China’s ban on remakes of foreign shows: A decision made by 'old-school minds'

The guidelines from the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT), which were already implemented nationwide, may be negative for production companies set up to remake popular American series such as Glee, Gossip Girl, and How I Met Your Mother.

The other five in the decree are: "to draw clear lines between ourselves and the enemy in dramas incorporating revolutionary history"; "must not amplify or emphasise family conflicts"; "must not engage in flights of fancy in historical dramas"; "to be conscientious in guiding public values in dramas about business competition"; and "to discourage adaptations of online novels or online games".

"The ban on remaking foreign dramas will seriously impact these production companies, but this means the content produced will be pushed towards online webisodes. This is a natural progression in China's current media environment," Andrew Collins, CEO of Mailman Group, told Campaign Asia-Pacific.

"Chinese consumers will always find alternative media channels to consume the content they want. The answer is usually just a forum discussion away for the 18- to 21-year-old Weibo Generation," he added.

While saying SARFT's restrictions are based on good intentions—to fuel the development of local television industry—the newly minted director of entertainment marketing at Ogilvy Entertainment, Janie Ma, noted that the government is being overly sensitive to the supposed bad influences from foreign dramas.

When Japanese, Korean or American dramas are remade for China's viewers, their producers already tailor them to cater to Chinese values and preferences, she said. 

"SARFT doesn't sense this is not for the greater good of the overall televison industry," added Collins, whose digital agency is behind fanstang.com, a social network linking celebrities like Chace Crawford of Gossip Girl fame and Matthew Morisson of the hit show Glee with Chinese fans. When asked if the ban on foreign dramas will cause these celebrities to become foreign in the minds of the Chinese, Collins insisted the opposite, citing the trend of branded content moving online anyway as reason.

In Ma's opinion, SARFT should act more like a guide that leads the industry to develop, and treat the Chinese locals as a smarter, more discerning audience. Thankfully, according to her, the ban will not impact her work in branded entertainment, as "we have a lot of entertainment resources to draw from".

More significantly, Collins pointed out the viewers that SARFT wants to control are watching banned content on other screens via the web. "By imposing this ban, it just reflects old-school minds making old-school decisions affecting old-school viewers".

Previous SARFT bans include prohibition of commercials during TV dramas and supervision of vulgar and low-class themes in online videos and micro-movies.