Record start to the year for box office revenues in China

BEIJING: Box office takings in China has set a blistering pace this year, exceeding 10 billion yuan (RM6.13 billion) in 42 days. This is a new record.

Along with these staggering figures, the Chinese film market has become more optimised, the industry has matured, and the quality of films has improved, according to Beijing authorities which have just released the big data report on the film industry.

Du Feijin, director of the Publicity Department of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China and vice president of the Standing Committee of the 9th Beijing International Film Festival Organising Committee, said in his speech at the opening ceremony of the film festival: “We are not only willing to embrace the world’s movies with open arms, but we also want to explore the organic integration of oriental aesthetic and motion pictures. In so doing, we want to tell the stories of China, contribute Chinese wisdom and Chinese creativity to the world’s film industry. “

He added, “The film festival will continue to inject new impetus and new vitality into the development of Chinese film and world film.”The ninth Beijing International Film Festival opened in Beijing last Saturday and at its opening gala, Beijing authorities released the big data report on the film industry.

The report shows that a total of 410 films were produced in Beijing in 2018, accounting for 50 per cent of the total number of film productions nationwide. Among these productions, 15 films went across the 100million-yuan (RM62.6 million) mark at Chinese box offices.

During the 2019 Spring Festival period, movie screenings generated 218 million yuan (RM136.5 million) at the box office.

Beijing film productions made 4.22 billion yuan at box offices throughout China, accounting for 72.4 per cent of total sales made from new films during the holiday season.

With Beijing as one of the core development bases, Chinese filmmakers continue to make remarkable achievements, Du said. Up to now, the top three highest-grossing films of all time in China’s film industry were Wolf Warrior 2, The Wandering Earth and Operation Red Sea, all produced by film companies in Beijing.

The grand ceremony was witnessed by an assemblage of Chinese and foreign filmmakers, which included renowned actors such as French actress Sophie Marceau, American actor Christopher Walken, Japanese actress Komaki Kurihara, Chinese actors Zhang Hanyu, Hu Ge, Chinese actresses Zhou Dongyu, Carina Lau and Angelababy. The opening ceremony also comprised the onstage unveiling of the jury panel, led by The Lion King director Rob Minkoff, for the Tiantan Awards as well as the introduction of the 15 shortlisted films vying for the awards.

The film festival ends on Apr 20 when awards would be handed out.