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Imprint have announced Collaborations: The Cinema of Zhang Yimou and Gong Li for a September release.

Wow. On top of everything else, this is noteworthy as the first Imprint release to contain any sort of booklet

This is great news and hopefully someone replicates this in a more import friendly country.

swo17 wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 9:49 amthis is noteworthy as the first Imprint release to contain any sort of booklet

With writing from Chris Berry, no less. He was teaching a well-regarded subject in Japanese Cinema at my uni, but unfortunately left to work in Hong Kong I think, the very year I was able to take the class. Fortunately in it’s place we got a subject on East Asian cinema taught by two guys from India & Taiwan.

knives wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 11:24 am This is great news and hopefully someone replicates this in a more import friendly country.

Compared to the cost and effort required to pick up the Diskino release of Red Sorghum alone, this is incredibly import-friendly!

Does anyone know who the license holder for these films are? Also, does Imprint ever hold their own sales? I would love to get this, but it is a bit pricey.

I'm pretty sure they have never held a sale. Some of the titles eventually become available for less on JB Hi-Fi, but I wouldn't be surprised if this one sells out before there's a chance for that to happen. It's a limited run of only 2,000

Fair point.

It should be available from DD for a (relatively) decent price during one of their 15% off sales (once it is in-stock).

Who/what is Imprint? Can't say I've ever heard of them. This release LOOKS classy, but how do their blurays actually look, etc?

Also, any idea about region locking?

Michael Kerpan wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 1:10 pm Any idea about region locking?

I believe all of their releases have been region free so far

Michael Kerpan wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 1:10 pm Who/what is Imprint? Can't say I've ever heard of them. This release LOOKS classy, but how do their blurays actually look, etc?

It's worth looking through the label's dedicated thread to answer those questions. The short answers are, from what I've gathered: Imprint is a relatively new Australian boutique blu-ray label, who have inconsistent quality releases regarding image- with some releases reportedly sourced from old masters and/or delivering weak transfers while others are fine. The releases usually sell out quickly, and are expensive to import compared to other overseas companies to the U.S. They also always, or almost always, come with a new commentary recorded for the release as one of the few special features- which seems to be the major selling point considering many of the films they release have, will, or are speculated to be released by other boutique companies concurrently or shortly after Imprint's releases. Many of us wait and pray that another company will come out with a cheaper version to import in the near future and hold off on buying the Imprint, but it's a gamble, and the chances that all mirrored releases will come with commentaries is, as the magic 8 ball might say, outlook not so good.

Unless there are rights issues I see no reason a US/UK label doesn't release at least the first 5 titles which along with Zhang Yimou are well known to anyone familiar with even just a peripheral knowledge/interest of mainland Chinese Cinema There would obviously be an audience for those. The other titles maybe as well but I haven't seen those mentioned as much as those first 5.

Adam X wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 11:26 am

swo17 wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 9:49 amthis is noteworthy as the first Imprint release to contain any sort of booklet

With writing from Chris Berry, no less. He was teaching a well-regarded subject in Japanese Cinema at my uni, but unfortunately left to work in Hong Kong I think, the very year I was able to take the class. Fortunately in it’s place we got a subject on East Asian cinema taught by two guys from India & Taiwan.

Berry's writing on Chinese cinema is excellent and I constantly find myself returning to his Postsocialist Cinema in Post-Mao China as the only book-length work in English on a very interesting period (the first few years after the Cultural Revolution), which unfortunately came a bit too early to get the sort of international attention lavished on the Fifth Generation. He also made an unexpected appearance in the Diskino booklet for The Black Cannon Incident ("unexpected" since every other essay I've ever seen in their releases is exclusively in Chinese) describing his experience working on the original English subtitles.

I realize any answer to this might be firmly in speculative territory, and also probably would have been mentioned already, but just in case.. is anything concrete(ish) known about why English-friendly HD releases of most of these haven’t materialized before now? Sitting here wondering if there might be some long-standing rights hurdle in the US/UK that Imprint circumvented by being in Australia, or if this set coming relatively soon after the Nova one suggests that there are simply elements available now that weren’t before, in which case other boutique labels will surely follow. It sounds like this gamble is par for the course with Imprint.. just wish my first go-around didn’t come with such a price tag!

Also, I wonder if Film Movement’s recent release of Shanghai Triad would preclude anyone other than Film Movement from doing a similarly comprehensive set in the US.

It's not just Film Movement, Sony also has several of these films in the U.S. (The Story of Qiu Ju, Curse of the Golden Flower, Coming Home). I don't believe MGM has Raise the Red Lantern and To Live anymore so at least those are probably up for grabs, along with Red Sorghum (an ex-New Yorker title) and Ju Dou (which had a very early DVD release from Pioneer but has been unavailable for years, outside of a truly wretched DVD from some sketchy outfit called "Razor").

The Fanciful Norwegian wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 6:22 pm It's not just Film Movement, Sony also has several of these films in the U.S. (The Story of Qiu Ju, Curse of the Golden Flower, Coming Home). I don't believe MGM has Raise the Red Lantern and To Live anymore so at least those are probably up for grabs, along with Red Sorghum (an ex-New Yorker title) and Ju Dou (which had a very early DVD release from Pioneer but has been unavailable for years, outside of a truly wretched DVD from some sketchy outfit called "Razor").

Didn't Miramax have the rights to Ju Dou before?

Only theatrical, they didn't have their own video arm at the time. The Pioneer disc was licensed from Artisan and I assume they inherited it from Live, who handled the video releases for a number of Miramax's pre-Disney titles.

Am I wrong in that someone on here once said Imprint does terrible encodes? I have the Chinese Red Sorghum Blu-ray sourced from a 4K remaster and it’s honestly one of the greatest looking discs I own. I also recently watched the Film Movement release of Shanghai Triad which also looks quite lovely. I can’t think of muchh reason to upgrade these two, but it is impressive to see all those early Zhang films get released on HD.

The Elegant Dandy Fop wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 7:04 pm Am I wrong in that someone on here once said Imprint does terrible encodes?

I'm not sure I recall anyone saying that they do across-the-board "terrible encodes," as I know members here have purchased some of their blu-ray titles and spoken highly of them, but there were reports of certain titles having poor encodes (I can't remember specifics, but I'm sure they're listed in the Imprint thread)

I've bought and watched a lot of their titles and would say Imprint's a promising label so far--there have been a few lesser transfers but I think it's been speculated that that's generally down to the source rather than the encode. (Plus you could say the same about Indicator in their early days.) The main thing holding them back so far (other than the price) has been the lack of booklets--a mere slipcover being exclusive to the limited editions is not really that great of a selling point. I'd put them at about the level of Signal One--ready to join the majors if they'd more broadly put that little bit of extra effort in (like they seem to have done here)

Well, there's my first Imprint purchase. See ya later, $180.

therewillbeblus wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 7:06 pm

The Elegant Dandy Fop wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 7:04 pm Am I wrong in that someone on here once said Imprint does terrible encodes?

I'm not sure I recall anyone saying that they do across-the-board "terrible encodes," as I know members here have purchased some of their blu-ray titles and spoken highly of them, but there were reports of certain titles having poor encodes (I can't remember specifics, but I'm sure they're listed in the Imprint thread)

Making them the most accurate of the Criterionesque labels.

What A Disgrace wrote: Fri Jun 18, 2021 7:48 pm Well, there's my first Imprint purchase. See ya later, $180.

Same. Which means a roughly equivalent Criterion release will be announced three days after it ships.

Oh my god do you think we'll get it? Its pricey....

I remember Wong Kar Wai was spotted in the Criterion building a year ago (?) and it was before they announced the bluray collection.

Now obviously I don't expect Gong Li to fly here and do the same thing although it would be interesting. (Out of curiosity i know she only gives interviews in Chinese and she learns English for roles phonetically, but does she speak it in real life?)

Its stressing me out because there is only a limited number of copies and I have region A bluray player. Ugh....dunno what to do...