The film opens with a title card, which is read by an unidentified narrator: “In 1941 China and Japan had been in a state of undeclared war for four years. A Japanese army of occupation was in control of much of the countryside and many towns and cities. In Shanghai thousands of Westerners, protected by the diplomatic security of the International Settlement, continued to live as they had lived since the British came here in the 19th century and built in the image of their own country…built banking houses, hotels, offices, churches and homes that might have been uprooted from Liverpool or Surrey. Now their time was running out. Outside Shanghai the Japanese dug in and waited…….for Pearl Harbor.”
       An onscreen title card midway through the film refers to the location of Suzhou by its Romanized name, “Soochow.”
       According to a 31 Jul 1985 Var article, executive producer Robert Shapiro heard about J. G. Ballard’s semi-autobiographical novel, Empire of the Sun, prior to its publication in 1984, and immediately extended an offer to acquire motion picture rights. Warner Bros. Pictures approved development as part of a first-look deal with Shapiro, who went on to hire director Harold Becker. After Ballard declined the opportunity to adapt his work for the screen, the 13 Feb 1985 Var named Alvin Sargent as a prospective screenwriter. A few months later, however, the 14 Sep 1985 Screen International reported that script duties had been assumed by playwright Tom Stoppard. The material was close to Stoppard, who according to a 6 Dec 1987 article in Newsday, had been living in Singapore at the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Several contemporary sources, including the 24 Jun 1987 Var, indicated that Menno Meyjes also contributed to the script, but he does receive onscreen credit.
       By 1986, various sources reported that Steven Spielberg had taken over as director, with Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall set to produce through Amblin Entertainment. Newsday stated that Spielberg worked extensively with Stoppard to expand the significance of “Jim’s” relationship with “Basie,” while attempting to make the character more sympathetic to the audience. According to the 16 Dec 1987 NYT, roughly 4,000 young boys auditioned to play Jim before Spielberg cast thirteen-year-old actor Christian Bale, who worked with the director’s then-wife, actress Amy Irving, in the NBC television miniseries, Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna (1986). The 18 Feb 1987 Var “International Sound Track” column noted that Bale won the part after the director viewed advance footage of his performance in the Swedish-Soviet-Norwegian co-production, Mio in the Land of Faraway (1987).
       An article in the 12 Jan 1987 Philadelphia Daily News stated that actor Charles Dance was forced to turn down a supporting role due to a scheduling conflict with the film White Mischief (1988).
       A 13 Mar 1987 Var production chart indicated that principal photography began 1 Mar 1987. According to production notes in AMPAS library files, Kennedy and Marshall anticipated complications shooting in Shanghai, China, due to the notoriously lengthy process of obtaining film permits, and scouted alternate locations. However, with the assistance of the China Film Co-Production Corporation and Shanghai Film Studios, negotiations were completed in just one year, and the production was granted exclusive access to main thoroughfares that had not been closed for filmmakers since 1959. Although China provided ample support services, the 28 Jan 1987 Var indicated that the film was not a U.S.-Chinese co-production, as funding was exclusively American.
       A 6 Apr 1987 news story in The Ottowa Citizen reported that Amblin and Warner Bros. had been fined $13,500 for polluting the densely populated Fengyang Road and Jiu Jang Road areas with toxic fumes emitted by a pile of burning tires used to create smoke effects. The five-day exposure supposedly increased sulphur dioxide exposure almost thirty times the permitted levels and caused damage to nearby trees and houses.
       After three weeks in Shanghai, production relocated to England, with headquarters based at Elstree Studios outside London. Interiors of the “Graham” residence in the International Settlement were shot at existing London homes, since the actual houses had been occupied by several Chinese families. End credit acknowledgments suggest that filming also took place in the towns of Knutsford and Sunningdale. According to the 23 Oct 1987 issue of The Vancouver Sun, J. G. Ballard made an uncredited appearance as a costume party guest at the beginning of the film.
       The final weeks of principal photography took place in Spain, where the “Soochow Creek Internment Camp,” Japanese airfield, and “Nantao” sports arena sets were constructed on the banks of the Gualalquivir River near Trebujena. Not long after their arrival, the 12 May 1987 Orlando Sentinel claimed that Spielberg had offended members of the local press by denying them access to sets, while a 24 Jun 1987 Var article relayed Kathleen Kennedy’s contention that the cost to shoot in Spain was “far higher” than originally quoted. Associate producer Chris Kenny estimated the overrun at about $1 million. Spanish production managers countered that filmmakers incurred excess costs by retaining a largely British crew, importing British construction materials and catering services, and sending film to London laboratories for processing. At the time of production, the British crew was considered illegal, since free circulation of labor between the U.K. and Spain under the European Economic Community did not take effect until 1992. Additionally, a 22 Apr 1987 article in Toronto, Canada’s The Globe and Mail stated that Spanish union representatives filed a lawsuit against Amblin Entertainment for “discriminatory labor practices,” claiming that the company refused to hire many of the region’s unemployed population to play camp prisoners, and instead only favored those who were considered “lame” or “invalid.” However, the Orlando Sentinel stated that the complaint was later dropped after Warner Bros. increased the day rate for those involved.
       A 19 Jun 1987 DV item announced that principal photography had been completed five days ahead of schedule. Various contemporary sources estimated the budget at around $30 million.
       A 2 May 1987 Screen International item suggested that animals were provided by Mike Culling Animal Actors, but the company is not listed in onscreen credits.
       The 1 Dec 1987 LAHExam reported that the Los Angeles, CA, premiere was scheduled to take place 8 Dec 1987 at the Village Theater in Westwood, with proceeds benefitting the St. John Heart Institute in Santa Monica, CA. According to the 19 Dec 1987 Screen International, the film was selected as the “Royal Film” to be screened for Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh on 21 Mar 1988 at the Odeon Leicester Square in London.
       Despite Spielberg’s box-office appeal, the 16 Dec 1987 Var stated that Empire of the Sun earned just $1,314,509 from 225 theaters during its opening weekend. According to the 30 Dec 1987 Var, release was expanded to 673 theaters in time for the Christmas holiday, taking in a cumulative gross of $6,610,192. That same day, CBS Television Network aired The China Odyssey, a one-hour special about the making of the film.
       Although several critics felt the picture fell short of its potential, reviews were generally positive. The 23 Dec 1987 Var announced that Christian Bale became the first recipient of the National Board of Review’s award for Outstanding Juvenile Performance, while the film received Academy Award nominations for Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume Design, Film Editing, Music (Original Score), and Sound.
       End credits state: “LIFE Magazine; LIFE title and format used with kind permission of TIME Inc.”; and, “The producers wish to thank: Gerry Lewis; U.S. Navy Squadron VP-22 and the people of Shanghai, China – Trebujena, Spain; Sunningdale & Knutsford, England.”