Leading Chinese production and distribution company Beijing Galloping Horse Film Co Ltd is moving into the high-end visual effects arena through a joint venture with effects and animation giant Digital Domain Media Group (DDMG).

The companies claim that the new Digital Domain/Galloping Horse Studio will be comparable in scale to DDMG's nearly completed animation studio in Port St Lucie, Florida, which was funded by the US city with an investment of approximately $50 million for land and building.

DDMG and Galloping Horse will each own 50% of The Digital Domain/Galloping Horse Studio. It will provide visual effects, animation and production services for film, TV and related media. DDMG will contribute its technology and expertise and will be responsible for designing the facility and for training personnel.

Galloping Horse will provide land for the Studio and will be responsible for the construction and build-out costs of the facility. Galloping Horse will also lead related fundraising for the venture in the Greater China capital markets.

"China's film industry is soaring," said Ivy Zhong, the vice chairman of Galloping Horse. "We are also seeing strong needs among the Chinese audience for blockbusters with heavy visual effects elements in them."

"This joint venture enables us to leverage our reputation for excellence and innovation in visual effects and our state-of-the-art proprietary technologies and patent portfolio into the large and rapidly expanding Chinese market," said John Textor, DDMG's CEO.

While China has some quality local firms such as Base FX, and the offshoots of foreign firms such as Pixomondo, Chinese producers typically go abroad for their digital effects. Most business has gone to firms from Australia and more recently facilities closer to home in Thailand and South Korea.

Since 1993, Digital Domain Productions Inc has worked on over 80 major films including "Thor", "Tron: Legacy", the "Transformers" trilogy, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button", "Apollo 13" and "Titanic" with international operations in Canada, India and London.

Galloping Horse invested in "Reign of Assassins", "My Own Swordsman", "Just Another Pandora's Box", and the recent "Love on Credit".

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