Motion Picture Insurance Agent Ltd.
- HKGCC Membership No. :
- HKM0710
Working Behind the Big Screen
Hong Kong enjoyed a leadership role in the Asian film and TV industry from the 80s to the early 90s, but its position in the industry has gradually fallen in the face of the fierce competition from Hollywood and China in recent years.
Hoping to boost the local industry amid difficult times, Joseph Yeung, Director of Motion Picture Insurance Agent Ltd (MPIA), introduced media production insurance and completion guarantee products to Hong Kong in 2013, as he believed Hong Kong could serve as a key hub in the financing and management of film productions in Asia.
A specialised market
“When I started my company, the concept of production insurance in Hong Kong was rudimentary, so educating the market was essential,” said Yeung, “But education goes both ways. It is not enough to transplant a new concept wholesale into a market, it must be adapted to suit the culture and practice of each region.”
To understand the special needs of clients and offer the most useful insurance products, Yeung created a response team made up of industry veterans from different regions of Asia. The response team both manages and collects feedback from productions on a variety of issues and risks while Yeung and his management team look to offer better solutions.
MPIA employs former producers and directors who have worked in the industry for over 20 years. Hinging on past experience, these industry experts are able to evaluate risks associated with the production, mark down the potential dangers and suggest ways to avoid or minimise risks such as weather risks, third-party property damage, loss of equipment and injuries at the pre-production stage.
“When we underwrite a production, it’s the beginning of our risk management service. We have regular meetings with the production to help evaluate risks, raise warnings, and suggest alternative plans to minimise our client’s risk exposure,” said Yeung. “When problems occur, we can quickly dispatch our team to address the issue. Sometimes that means salvaging the production from complete collapse.”
“We once underwrote a Mainland documentary production on the history of a type of gem stone. After becoming the first Chinese production to film inside the Vatican Archive, the crew had their equipment and footage stolen, losing nearly everything they had filmed from UK, France and Italy. Since the Chinese crews were on single-entry visas, the response team quickly put together a team of qualified international personnel and recaptured as much footage as possible to meet the broadcast deadline for the documentary. The Vatican Archive footage was lost as a new permit could not be issued in time, but we worked with the production so that the story of the gem stone could be told despite missing the footage from inside the archive,” said Yeung. “It’s not just about giving our client some lost footage back, but helping them complete their project. We’ve even insured film crews in military conflict zones and provided armoured escorts.”
Risk management key
As production costs have skyrocketed over the past decades, production insurance has become increasingly important as it transfers risk away from the investors, and encourages industry best practices. Previously, production insurance was an afterthought, as productions mainly had cast insurance relating to illness and injuries.
“Hong Kong remains the leader in Asia with its comprehensive legal system. By having a complete set of insurance from crews to equipment to third-party liabilities, we are showing the rest of Asia how to produce quality projects with industry best practices,” said Yeung. “This enables not just the integration with Hollywood-style productions, but Hollywood-style financing.”
Yeung continued, “It’s not easy, as industry veterans often resist change, despite the fundamental shift of importance from Hong Kong to China and even Southeast Asia in this business. Such change is inevitable, but to take a proactive approach and a leadership role, we can ensure our relevancy no matter where the business shifts to.”
Yeung dismissed the notion that insurance would take up a significant part of the budget. “The cost of insurance can be managed by applying the risk management mindset and pre-production planning. Just like how the filmmakers want every dollar to be seen on the silver screen, we want to reduce overall risks first before buying the right type and amount of insurance. This offers peace of mind to the creatives, the investors, and the producers so that everyone can focus on the work at hand.”
Hong Kong as the centre of film financing
MPIA has offices in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, and Bangkok, as well as support offices around the world. The business focuses mainly on the Great China region, with a client list of significant global and regional players in the industry.
Speaking of the future, Hong Kong-born Yeung believes that Mainland China will further relax restrictions on domestic and foreign investments in the TV and film industry, which offers great potential for business in Hong Kong.
“Hong Kong’s significance in the film and TV industry goes beyond its filmmakers and locations. With our comprehensive financial system and sound rule of law, we can be the crucial interface for Mainland capital and western creatives, no matter how the market changes. By putting ourselves in the most essential part of the film industry, Hong Kong definitely has a significant role to play for the foreseeable future,” said Yeung.
Yeung is now expanding his business to the United States, where studios and companies are interested in China for production and for its market. “We are already in touch with major American companies with a strong interest in Asia. We are ready to offer the peace of mind they seek as they make their inroads into the Chinese film industry,” said Yeung.
Company: Motion Picture Insurance Agent Ltd.
HKGCC Membership No.: HKM0710
Established: 2013
Website: http://www.mpia.com.hk/
