A sequel to 2001 smash hit comedy romance “My Sassy Girl” is to be made as a co-production between Korea’s Shincine and China’s Beijing Sky Wheel Media.
It will be the first co-production since the signing of an inter-government agreement between the two countries in July.
The original film was a box office success around much of Asia, and launched the career of superstar Gianna Jun (then still known as Jun Ji-hyun).
The new movie is to be the first international venture by Shincine, which was one of the leading production houses in the late 1980s and early 1990s, producing hits such as “Happiness Does Not Come in Grades” (1989). It has been comparatively inactive since.
The sequel, titled “My New Sassy Girl,” is to star the original film’s male lead Cha Tae-hyun and Victoria, a Chinese member of the Korean girl group f(x).
Victoria is to play Cha’s elementary school classmate from China who was often teased about her broken Korean, but who ends up becoming his wife. Talent agency SM Entertainment and Shincine say the story will focus on the early days of their marriage.
The picture is to be directed by Jo Geun-sik who (“Conduct Zero,” “Once in a Summer”), with production beginning next week (Sept. 29).
“We’ve only had collaborations so far in Korean cinema with the Chinese, but this is the first co-production between the two countries in the genuine sense of the word,” Kim Hyung-oak, producer at Shincine told Variety.
Beijing Sky Wheel Media Company is an Investment and distribution company and the first such company to co-finance a Korean-originated movie. The film’s budget is set at RMB32 million ($5.2 million).
Distributors have not yet been locked in, but Shincine says it is aiming for a simultaneous release in Korea and China in May 2015.