JIA ZHANGKE’S Xstream Pictures has struck a co-production deal with Cambodia-based Anti-Archive for the development of the feature “Building,” marking the Chinese auteur’s first foray into one of Southeast Asia’s emerging film markets.

“Xstream Pictures are always promoting young directors and helping with their growth,” the company said in an announcement on the eve of the Shanghai International Film Festival. “In 2010, Jia Zhangke funded the Wings Project [for young filmmakers]. So far, we have eight films. All eight films produced have received international recognition. We’re happy to be involved in the project ‘Building’ by the Cambodian director Kavich Neang. We see the new wave from Southeast Asia in his project.”

Xstream has previously been behind a string of Jia’s acclaimed dramas, including last year’s Cannes Palme d’Or hope “Ash Is Purest White,” the fifth time a film from the Chinese director had been nominated for the award.

Jia is currently finishing production of the feature documentary “So Close My Land” in his home province of Shanxi and is noted for focusing his attention on social issues in China.

“Building” looks set to tackle similar themes. Set against the backdrop of Phnom Penh’s iconic White Building — a sprawling apartment complex in the capital completed in 1963 and demolished in 2017 — the film will touch on matters close to the heart of its director Neang. The Cambodian filmmaker previously put together the documentary “Last Night I Saw You Smiling,” which looked at his own family’s eviction from the White Building and which won the NETPAC Award at the Rotterdam film festival earlier this year.

The new film follows the story of an 18-year-old Cambodian faced with the loss of his life-long home, according to Anti-Archive. “As pressures mount from family, friends, and neighbors, he comes to realize the history of trauma and power which divides past from possibility. It’s based very much on Kavich’s own life growing up in the White Building,” the company said.

Delegate producers are Davy Chou and Marine Arrighi de Casanova, while Jia and Xstream Pictures will be joined by Cambodia’s Moeng Rotha as co-producers. Cambodian cinema experienced what is known as its “Golden Age” in the 1960s before the local film industry was all but wiped out under the repressive regime of the Khmer Rouge from 1970 to 1979. The industry has re-emerged over the past two decades with the help of the likes of Oscar-nominated director Rithy Panh (“The Missing Picture”) and his Bophana Center, which promotes both film heritage and production. These days the country produces up to 50 films a year.

“Building” is expected to start shooting Oct. 21 and last for five weeks. (SD-Agencies)