中国投资大腕勇闯好莱坞

虽然中国政府近期严打盗版，但中国的盗版情况依然猖獗，电影行业每年因此损失数百万美元。你打算如何应对盗版问题？

    我对此表示乐观。我们还在继续与中国相关监管机构合作。我也确实看到了情况有了很大改善。这几年政府开展了声势浩大的行动来打击互联网非法下载行为。很多互联网门户网站都加入了打击盗版的行列，并花费巨资买断知识产权。

    我同意DVD盗版市场仍然很大。但买过这种盗版光盘的人都知道，它们质量非常低劣，不再能满足普通影迷的需求。随着大片票价越来越能让大众接受，影院设施越来越舒适，人们都希望在电影院获得上佳的体验。

好莱坞多年来一直向中国政府施压要求放松审查制度。审查制度会对你的电影事业有何影响？

    我认为中国的电影审查问题被西方媒体过分渲染了。我总是提醒西方记者，中国确实会进行很多审查，但如果电影本身没有明显的政治问题、过多的暴力场面和露骨的色情内容，绝大多数好莱坞电影都是允许在中国放映的。实际上，西方影迷和中国影迷之间在品味和接受度方面的差距正在逐步缩小，而不是扩大。因此，我对未来的形势持谨慎乐观态度。

在过去几年里，通过出口中文文化产品和主办法兰克福以及伦敦书展等国际性文化活动，中国政府不断加大所谓的“软实力扩张”力度。您认为您的投资属于中国软实力建设的一部分吗？

    首先我想强调的是，我们并不是一家政府性机构。我们在中国是一家完完全全私有化的公司。我们致力于制作高品质的娱乐产品，获取利润。如果我们在商业运营过程中取得的成功有利于中国形象，它也只是一个副产品，就跟好莱坞对美国的作用一样。那是我们的光荣。

    黄文广（音译）所著的回忆录《红小兵》（The Little Red Guard）即将于下周末出版。

    译者：李玫晓/汪皓

Piracy in China costs the film industry billions of dollars each year. Despite the recent government crackdown, it's still pretty rampant. How do you plan to deal with piracy?

    I'm optimistic about the issue. We continue to work with the Chinese regulatory agencies on the issue. I truly see the situation improving dramatically. Over the past several years, the government has launched extensive programs to crack down on illegal downloading from the Internet. Many Internet portals are joining the fight against piracy and are spending a sizable amount of money buying up intellectual property rights.

    I agree that the DVD piracy market is still very big. However, if you buy a copy, you'll notice that the pirated DVDs have very poor quality. They can no longer meet the needs of regular moviegoers. As the ticket prices for "big movies" are becoming more affordable and theater facilities are becoming more comfortable, people are looking for a great experience in the theaters.

For years, Hollywood has pressured the Chinese government to ease censorship. How will censorship affect your movie ventures?

    I think the censorship issue in China is overplayed by the Western media. I always remind Western journalists that it is true there is a great deal of censorship here, but an overwhelming majority of Hollywood titles are allowed to be shown in China without any problems, as long as the movie has no explicit political agenda, excessive violence and overly explicit sexual content. In fact, the gaps in taste and acceptance levels between Western and Chinese moviegoers are narrowing, rather than widening. I'm cautiously optimistic about the situation.

Over the past few years, the Chinese government has stepped up what is referred to as "soft power expansion" through the exports of Chinese cultural products and sponsoring international cultural events, such as the Frankfurt and London book fairs. Do you consider your investment part of China's soft power building?

    First, I want to emphasize that we are NOT a government entity and we are a 100% privately-held company in China. We are interested in making high quality entertainment products and gaining a decent profit. If in the process, our success benefits the Chinese image, that is a byproduct, just like what Hollywood has done for the United States. I'm proud of that.

    Wenguang Huang is the author of a forthcoming memoir, The Little Red Guard, to be published later this month.