“Sometimes I get frustrated with people’s reluctance to try something they don’t understand, because they might grow because of it.”
We are discussing Asian cinema with film expert Richard Geddes on this episode of the Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast. Richard works for the independent UK DVD label Terracotta Distribution, which was borne out of the Terracotta Far East Film Festival, launched by the company’s founder, Joey Leung, in 2008. Through the film festival and its associated on-demand and DVD service, Terracotta aims to promote and distribute the latest titles from the various territories across the Far East, including countries like China, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and many more. Terracotta release films encompassing a wide variety of genres, and in 2014, Richard helped to launch a dedicated ‘old school’ martial arts imprint, called the Classic Kung Fu Collection. Five titles have now been released on the label, including the Chang Cheh films Shanghai 13 (1984) and The Nine Demons (1984), Godfrey Ho’s The Dragon’s Snake Fist (1981), Chen Ming-hua’s The King of Fists and Dollars (1979), and William Cheung Kei’s Hero of Shaolin (1984).
During our chat, we talk about the difficulties facing independent DVD labels in the modern age, where online streaming services and torrent sites have had a huge effect on the sales of physical media. We share our mutual respect and affection for the Eastern Heroes video label, run by kung fu film enthusiasts Ricky Baker and Toby Russell (who was my guest on the first episode of the KFMG Podcast). The label was instrumental in cultivating a love for Asian cinema in the UK during the height of the home video and DVD boom of the 1990s and 2000s. We also discuss the rise of the Chinese film industry, which is set to overtake the US as the world’s largest movie market by 2017. Terracotta Distribution also run a number of imprints including an indie label called Sharp Teeth Films, and the Asian horror label, Terror Cotta. Be sure to keep up to date with the company’s latest releases and events via their Twitter page, @Terracotta_Dist, and on Facebook.
Four of the titles currently available as part of Terracotta Distribution’s Classic Kung Fu Collection
Dragon Lee stars in the Terracotta Distribution DVD release, The Dragon’s Snake Fist (1981)
A still from the 1979 film The King of Fists and Dollars, available on DVD from Terracotta Distribution
A still from Hero of Shaolin (1984), available on DVD from Terracotta Distribution
