Summer Life Inventory | High box office record in the summer season, domestic films frequently break through boundaries

Shanghai, August 29th (Xinhua) - This summer, the film market was exceptionally hot, and the total box office of the summer season broke the record for the highest in Chinese film history. Behind such impressive box office results, the impressive performance of domestic films is indispensable. While the Chinese film market is recovering, it has also sparked a wave of local film culture.

High box office, domestic films become "big winners"

According to Lighthouse Professional, as of the evening of August 26th, the total box office of China's summer season in 2023 has exceeded 20 billion yuan, setting a new record for the highest box office in the history of Chinese cinema. "This summer's top films have performed well at the box office, with four films grossing over 2 billion yuan, which is the highest in history." Data analyst Chen Jin from Lighthouse Professional Edition said, "The fifth highest grossing film," Three Thousand Miles in Chang'an, "also grossed over 1.7 billion yuan, making it a 'frequent hit'."

After "The Disappearing She" ignited the summer heat, subsequent domestic films continued their explosive momentum. Statistics show that the top six films in this year's summer season are all domestic films, accounting for about two-thirds of the total box office of the summer season. "The reason for achieving such good box office performance is firstly due to the excellent quality of the film. Judging from the film and television ratings on various platforms, the reputation of this year's film has significantly improved compared to previous summer season films," said Chen Jin.

"For example, the film" Fengshen Part 1: Chaoge Fengyun ", which took ten years to create, although initially not well received, broke the previous sluggish situation of the ancient costume film market with excellent content, and now has box office revenue exceeding 2.4 billion yuan." said Shi Chuan, Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Film Association.

With the improvement of China's film industrialization level, the overall quality of domestic films has also risen. Taking "Fengshen Part 1: Chaoge Fengyun" as an example, the production team spent nearly five years polishing the script, starting preparatory work two years in advance, creating a six-month training camp, and building a classical visual system that is close to modern aesthetics. It took 18 months to complete the work of three consecutive films.

In Ishikawa's view, the quality of movies and the popularity of the market are mutually reinforcing. This summer, there have been a series of good films, which have stimulated the audience's consumption potential. "When the market is hot, good films are willing to enter, and the better the performance of the films, the hotter the market will be, entering a virtuous cycle."

On August 28th, in Shanghai, audiences gradually entered cinemas to watch movies. Shen Jizhong

Diverse themes evoke resonance with local culture

Throughout the summer film market this year, domestic films have performed outstandingly, not only due to their high quality, but also due to their diverse types of films that meet the needs of various audiences, further arousing people's enthusiasm to enter cinemas.

Mr. Zhang, a movie fan, told reporters that he was still unsatisfied after watching three movies in the cinema on Saturday. "Each one has a different kind of excitement, and I plan to make up for the other popular movies before the end of the summer."

The domestically produced animation "Three Thousand Miles in Chang'an" showcases the magnificent Tang Dynasty style and the image of poets; The first part of "Fengshen: Chaoge Fengyun", which has been sharpened for ten years, reinterprets the traditional Chinese mythological epic; The suspenseful crime film "The Disappearing She" focuses on the topic of women's safety; In the view of Professor Chen Xuguang from the School of Arts at Peking University, although these films have different genres and themes, they meet the needs of viewers who find it difficult to match.

"Compared to the plot routines of Hollywood movies in recent years, domestic films have more local advantages in content," said He Wei, a practitioner in the film and television industry. "It can be seen that although domestic films this summer have different themes, they are deeply integrated with local culture and more easily recognized by Chinese audiences."

On August 28th, viewers purchased movie tickets at a cinema in Xuhui District, Shanghai. Shen Jizhong

Announce that a large number of viewers have returned to the cinema after breaking through the circle

This summer, professionals in the film and television industry were pleasantly surprised to find that those who had not watched movies for many years have returned to the cinema. According to statistics, there have been nearly 500 million viewers this summer, with a total of over 33 million views. Chen Jin introduced that during the summer break, many viewers entered the cinema for the first time this year, and the proportion of experienced movie fans who watched more than 5 times a year also significantly increased.

A cinema manager told reporters that the movie "All for One" was originally at a disadvantage in its promotion, "but in just a few days, its popularity has rapidly increased, with a significant increase in the proportion of viewers aged 35 and above in recent weeks."

"These films have high topic relevance and strong marketability, and have achieved breakthrough effects in short video channels. In addition, the promotion strategy and efficient channels are the common reasons for the box office success of these films," said Chen Xuguang.

Under the influence of short videos and self media, the popularity of summer movies continues to rise. "We have found that with the diversification of the age structure of the audience and the increase in the frequency of movie consumption, China's film market is bound to further expand." Ishikawa said, "This also forces our film market. If we want to win public recognition, we still need to rely on good products to speak."