GKIDS has acquired North American rights to its first Chinese animation White Snake ahead of its international premiere at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival this week.
Produced by Beijing-based Light Chaser Animation along with Warner Bros, White Snake is directed by Amp Wong and Zhao Ji. The film grossed $67m (RMB 449m) in China earlier this year.
The story of White Snake is based on a well-known local tale and follows Blanca, a young woman who after losing her memory, searches for her identity with the help of Xuan, a snake catcher from a nearby village. As their quest deepens, they uncover a sinister supernatural plot.
GKIDS CEO and founder Eric Beckman brokered the deal with Light Chaser Animation’s Yu Zhou. All Rights Entertainment handles international sales outside North America, China and Japan.
“Light Chaser Animation are true innovators, raising the bar for top notch Chinese animation and storytelling. We are overjoyed to be releasing this stunning epic to North American audiences,” said GKIDS president David Jesteadt.
The distributor will release the film theatrically this autumn in both its original Chinese and a new English-language version.
