“One panda’s a terracotta warrior. Another’s on the Long March,” said Hammond, who with former Nine Network news producer Walsh dug through archival footage they’ll incorporate into the film.  “You know the famous photo of Nixon sitting with Mao?  Using visual effects, we’ll replace the woman interpreter sitting between them with a panda.”

drew some heated criticism, so Wild Candy worked with China Film Co-Production President Zhang Xun from the start. ”She’s read the script,” Hammond said, adding that she and Walsh “settled into the odd bottle of red (wine) and tried to think of what piece of lunacy would be entertaining with panda in it but not disrespectful.”

For one thing, Hammond chose not to put the famous images of Mao swimming in the Yangtze River in the film. “Chinese are sometimes sensitive about the portrayal of the elders of their cultures,” she said.

Without spoiling the plot, Hammond says the zoologist, who’s now being cast, and the Sneezing Baby Panda manage to make it Down Under on a visit to the Gold Coast where viewers will see the bear exhibit particularly Australian aquatic skills.

Wild Candy is the majority partner in the film, which will be the fourth to be made under the Sino-Australian Film Treaty – the latest being 33 Postcards – and Zhejiang Roc, led by Chairwoman Peng Sun, will contribute about 20% of the film’s production in the form of cash investment, post-production sound and visual effects, Hammond said.