Movie distributors Buena Vista International and Sony Pictures collaborated with HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad as the bank launched the HSBC Movie Blockbusters promotion yesterday, the latest in its credit card campaign.

At the launch in Golden Screen Cinemas, 1 Utama, the latest trailer of Steven Spielberg's latest production, ?Memoirs of a Geisha?, which was hand-carried to our shores over the weekend, was viewed for the first time.

Head of Marketing at HSBC Mr. Alan Khoo said that this is the bank's first tie-up with Buena Vista International and Sony Pictures, and hopes to propose more movie tie-ups next year. We are looking for blockbuster movies ? movies with a broad following ? to tap into the entertainment lifestyle in the Klang Valley, he explained.

General Manager of Buena Vista International and Sony Pictures, Ms. Anna Ng, presented a Japanese doll and Japanese tea set to Mr. Khoo, marking the movie distributor's partnership with HSBC's credit card campaign.

?Memoirs of a Geisha?, which is scheduled for a January 2006 release, is based on the novel by Arthur Golden about a poor Japanese girl named Nitta Sayuri (Zhang Ziyi) who undergoes rigorous training to become a geisha. Not only does she have to learn the arts of the geisha, she has to deal with a jealous rival and her secret love for the one man who is out of her reach. The movie also stars Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li and Ken Watanabe.

Through the Blockbuster Movie campaign, HSBC Visa Platinum and Premier MasterCard credit cardholders who spend RM5,000 in a week will stand a chance to win a Los Angeles Getaway for Two, which includes return Business Class tickets to Los Angeles, USA and accommodation for 5 days and 4 nights.

On top of this, five Nokia phone certificates worth RM1,000 each and 10 exclusive invitations to HSBC's movie premiere are up for grabs every week during the campaign period.

As a welcome gesture, new HSBC Visa Platinum card applicants who sign up during the promotion period will receive a classic Japanese tea set upon approval.

Source: /www.jaffa.com.my"">Cinema Asia."