Brand China in leading role on Transformers set

Director Michael Bay attends a ceremony for the shooting of Transformers 4 in Chongqing on Oct 30. [Photo/icpress.cn]

Product placement plays its part in Hollywood action blockbuster

More Chinese brands will feature in the new Transformers movie than in the three previous films in the franchise, a top executive at production company Paramount Pictures said.

Rob Moore, the vice-chairman, told China Daily the latest movie features a variety of Chinese brands placed in the storyline.

"This certainly goes hand in hand with the amount of time that we were in Chinese locations," Moore said.

"Having those products certainly reinforces the fact that this is Chinese culture and that there is a lot of story-telling happening there."

He would not say how many Chinese brands are in the film, but sources have confirmed that the products include drinking water, a car and a duck-meat snack.

Moore is aware that an improper placement could trigger controversy. Some Chinese audiences were offended by the placement of a brand of milk in the third Transformers movie, as that company was involved in a food safety scandal.

But Moore is confident that with cooperation from Chinese partners, including the Movie Channel affiliated to the State Film Bureau, the placements in the latest movie will not cause offense.

"Working with our Chinese partners really helps us to ensure we are giving an accurate picture of China," he said.

"The Chinese locations, actors and environment all look very natural and consistent with Chinese culture. As people start to learn more about China, and now that there is a lot more sharing of information, we will do much better."

In addition to product placement, there are many other Chinese elements in the action blockbuster, which will be released in the United States in June.

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