ip man tv series

TVB

2008 saw the emergence of a bolstering film franchise in the making with absolute starpower in the form of Ip Man‘s iconic portrayal of late Wing Chun grandmaster by actor Donnie Yen. As of next year, that count is expected to increase with up to four movies and a box office gross of over $250 million dollars in its wake, and with rumors swarming about action star Jackie Chan possibly getting attached to the pic, the fan fervor is far from over.

With this, it’s been an electric period for martial arts fandom in the past nine years with Yen just the first of several actors thereafter to stake their claim in various other film or television properties. Acclaimed actor Anthony Wong sought to his own iteration in Herman Yau’s Ip Man: The Final Fight, preceded a month earlier by actor and singer Kevin Cheng lending his own gravitas to Shandong TV network’s own depiction of the martial arts legend courtesy of TVB with the help of the grandmaster’s sons, Ip Chun and Ip Ching.

With this, considering Ip Man’s rise in popularity over the years, it’s pretty simple to see Suzhou Funa Films and Television’s small screen production might have an audience overseas, and the good folks at Cinedigm are officially announcing their investment in the property with Thursday acquisition of the Ip Man TV Series. KSM GmbH’s Benjamin Krause and Cinedigm’s Kelsey Straight negotiated and closed the deal for Cinedigm’s purview extending between North America and Canada, the U.K. and Ireland, with broadcasting rights on all TV and digital platforms, including TV-VOD, TV EST, EST, IVOD, SVOD, AVOD & CIDM OTT. 

The Wing Chun grandmaster IP MAN (Kevin Cheng) spends all his life in pursuit of the authentic martial arts realm. Gaining enlightenment throughout his childhood and adolescence, IP MAN undergoes a transformation and becomes a Kung Fu legend, ascending to the highest ranking of martial arts. After fleeing to Hong Kong, IP MAN deliberately keeps a low-profile, but he is inevitably engaged in conflicts. IP MAN is in a life-and-death struggle every day, but the hardship enormously brings out the awe-inspiring righteousness and fearlessness as a martial artist hidden inside him. In order to inflict one last strike in the ring, IP MAN is heading back to Fo Shan to be victorious with love and battle. 

Per the announcement: “We are thrilled to continue our distribution for the IP Man franchise after previously distributing the movies IP Man, IP Man 2, and IP Man: The Final Fight for limited digital accounts,” said Yolanda Macias, EVP of Acquisitions and Digital Sales for Cinedigm, “We have great expectations for the first IP Man TV series, as affirmed by the success of the feature films and the franchise’s loyal fanbase.”

“Since we have successfully released “IP Man 3” in the German Speaking Territories in 2016 and preparing release of the “IP Man” TV Series too, we are happy that Cinedigm has acquired the exploitation rights HV and Digital in our international Territories US and UK. Cinedigm has always proved its professional and successful way of exploiting a franchise,” said Benjamin Krause, CEO and founder of KSM.

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