It is fascinating - and somewhat puzzling - to survey the trajectory of Jack Gao's career.

Gao started in finance and moved into high tech and then media and entertainment, and now the film industry. What is the rationale behind this long arc?

"I have not changed that much," he said. "It is the industry that has changed."

The integration of the medium with content, facilitated by ever-growing new technologies, has blurred the line that used to divide different industries. At the 17th Shanghai International Film Festival, where Gao launched his new film service company Bison Entertainment Media Group, industry insiders like Bona's CEO Yu Dong were joking that they would all be working for high-tech firms down the road. With typical Internet speed, Gao has since left Bison to strike out on his own.

Gao has moved from the technology side to the content side, and film is the proverbial dragonhead that produces premium content and provides benefits throughout the chain of entertainment products, from online stories in the upstream to mobile viewing downstream.

Call it luck. Gao is blessed with it. He was among the first Chinese students to get an advanced education in the United States in the wake of China's opening up and the first to return - as representatives of corporate America.

He has been up close and personal with legendary industry leaders like Bill Gates and Rupert Murdoch. In the process, he has turned himself into a legend as well.

Of course, there is more at work than luck. His business acumen and foresight have been crucial to his success.

And of all the newcomers to the film industry, he is being watched most closely and with greatest expectations.

It is interesting to note that Gao has decided not to plunge into film production - at least not yet - the part of the industry with the biggest halo, but rather businesses that serve the industry, like providing it with stories, scripts, talent and financial services.

It will be interesting to note where his next step will take place.

Everyone is lured by showbiz, but Jack Gao has seen through the razzle-dazzle and has a sharp focus on where the business opportunities are.

(China Daily USA 09/22/2014 page15)