Box office collections top 50 billion yuan mark

The winter chill has failed to cool China's film market, which continues to rake in healthy revenue, indicating a stable recovery after the pandemic.

As of Thursday, this year's box office earnings in China had surpassed 50.1 billion yuan ($6.91 billion). This is the first time since 2020 that earnings have touched the magic 50 billion yuan mark, according to movie information tracer Beacon.

The yearly film ticket sales figures for 2020, 2021, and 2022 were 20.31 billion yuan, 47.04 billion yuan, and 29.95 billion yuan respectively.

According to the latest statistics from the China Film Administration, the country's top sector regulator, domestic theaters have recorded a total of 1.179 billion admissions so far, with domestic films grossing almost 42 billion yuan, which accounts for 83.8 percent of the overall revenue.

The 10 highest-grossing films, all of which saw their respective earnings exceed 1 billion yuan, were produced by Chinese companies. In addition, a total of 58 movies each earned more than 100 million yuan, surpassing the threshold for a blockbuster.

This year's box office champion is iconic director Zhang Yimou's historic suspense tale Full River Red, inspired by a famous poem by Yue Fei, a patriotic general who lived during the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279).

The Wandering Earth II, the sequel to the titular sci-fi epic based on Hugo Award-winning writer Liu Cixin's novella of the same name, secured the second slot on the box office charts, followed by the crime thriller No More Bets, inspired by the many real-life cases involving cyber scams in Southeast Asia.

Most industry insiders attribute the robust recovery in earnings to soaring film ticket sales during the four most lucrative box office seasons – the Spring Festival holiday, May Day, the Mid Autumn Festival and National Day holiday as well as the months-long summer – which saw the box office raking in a total of 31.63 billion yuan, accounting for 63 percent of the revenues collected this year.

Rao Shuguang, president of the China Film Critics Association, said that the figures indicate that the Chinese film market has recovered faster than what was estimated at the beginning of the year, and demonstrates a momentum of continuous and stable growth.

In addition to conventional blockbusters, Rao said a new trend has emerged this summer - the rising popularity of homegrown crime and suspense thrillers. Most of these films are based on topics and themes that viewers can identify with, thus adding to their appeal, he added.

For instance, Lost in the Stars, the plot of which revolves around a man who schemes to murder his wife during an overseas trip, has sparked widespread discussions on social media about how women should be careful before embarking on a romantic relationship. Under the Light, another hit directed by Zhang, recounts a thrilling case involving a deputy mayor's collusion with a businessman, that has reminded theatergoers of China's efforts to fight corruption and gang violence.

Yin Hong, vice-chairman of the China Film Association, said that there has been ample supply of new films covering a a wide range of subjects during the peak box office seasons this year.

Pointing out that none of the top 10 grossing films is a foreign title, Yin said that the local audience now want to see more movies based on Chinese themes, with which they have an emotional and cultural connect.

Despite the progress made in the Chinese film industry, the middle- and small-budget productions, particularly art house films, have continued to face challenges, striving for more screenings and struggling for market share, said Rao from China Film Critics Association.

Last month, some of the leading players in the filmmaking and distribution sectors signed an agreement in Zhejiang province, launching an experimental system to release different types of films in specific cinema chains.

The move will help the country establish a more mature market and ensure that the tastes of different audience groups are satisfied, further boosting the development of the Chinese film industry, said Zhi Feina, an industry analyst and professor at the Chinese National Academy of Arts.