HK comedian and producer set up movie production company in M’sia

Best of both worlds: To (left) and Teh shaking hands after the press conference to launch Dream Moon in Kuala Lumpur.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is a wonderful place for filmmaking, says popular Hong Kong comedian Chapman To, who is putting his money where his mouth is by joining forces with Malaysian filmmaker Adrian Teh to set up a movie production company in Malaysia.

“The weather is really accommodating and conducive for making movies. It’s summer all year round here. We can shoot movies any time and so, it is easy to plan schedules.

“There are lots of beautiful women. People here speak many languages. There is an abundance of talent in Malaysia.

“Malaysians also work fast. Just like us Hong Kongers, and the local delicacies are irresistible,” said To, 42.

To and Teh, 30, inked their agreement at a ceremony at KL Hilton here yesterday, followed by a press conference to launch Dream Moon.

The two decided to establish the movie production company after filming King Of Mahjong in August at several locations in Malaysia.

The movie, scheduled to be launched on Chinese New Year in February next year, is headlined by To and helmed by Teh.

To first knew Teh from the latter’s The Wedding Diary II (2013) and expressed gratitude at being able to find a suitable working partner in Malaysia.

Married to TVB actress Kristal Tin since 2005, To said his wife encouraged him to invest in his own projects after seeing how well his movies have been doing at the box office.

“Other Hong Kong actors like Andy Lau and Louis Koo also invest in the movies they star in. Since filmmaking is all I know, there is no better business for me to invest in,” said To, who had invested around RM20mil (HK$50mil).

To revealed that the company aims to produce three movies next year, with a budget of around RM4mil each.

Dream Moon’s first movie project is a horror comedy titled Haunted Room, said to be a remake of Jeff Lau’s The Haunted Cop Shop (1987).

The affable actor has managed to rope in Hong Kong heavyweight Anthony Wong Chau Sang to star in the project, while a Malaysian actress is expected to take the female lead.

“Dream Moon will provide a platform to showcase Malaysian, Hong Kong and other South-East Asian talents,” said Teh, who is the CEO of Asia Tropical Films and chairman of the Chinese Film Association of Malaysia (CFAM).