, 2012). "Rising Dreams in the Orient: Oriental DreamWorks To Establish Headquarters in Xuhui". DreamWorks Animation. Archived from the original on December 8, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  2. Amidi, Amid (February 2, 2018). "Oriental Dreamworks Relaunches As 100% Chinese-Owned Pearl Studio". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  3. "DreamWorks Animation SKG's (DWA) CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg on Q3 2014 Results - Earnings Call Transcript". Seeking Alpha. October 29, 2014. Retrieved October 30, 2014. Our studio is now up and running with 250 people,...
  4. "Oriental DreamWorks Rewrites Its China Production Strategy". Variety. September 6, 2013. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  5. Szalai, Georg (October 10, 2012). "DreamWorks Oriental to Eventually Produce Two, Three Films a Year in China". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
  6. "DreamWorks Animation SKG Management Discusses Q3 2012 Results - Earnings Call Transcript". Seeking Alpha. November 1, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
  7. "DreamWorks Animation SKG Management Discusses Q1 2013 Results - Earnings Call Transcript". Seeking Alpha. April 30, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  8. Thill, Scott (November 25, 2015). "Peilin Chou Will Head Up Oriental DreamWorks' East-West Creative Fusion". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  9. "Bryan Cranston, Mads Mikkelsen & Rebel Wilson Board 'Kung Fu Panda 3′". Deadline. April 9, 2013. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
  10. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 5, 2016). "'How To Train Your Dragon 3' Flies To 2019; Uni's DWA To Scale 'Everest'". Deadline. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
  11. Patrick Frater (March 15, 2017). "Oriental DreamWorks Heads for Restructuring, Sale". =Variety. Retrieved July 17, 2017.
  12. Jie, Du; Fang, Tong (June 8, 2013). "DreamWorks sees global potential in Tibet Code". Xinhuanet.com. Xinhua News Agency. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  13. Coonan, Clifford (April 21, 2013). "Katzenberg Touts 'Tibet' as He Targets Chinese Auds". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  14. Zhang, Rui (April 20, 2013). "DreamWorks to make bestseller Tibet Code into film". China Internet Information Center. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  15. Tartaglione, Nancy (September 26, 2017). "Oriental DreamWorks Names Peilin Chou As CCO; Designs Robust Animation Slate". Deadline. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  16. "China's CMC Takes Full Ownership of NBCUniversal's Oriental DreamWorks". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  17. D'Alessandro, Anthony (September 29, 2019). "DreamWorks Animation & Pearl Studio's 'Abominable' Bigfoots B.O. With Near-$21M Opening Weekend". Deadline. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
  18. Amidi, Amid (October 3, 2017). "Don't Count Out Oriental Dreamworks; Chinese Studio Announces 6 Feature Film Projects". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  19. Amidi, Amid (February 6, 2018). "Glen Keane Will Direct 'Over The Moon' For Pearl Studio And Netflix". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
  20. Evry, Max (February 6, 2018). "Disney Animator Glen Keane to Direct Netflix's Over the Moon". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
  21. Masenello, Massimiliano (January 25, 2020). "'City to Help' from Pearl Studio Hit in Development". Deadline. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
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