IFD Copyright misteries

The copyright dates shown on IFD productions always amazed me. IFD used to add a copyright date in Roman numbers at the finale of opening credits. Sometimes the date info said we were ready to watch a 1985 movie production but when the movie started the screen was full of people wearing fashionable clothes from the 70's as well as haircuts from the same time.

When I met Mike Abbott in Hong Kong he told me most of the movies he did for IFD along Richard Harrison were shot during October 1986 ( Hitman the Cobra & Ninja operation 7: Royal Warriors) & the remaining ones in 1987. In 1989 he did his last job for IFD (Thunder ninja kids Golden Adventure) when he had already opened his own company Abbott Leisure.

All this information provided by Mike Abbott would not be interested at all if the Copyright dates shown on screen were the same but when we play, for example, Ninja Operation 7: Royal Warriors or any chapter from Ninja Knight saga we see all of them are copyrighted in 1988. Two years later for movies that were usually shot in two weeks!!!!

BUT, But, But...what could be Joseph Lai's purpose to copyright a movie shot in 1987/88 in 1995???? That's a real mistery I really can't understand at all...or not????

Last weekend I watched WAR CITY 5: LAW OF HONOR, the last chapter from War City saga whose first chapter War City: Win to Die has a 1988 copyright date on screen like the others from the same saga. So, why this last one was copyrighted in 1995?

War City 5: Law of honor copyright date is from 1995. Almost 10 years later since it was shot.

The answer to this question might be found in a deal between IFD & other companies like Yip Sing Co. & the Austria based film company Lisa Film that "co-produced" another IFD movie in 1998 entitled ROYAL DESTINY.
Of course, Royal Destiny was not shot in 1998, after I saw the trailer ( I don't own the movie...siiight) I saw Jonathan Isgar & other gweiloh actors wearing the same clothes they used in the movies they shot in the middle 80's & you can easily notice they are younger. It seems these two companies gave some money to IFD to produce a movie & IFD just offered some material that had been shot but unseen several years ago. I really can't imagine another reason.

IFD dealed with Lisa Film GMBH co-producing War City 5: Law of Honor & the lost "gem" ( I don't know anyone who owns it) Royal Destiny

Another hint that could prove 1995 is a fake copyright date for War City 5: Law of Honor is the cast who star in the movie. Brent Gilbert & Bryan Baker.

Gilbert after working for IFD & Filmark moved to the Philippines where he shot a Vietnam war movie titled BATTLE RATS copyrighted in 1989, he was credited as Jack Gilbert, then he dissapeared from the film industry.
Bryan Baker, credited as Nick Masters, starred in 1988 Tiger on the Beat as the villain who holds a rifle with a knife against Chow Yun Fat who holds a big machete tied to his weapon.
Baker, also starred another IFD movie along Mike Abbott titled Advent Commando 7: Guns to Heaven in 1987/88 where the cast had many of the supporting actors seen in War City 5: Law of honor.