Middle Earth - China’s cultural industry podcast

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Despite China's reputation for having difficulty selling cultural products due to local regulations and the audience's taste, some do manage to bridge the Chinese audience with international content. Where do such opportunities lie, and how has the Chinese audience evolved over the years?

Featuring
- Marion Bertagna: MB Projects - Founder & Director
- Sun Wenxin (aka Yoyo): Global Concert Organizer

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #87 How local government & foundations sponsor culture in China
- Middle Earth episode #77 Big in China: Bringing Foreign Creators Onto Chinese Platforms
- Middle Earth episode #60 The Golden Age of China's Museums?
- TWOC's article Can China’s Detective Novels Finally Make Crime Pay? by Jesse Young
- International dancers mentioned : Rachid Ouramdane, Pina Bausch

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project, like shooting your next documentary, or are looking for a specific talent, please get in touch! 

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks Li Muyuan for research, and Sean Calvo for music support.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

China's first AAA game Black Myth: Wukong certainly caught the world's attention for its production value, commercial success, and controversies. How did the creative team pull that off, and why was this game considered the "perfect package"?

Featuring
- Daniel Ahmad: Niko Partners - Director of Research & Insights
- Lundy Lan: Video Game Technical Artist
- Jesse Young: Independent Researcher  

To go further
- Middle Earth trilogy about Chinese video games industry :
#67 Creating Games for the West
#70 China’s Indie Games
#73 Chinese E-sports
- Middle Earth episode #87 How local government & foundations sponsor culture in China
- Middle Earth episode #79 Exploring Wuxia (think "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon")
- TWOC's article Monkeying Around: Chinese Gamers on the ‘Black Myth’ Phenomenon by Jesse Young & Yang Tingting
- Chinese Video games mentioned : The Perceiver, Lost Soul Aside, Phantom Blade Zero, Phantom Blade: Executioners, The Grass of Genesis, Code: To Jin Yong,Where Winds Meet, Zenless Zone Zero & Honor of Kings: World

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project, like shooting your next documentary, or are looking for a specific talent, please get in touch! 

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks Li Muyuan for research, and Sean Calvo for music support.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

Leaving Chinese Tier 1 cities that are often the heartbeat of cultural creation and where artists can find patreons, we met two creatives that leave in remote artists communities. Leveraging cheap rent and the artistic community around them, they offer a testimony to creatives' never ending resourcefulness.

Featuring
- Guo Xiadong : Film Producer (in Songzhuang - near Beijing)
- Ryan LaBar : Artist (in Jingdezhen - Jiangxi province)

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #20 Making a Metropolis: Contemporary Chinese Architecture and Urban Planning
- Middle Earth episode #86 Surviving the cutthroat world of e-commerce in China, with Dr Lin Zhang author of "The Labor of Reinvention"
- TWOC's article What’s Next for China’s Once-Thriving Artist Communes? by Alex Colville
- TWOC's article Bringing the Porcelain Capital of the World into the 21st Century by TIna Xu

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project, like shooting your next documentary, or are looking for a specific talent, please get in touch! 

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks Ren Jiayin for production, and Sean Calvo for music support.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

As any taxi driver in China would tell you, the country is safe on every level. But that must make "true crime" storytellers' lives difficult. Therefore, how can those entertainers of the dark world propose to Chinese audiences?

Featuring
- A Yi (阿乙) : Writer
- Eric Changan : Content Creator
- Wapi : Content Creator & Writer

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #95 Chinese Web Novels: The Hidden Golden Goose?
- Middle Earth episode #92 How writers, bookstore owners, and printers survive in China’s publishing industry
- Middle Earth episode #50 Xiaohongshu : Marrying content and e-commerce
- TWOC's article Can China’s Detective Novels Finally Make Crime Pay? by Jesse Young.
- A Yi (阿乙)'s short novels are on TWOC
- Wapi's media called 没药花园 (can be found on wechat, RED, Youtube, 小宇宙)
- Eric Changan's bilibili account is called Eric长安万年

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project, like shooting your next documentary, or are looking for a specific talent, please get in touch! 

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks to Sean Calvo for music support and Martin Lopez for poster picture.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

After 224 guests, 4,439 minutes of content and 1 pandemic we are shamelessly celebrating Midde Earth – China’s cultural industry Podcast 100th episode! In order to make it big I have summoned all my supportive friends living in Beijing and we are today at Chill Bar for a live event to have quick introspection about the show, and so much more.

Featuring
- Aladin Farré : Content Producer & Middle Earth Podcast Founder
- Sara Huang  :  Scriptwriter and Translator
- Sam Davies :  TWOC - Managing Editor

As we reach 100 episodes I would like to thanks, in chronological order Steve Seidenberg, Li Muyuan, Brenden Gonsalves, Sean Calvo, Alex Colville, Hatty Liu, Dragos Cacio, all the team at TWOC, today’s guests and previous guests.
It was a public event that could have been made possible without Wendy Xu, Hu Qifei, Wang Siqi and Roman Kierst

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks to Sean Calvo for music support and Zhang Jiayu for poster picture.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

As AI is creeping into our lives and our work, no industries are left out of it and certainly not China's cultural industry. But do using AI tools to create content is an easy path and what are the ethical issues attached to such practices?

Featuring
- Fan : AI Startup - CTO
- Erik Luo : Technical AI artist
- Liang Chouwa : Documentary Director

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #93 Invisible Summit: One Blind Person's Journey to 8,848 Meters
- Middle Earth episode #84 Are NFTs welcome in China? (Part 3 - Chinese art collectors)
- TWOC's article What Booming AI Revival Services Mean for China’s Relationship to Death by Shao Yefan
- TWOC's article ChatGPT Gold Rush: How AI Business (and Crime) Is Taking Shape in China by Wang Jiawei
- Liang Chouwa's documentary : My A.I. Lover | NYT Op-Docs

Quiz's answer (no spoil !)
- link to answer 1
- link to answer 2

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project, like shooting your next documentary, or are looking for a specific talent, please get in touch! 

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks to Sean Calvo for music support and Erik Luo for poster picture.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

Before Covid, WWE and UFC were key to push the envelope of MMA in China, now, independent promotion companies like Middle Kingdom Wrestling are left to pick up the momentum.

 Featuring
- Adrian Gomez: Middle Kingdom Wrestling - Founder

To go further
- Middle Earth episode  #65 China’s winter sports market : How to get 300 million snow enthusiasts?
- Middle Earth episode #51 Pop Mart : How to Make an Addictive Toy (featuring Jiang Yaling)

With thanks to Yang Yaling of Following the yuan for co-producing the episode and Middle Kingdom Wrestling for poster’s picture.

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project, like shooting your next documentary, or are looking for a specific talent, please get in touch! 

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

With a forecast revenue of 370 billion USD in 2024 market size, roughly three times the size of the US market and Europe, China's apparel market  is home to up and coming fashion brands as well as big brands buying up international competitors. What can insiders share from that industry?
 
Featuring
- Li Boyan: Fashion Photographer
- Lucrezia Seu: Plush Consulting - Founder
- CK Zhang : 张本赛含之 SAIANZI - Founder

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #93 Invisible Summit: One Blind Person’s Journey to 8,848 Meters
- Middle Earth episode #24 Dealing with the diaspora: Catering to Chinese clients abroad
- Talking Shop, article by Emily Conrad for The World of Chinese Magazine
- Turning the Tide, article by He Yingzi
- Vintage Values, article by Hatty Liu

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project like shooting your next film or look for a specific talent, please get in touch!

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks to Ren Jiayin for production assistant, Sean Calvo for music support and Lucrezia Seu for poster picture.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

Potentially succeeding where Quibi failed, several Chinese apps (DramaBox, Reelshort) alongside others (Pocket FM, Good Novel) are pushing for 1-minute episodes of micro-series. Often depicted as being of trashy quality, they do seem to attract some eyeballs. Yet, what are the creative conditions to produce such Fifty Shades-esque stories, and is the market where we think it is?

Featuring
- Jack Li: Scriptwriter
- Anaïs Clément : Actress and Theatre Maker
- Yang Tingting: TWOC - Journalist

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #59 China micro-series’s boom
- Middle Earth episode #08 How to Make a Movie in 14 Days
- High Stakes in Short Takes: China’s Booming Micro-Drama Business, article by Yang Tingting
- the international micro-series "The Double Life of My Billionaire Husband"
- the chinese micro-series 《我在八零年代当后妈》

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project like shooting your next film or look for a specific talent, please get in touch!

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks to Sean Calvo for music support.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.

Send us Fan Mail

Started as a grassroots movement in the early Chinese internet, web novels slowly became a powerhouse of China’s cultural industry by producing powerful IPs. How did this industry came to be?

Featuring
- Tage : Author 
- Wei Xiaoma : IP Licensing Manager
- Yang Zeyi : Technology Reporter 

To go further
- Middle Earth episode #92 How writers, bookstore owners, and printers survive in China’s publishing industry
- Middle Earth episode #69 The Seducing Power of IPs
- Middle Earth episode #90 Women in China’s Cultural Industries
- Middle Earth episode #79 Exploring Wuxia (think "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon")
- Bitter No More: How Young Chinese Became Obsessed With TCM, article by Shao Yefan
- China is reinventing the way the world reads, article by Yang Zeyi

Middle Earth is made by China Compass Productions and hosted by Aladin Farré. If you have a China-themed cultural project like shooting your next film or look for a specific talent, please get in touch!

Chinese speaker? Follow our Bilibili account 阿拉丁_说电影

With thanks to Ren Jiayin for production assistant, Li Muyuan for voice over and Sean Calvo for music support.

The World of Chinese Magazine
A magazine about Chinese society, culture, history, arts, language, and more.