Russia is making a play for a bigger piece of Asia’s film and TV pie, setting its sights on expanded co-productions and development deals.

The latest direction is led by joint Russian-Chinese adventure detective film, "Red Silk" (Art Pictures Distribution), which releases theatrically in China in September. 

The co-production was showcased in Moscow in May as part of a campaign to deepen cultural exchanges between China and Russia. The film was also part of the Russian slate presented during the Shanghai International Film & TV Market in June. 

Set in 1927 on the Trans-Siberian Express, Red Silk is about a cache of secret documents that determine the future of the USSR and China. As intelligence officers and thugs battle over the papers, a young Red Army soldier and a former Tsarist agent team up to uncover a common enemy.

Eyes are also on Pan-Atlantic Studios’ historical drama "The Princess of Siam", about a Russian noblewoman and the Crown Prince of Thailand. 

Roskino said discussions were being held with the Shanghai Film Group and that preliminary agreements with Thai partners (as yet unnamed) had already been reached. 

Roskino, the state organisation presenting the Russian film industry at international festivals and film markets, noted an increased interest in Asia in art house titles, along with content targeting primary school children and bright, unusual characters in what the organisation dubbed the “Labubu effect”.