The cinema of mainland China is one of three distinct historical threads of Chinese-language cinema together with the cinema of Hong Kong and the cinema of Taiwan. Cinema was introduced in China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, Dingjun Mountain, was made in 1905.
However, studios may apply to regulators to have the limit extended. ==Beginnings== Motion pictures were introduced to China in 1896.
The first recorded screening of a motion picture in China took place in Shanghai on August 11, 1896, as an "act" on a variety bill.
The cinema of mainland China is one of three distinct historical threads of Chinese-language cinema together with the cinema of Hong Kong and the cinema of Taiwan. Cinema was introduced in China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, Dingjun Mountain, was made in 1905.
The first Chinese film, a recording of the Peking opera, Dingjun Mountain, was made in November 1905 in Beijing.
One important film of this era is This Life of Mine (1950), directed by Shi Hu, which follows an old beggar reflecting on his past life as a policeman working for the various regimes since 1911.
In 1913, the first independent Chinese screenplay, The Difficult Couple, was filmed in Shanghai by Zheng Zhengqiu and Zhang Shichuan.
Zhang Shichuan then set up the first Chinese-owned film production company in 1916.
During the 1920s film technicians from the United States trained Chinese technicians in Shanghai, and American influence continued to be felt there for the next two decades.
All had made their impact in the international documentary scene and the use of digital format allows for works of vaster lengths. == Chinese Animated Movies == === Early ~ 1950s === Inspired by the success of Disney animation, the self-taught pioneers Wan brothers, Wan Laiming and Wan Guchan, made the first Chinese animated short in the 1920s, thus inaugurating the history of Chinese animation.
The first full-length feature film was Yan Ruisheng (閻瑞生) released in 1921.
Mingxing, founded by Zheng Zhengqiu and Zhang Shichuan in 1922, initially focused on comic shorts, including the oldest surviving complete Chinese film, Laborer's Love (1922).
Chinese Film Classics, 1922-1949.
The 1930s, considered the first "Golden Period" of Chinese cinema, saw the advent of the Leftist cinematic movement.
Musical films, such as Song at Midnight (1937) and Street Angels (1937), starring Zhou Xuan, became one of the most popular film genres in China. ===Leftist Movement=== However, the first truly important Chinese films were produced beginning in the 1930s, with the advent of the "progressive" or "left-wing" movement, like Cheng Bugao's Spring Silkworms (1933), Wu Yonggang's The Goddess (1934), and Sun Yu's The Big Road (1935).
The Leftist cinematic movement often revolved around the Western-influenced Shanghai, where filmmakers portrayed the struggling lower class of an overpopulated city. Three production companies dominated the market in the early to mid- 1930s: the newly formed Lianhua ("United China"), the older and larger Mingxing and Tianyi.
Throughout the 1930s, the Nationalists and the Communists struggled for power and control over the major studios; their influence can be seen in the films the studios produced during this period. ===Japanese Occupation and World War II=== The Japanese invasion of China in 1937, in particular the Battle of Shanghai, ended this golden run in Chinese cinema.
The first sound film, Sing-Song Girl Red Peony, using the sound-on-disc technology, was made in 1931.
In 1931, the first Chinese sound film Sing-Song Girl Red Peony was made, the product of a cooperation between the Mingxing Film Company's image production and Pathé Frères's sound technology.
Kuoshu, Celluloid China: Cinematic Encounters with Culture and Society, Southern Illinois University Press 2002 - introduction, discusses 15 films at length. Jay Leyda, Dianying, MIT Press, 1972. Laikwan Pang, Building a New China in Cinema: The Chinese Left-Wing Cinema Movement, 1932-1937, Rowman & Littlefield Pub Inc 2002. Rea, Christopher.
Throughout the 1930s, the Nationalists and the Communists struggled for power and control over the major studios; their influence can be seen in the films the studios produced during this period. ===Japanese Occupation and World War II=== The Japanese invasion of China in 1937, in particular the Battle of Shanghai, ended this golden run in Chinese cinema.
(Chen Yuanyuan 175) Many live-action films of the Republican era also included animated sequences. In 1937, the Wan brothers decided to produce 《铁扇公主》 Princess Iron Fan, which was the first Chinese animated feature film and the fourth, after the American feature films Snow White, Gulliver’s Travels, and The Adventure of Pinocchio.
After being completely engulfed by the occupation in 1941, and until the end of the war in 1945, the film industry in the city was under Japanese control. After the end of the war, a second golden age took place, with production in Shanghai resuming.
This period ended when Japan declared war on the Western allies on December 7, 1941; the solitary island was finally engulfed by the sea of the Japanese occupation.
Completed in 1941, the film was released under China United Pictures and aroused a great response in Asia.
After being completely engulfed by the occupation in 1941, and until the end of the war in 1945, the film industry in the city was under Japanese control. After the end of the war, a second golden age took place, with production in Shanghai resuming.
At the end of World War II, one of the most controversial Japanese-authorized companies, Manchukuo Film Association, would be separated and integrated into Chinese cinema. ==Second Golden Age== The film industry continued to develop after 1945.
After the communist revolution in 1949, domestic films that were already released and a selection of foreign films were banned in 1951, marking a tirade of film censorship in China.
Ironically, it was precisely its artistic quality and apparent lack of "political grounding" that led to its labeling by the Communists as rightist or reactionary, and the film was quickly forgotten by those on the mainland following the Communist victory in China in 1949.
A Chinese Peking opera film, A Wedding in the Dream (1948), by the same director(Fei Mu), was the first Chinese color film. ==Early Communist Era== With the communist revolution in China in 1949, the government saw motion pictures as an important mass production art form and tool for propaganda.
One of the production bases in the middle of all the transition was the Changchun Film Studio. The private studios in Shanghai, including Kunming, Wenhua, Guotai and Datong, were encouraged to make new films from 1949 to 1951.
The number of movie-viewers hence increased sharply, partly bolstered by the fact that film tickets were given out to work units and attendance was compulsory, with admissions rising from 47 million in 1949 to 4.15 billion in 1959.
The Beijing Film Academy established in 1950 and in 1956, the Beijing Film Academy was officially opened.
Chinese cinema began to directly address the issue of such ethnic minorities during the late 1950s and early 1960s, in films like Five Golden Flowers (1959), Third Sister Liu (1960), Serfs (1963), Ashima (1964). ==Films of the Cultural Revolution== During the Cultural Revolution, the film industry was severely restricted.
All had made their impact in the international documentary scene and the use of digital format allows for works of vaster lengths. == Chinese Animated Movies == === Early ~ 1950s === Inspired by the success of Disney animation, the self-taught pioneers Wan brothers, Wan Laiming and Wan Guchan, made the first Chinese animated short in the 1920s, thus inaugurating the history of Chinese animation.
Japanese animator Shigeru Tezuka once said that he gave up medicine after watching the cartoon and decided to pursue animation. === 1950s ~ 1980s === During this golden era, Chinese animation had developed a variety of styles, including ink animation, shadow play animation, puppet animation, and so on.
After the communist revolution in 1949, domestic films that were already released and a selection of foreign films were banned in 1951, marking a tirade of film censorship in China.
Starting from 1951, pre-1949 Chinese films, Hollywood and Hong Kong productions were banned as the Communist Party of China sought to tighten control over mass media, producing instead movies centering on peasants, soldiers and workers, such as Bridge (1949) and The White Haired Girl (1950).
One of the production bases in the middle of all the transition was the Changchun Film Studio. The private studios in Shanghai, including Kunming, Wenhua, Guotai and Datong, were encouraged to make new films from 1949 to 1951.
The feature was accused in an anonymous article in People's Daily in May 1951 of spreading feudal ideas.
For example, in Guerrilla on the Railroad (铁道游击队), dated 1956, the Chinese Communist Party was depicted as the primary resistance force against the Japanese in the war against invasion.
The Beijing Film Academy established in 1950 and in 1956, the Beijing Film Academy was officially opened.
The most famous of these, the classic Havoc in Heaven (two parts, 1961, 4), was made by Wan Laiming of the Wan Brothers and won Outstanding Film award at the London International Film Festival. The thawing of censorship in 1956–57 (known as the Hundred Flowers Campaign) and the early 1960s led to more indigenous Chinese films being made which were less reliant on their Soviet counterparts.
While Beijing and Shanghai remained the main centers of production, between 1957–60 the government built regional studios in Guangzhou, Xi'an and Chengdu to encourage representations of ethnic minorities in films.
The number of movie-viewers hence increased sharply, partly bolstered by the fact that film tickets were given out to work units and attendance was compulsory, with admissions rising from 47 million in 1949 to 4.15 billion in 1959.
The first widescreen Chinese film was produced in 1960.
The most famous of these, the classic Havoc in Heaven (two parts, 1961, 4), was made by Wan Laiming of the Wan Brothers and won Outstanding Film award at the London International Film Festival. The thawing of censorship in 1956–57 (known as the Hundred Flowers Campaign) and the early 1960s led to more indigenous Chinese films being made which were less reliant on their Soviet counterparts.
Chinese cinema began to directly address the issue of such ethnic minorities during the late 1950s and early 1960s, in films like Five Golden Flowers (1959), Third Sister Liu (1960), Serfs (1963), Ashima (1964). ==Films of the Cultural Revolution== During the Cultural Revolution, the film industry was severely restricted.
The most famous of these, the classic Havoc in Heaven (two parts, 1961, 4), was made by Wan Laiming of the Wan Brothers and won Outstanding Film award at the London International Film Festival. The thawing of censorship in 1956–57 (known as the Hundred Flowers Campaign) and the early 1960s led to more indigenous Chinese films being made which were less reliant on their Soviet counterparts.
By 1965 there were around 20,393 such units.
Given their label after the rise of the Fifth Generation, these were directors whose careers were stalled by the Cultural Revolution and who were professionally trained prior to 1966.
During the Cultural Revolution, the film industry was severely restricted, coming almost to a standstill from 1967 to 1972.
Feature film production came almost to a standstill in the early years from 1967 to 1972.
The most notable of these was a ballet version of the revolutionary opera The Red Detachment of Women, directed by Pan Wenzhan and Fu Jie in 1970.
With Nezha (2019), Chinese animation has now come to known to a veritable source of entertainment for all ages. ==New Models and the New Chinese Cinema== ===Commercial Successes=== With China's liberalization in the late 1970s and its opening up to foreign markets, commercial considerations have made its impact in post-1980s filmmaking.
During the Cultural Revolution, the film industry was severely restricted, coming almost to a standstill from 1967 to 1972.
Feature film production came almost to a standstill in the early years from 1967 to 1972.
Movie production revived after 1972 under the strict jurisdiction of the Gang of Four until 1976, when they were overthrown.
Kuoshu, Celluloid China: Cinematic Encounters with Culture and Society, Southern Illinois University Press 2002 - introduction, discusses 15 films at length. Jay Leyda, Dianying, MIT Press, 1972. Laikwan Pang, Building a New China in Cinema: The Chinese Left-Wing Cinema Movement, 1932-1937, Rowman & Littlefield Pub Inc 2002. Rea, Christopher.
The few films that were produced during this period, such as 1975's Breaking with Old Ideas, were highly regulated in terms of plot and characterization. In the years immediately following the Cultural Revolution, the film industry again flourished as a medium of popular entertainment.
Movie production revived after 1972 under the strict jurisdiction of the Gang of Four until 1976, when they were overthrown.
Production rose steadily, from 19 features in 1977 to 125 in 1986.
The industry flourished following the end of the Cultural Revolution, including the "scar dramas" of the 1980s, such as Evening Rain (1980), Legend of Tianyun Mountain (1980) and Hibiscus Town (1986), depicting the emotional traumas left by the period.
Starting in the mid to late 1980s, with films such as One and Eight (1983) and Yellow Earth (1984), the rise of the Fifth Generation brought increased popularity to Chinese cinema abroad, especially among Western arthouse audiences.
The industry tried to revive crowds by making more innovative and "exploratory" films like their counterparts in the West. In the 1980s the film industry fell on hard times, faced with the dual problems of competition from other forms of entertainment and concern on the part of the authorities that many of the popular thriller and martial arts films were socially unacceptable.
After the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests, few if any scar dramas were released domestically in mainland China. ==Rise of the Fifth Generation== Beginning in the mid-late 1980s, the rise of the so-called Fifth Generation of Chinese filmmakers brought increased popularity of Chinese cinema abroad.
Japanese animator Shigeru Tezuka once said that he gave up medicine after watching the cartoon and decided to pursue animation. === 1950s ~ 1980s === During this golden era, Chinese animation had developed a variety of styles, including ink animation, shadow play animation, puppet animation, and so on.
Some of the most representative works are 《大闹天宫》 Uproar in Heaven, 《哪吒闹海》 Nezha's Rebellion in the Sea and《天书奇谈》 Heavenly Book, which have also won lofty praise and numerous awards in the world. === 1980s ~ 1990s === After Deng Xiaoping’s Reform Period and the “opening up” of China, the movies《葫芦兄弟》 Calabash Brothers, 《黑猫警长》Black Cat Sheriff, 《阿凡提》Avanti Story and other impressive animated movies were released.
Another successful commercial film was Murder in 405 (405谋杀案, 1980), a murder thriller. Feng Xiaogang's The Dream Factory (1997) was heralded as a turning point in Chinese movie industry, a [pian] (Chinese New Year-screened film) which demonstrated the viability of the commercial model in China's socialist market society.
By the early 2011, Let the Bullets Fly had become the highest grossing domestic film in China's history. ===Chinese International Cinema and Successes Abroad=== Since the late 1980s and progressively in the 2000s, Chinese films have enjoyed considerable box office success abroad.
Most of the filmmakers who made up the Fifth Generation had graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 1982 and included Zhang Yimou, Tian Zhuangzhuang, Chen Kaige, Zhang Junzhao, Li Shaohong, Wu Ziniu and others.
Wu Tianming, in particular, made outstanding contributions by helping to finance major Fifth Generation directors under the auspices of the Xi'an Film Studio (which he took over in 1983), while continuing to make films like Old Well (1986) and The King of Masks (1996). The Fifth Generation movement ended in part after the 1989 Tiananmen Incident, although its major directors continued to produce notable works.
All these award-winning films starred actress Gong Li, who became the Fifth Generation's most recognizable star, especially to international audiences. Diverse in style and subject, the Fifth Generation directors' films ranged from black comedy (Huang Jianxin's The Black Cannon Incident, 1985) to the esoteric (Chen Kaige's Life on a String, 1991), but they share a common rejection of the socialist-realist tradition worked by earlier Chinese filmmakers in the Communist era.
Production rose steadily, from 19 features in 1977 to 125 in 1986.
In January 1986 the film industry was transferred from the Ministry of Culture to the newly formed Ministry of Radio, Cinema, and Television to bring it under "stricter control and management" and to "strengthen supervision over production." The end of the Cultural Revolution brought the release of "scar dramas", which depicted the emotional traumas left by this period.
In 1987, the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television issued a statement encouraging the making of movies which emphasizes the main melody to "invigorate national spirit and national pride".
It was during this period that Chinese cinema began reaping the rewards of international attention, including the 1988 Golden Bear for Red Sorghum, the 1992 Golden Lion for The Story of Qiu Ju, the 1993 Palme d'Or for Farewell My Concubine, and three Best Foreign Language Film nominations from the Academy Awards.
Bumming, made between 1988 and 1990, contains interviews with five young artists eking out a living in Beijing, subject to state authorized tasks.
The movement partially ended after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
After the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests, few if any scar dramas were released domestically in mainland China. ==Rise of the Fifth Generation== Beginning in the mid-late 1980s, the rise of the so-called Fifth Generation of Chinese filmmakers brought increased popularity of Chinese cinema abroad.
Wu Tianming, in particular, made outstanding contributions by helping to finance major Fifth Generation directors under the auspices of the Xi'an Film Studio (which he took over in 1983), while continuing to make films like Old Well (1986) and The King of Masks (1996). The Fifth Generation movement ended in part after the 1989 Tiananmen Incident, although its major directors continued to produce notable works.
Shot using a camcorder, the documentary ends with four of the artists moving abroad after the 1989 Tiananmen Protests.
The best-known of these is probably Xie Jin's Hibiscus Town (1986), although they could be seen as late as the 1990s with Tian Zhuangzhuang's The Blue Kite (1993).
Official enthusiasm for scar dramas waned by the 1990s when younger filmmakers began to confront negative aspects of the Mao era.
One young director who does not share most of the concerns of the Sixth Generation is Lu Chuan ( Mountain Patrol, 2004; City of Life and Death, 2010). === Notable ‘sixth generation’ directors: Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng === In the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, two of China's Sixth generation filmmakers, Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng – whose grim works transformed Chinese cinema in the 1990s – showed on the French Riviera.
Bumming, made between 1988 and 1990, contains interviews with five young artists eking out a living in Beijing, subject to state authorized tasks.
Some of the most representative works are 《大闹天宫》 Uproar in Heaven, 《哪吒闹海》 Nezha's Rebellion in the Sea and《天书奇谈》 Heavenly Book, which have also won lofty praise and numerous awards in the world. === 1980s ~ 1990s === After Deng Xiaoping’s Reform Period and the “opening up” of China, the movies《葫芦兄弟》 Calabash Brothers, 《黑猫警长》Black Cat Sheriff, 《阿凡提》Avanti Story and other impressive animated movies were released.
However, at this time, China still favored the Japanese’s more unique, American and European-influenced animated works over the less-advanced domestic ones. === 1990s ~ 2000s === In the 1990s, digital production methods replaced manual hand-drawing methods; however, even with the use of advanced technology, none of the animated works were considered to be a breakthrough film.
All these award-winning films starred actress Gong Li, who became the Fifth Generation's most recognizable star, especially to international audiences. Diverse in style and subject, the Fifth Generation directors' films ranged from black comedy (Huang Jianxin's The Black Cannon Incident, 1985) to the esoteric (Chen Kaige's Life on a String, 1991), but they share a common rejection of the socialist-realist tradition worked by earlier Chinese filmmakers in the Communist era.
Some of the more famous main melody dramas include the ten-hour epic Decisive Engagement (大决战, 1991), directed by Cai Jiawei, Yang Guangyuan and Wei Lian; The Opium War (1997), directed by Xie Jin; and The Founding of a Republic (2009), directed by Han Sanping and Fifth Generation director Huang Jianxin.
It was during this period that Chinese cinema began reaping the rewards of international attention, including the 1988 Golden Bear for Red Sorghum, the 1992 Golden Lion for The Story of Qiu Ju, the 1993 Palme d'Or for Farewell My Concubine, and three Best Foreign Language Film nominations from the Academy Awards.
It was during this period that Chinese cinema began reaping the rewards of international attention, including the 1988 Golden Bear for Red Sorghum, the 1992 Golden Lion for The Story of Qiu Ju, the 1993 Palme d'Or for Farewell My Concubine, and three Best Foreign Language Film nominations from the Academy Awards.
Palgrave MacMillan 2013, 1-22. Rey Chow, Primitive Passions: Visuality, Sexuality, Ethnography, and Contemporary Chinese Cinema, Columbia University Press 1995. Cheng, Jim, Annotated Bibliography For Chinese Film Studies, Hong Kong University Press 2004. Shuqin Cui, Women Through the Lens: Gender and Nation in a Century of Chinese Cinema, University of Hawaii Press 2003. Dai Jinhua, Cinema and Desire: Feminist Marxism and Cultural Politics in the Work of Dai Jinhua, eds.
However, at this time, China still favored the Japanese’s more unique, American and European-influenced animated works over the less-advanced domestic ones. === 1990s ~ 2000s === In the 1990s, digital production methods replaced manual hand-drawing methods; however, even with the use of advanced technology, none of the animated works were considered to be a breakthrough film.
By the early 2011, Let the Bullets Fly had become the highest grossing domestic film in China's history. ===Chinese International Cinema and Successes Abroad=== Since the late 1980s and progressively in the 2000s, Chinese films have enjoyed considerable box office success abroad.
Formerly viewed only by cineastes, its global appeal mounted after the international box office and critical success of Ang Lee's period martial arts film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon which won Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2000.
Indeed, an acclaimed remake was made in 2002 by Tian Zhuangzhuang.
Back in 2013, Jia won Best Screenplay Award for A Touch of Sin, following nominations for Unknown Pleasures in 2002 and 24 City in 2008.
history. Similarly, in 2002, Zhang Yimou's Hero was another international box office success.
London: Verso 2002. Harry H.
Kuoshu, Celluloid China: Cinematic Encounters with Culture and Society, Southern Illinois University Press 2002 - introduction, discusses 15 films at length. Jay Leyda, Dianying, MIT Press, 1972. Laikwan Pang, Building a New China in Cinema: The Chinese Left-Wing Cinema Movement, 1932-1937, Rowman & Littlefield Pub Inc 2002. Rea, Christopher.
Palgrave MacMillan 2013, 1-22. Rey Chow, Primitive Passions: Visuality, Sexuality, Ethnography, and Contemporary Chinese Cinema, Columbia University Press 1995. Cheng, Jim, Annotated Bibliography For Chinese Film Studies, Hong Kong University Press 2004. Shuqin Cui, Women Through the Lens: Gender and Nation in a Century of Chinese Cinema, University of Hawaii Press 2003. Dai Jinhua, Cinema and Desire: Feminist Marxism and Cultural Politics in the Work of Dai Jinhua, eds.
One young director who does not share most of the concerns of the Sixth Generation is Lu Chuan ( Mountain Patrol, 2004; City of Life and Death, 2010). === Notable ‘sixth generation’ directors: Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng === In the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, two of China's Sixth generation filmmakers, Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng – whose grim works transformed Chinese cinema in the 1990s – showed on the French Riviera.
Hou Yong is another cinematographer who made films (Jasmine Women, 2004) and TV series.
Notable films include 2004's Kung Fu Hustle; and 2010's Aftershock, which had a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Beijing Enlight Media focuses on the action and romance genres.
Palgrave MacMillan 2013, 1-22. Rey Chow, Primitive Passions: Visuality, Sexuality, Ethnography, and Contemporary Chinese Cinema, Columbia University Press 1995. Cheng, Jim, Annotated Bibliography For Chinese Film Studies, Hong Kong University Press 2004. Shuqin Cui, Women Through the Lens: Gender and Nation in a Century of Chinese Cinema, University of Hawaii Press 2003. Dai Jinhua, Cinema and Desire: Feminist Marxism and Cultural Politics in the Work of Dai Jinhua, eds.
Wenhua's romantic drama Spring in a Small Town (1948), a film by director Fei Mu shortly prior to the revolution, is often regarded by Chinese film critics as one of the most important films in the history of Chinese cinema, in 2005, Hong Kong film awards it as the best 100 years of film.
Zhang Yang's 2005 Sunflower also made little money, but his earlier, low-budget Spicy Love Soup (1997) grossed ten times its budget of ¥3 million.
Gu Changwei's minimalist epic Peacock (2005), about a quiet, ordinary Chinese family with three very different siblings in the post-Cultural Revolution era, took home the Silver Bear prize for 2005 Berlin International Film Festival.
Still Life was a surprise addition and Golden Lion winner of the 2006 Venice International Film Festival.
Likewise, the 2006 Crazy Stone, a sleeper hit, was made for just 3 million HKD/US$400,000.
Back in 2013, Jia won Best Screenplay Award for A Touch of Sin, following nominations for Unknown Pleasures in 2002 and 24 City in 2008.
In 2009–11, Feng's Aftershock (2009) and Jiang Wen's Let the Bullets Fly (2010) became China's highest grossing domestic films, with Aftershock earning ¥670 million (US$105 million) and Let the Bullets Fly ¥674 million (US$110 million).
Wolf Warrior 2 (2017) beat them out to become the highest-grossing film in China. China is the home of the largest movie & drama production complex and film studios in the world, the Oriental Movie Metropolis and Hengdian World Studios, and in 2010 it had the third largest film industry by number of feature films produced annually.
One young director who does not share most of the concerns of the Sixth Generation is Lu Chuan ( Mountain Patrol, 2004; City of Life and Death, 2010). === Notable ‘sixth generation’ directors: Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng === In the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, two of China's Sixth generation filmmakers, Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng – whose grim works transformed Chinese cinema in the 1990s – showed on the French Riviera.
The only animated works that seemed to achieve popularity were the ones for catered for children, such as Pleasant Goat and Wolfy 《喜羊羊与灰太狼》. === 2010s ~ Present === During this period, the technical level of Chinese domestic animation production has been established comprehensively, and 3D animation films have become the mainstream.
Almost all his films made high returns domestically while he used ethnic Chinese co-stars like Rosamund Kwan, Jacqueline Wu, Rene Liu and Shu Qi to boost his films' appeal. In the decade following 2010, owing to the influx of Hollywood films (though the number screened each year is curtailed), Chinese domestic cinema faces mounting challenges.
In January 2010 James Cameron's Avatar was pulled out from non-3D theaters for Hu Mei's biopic Confucius, but this move led to a backlash on Hu's film.
Some artistes originating from the mainland, like Hu Jun, Zhang Ziyi, Tang Wei and Zhou Xun, obtained Hong Kong residency under the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme and have acted in many Hong Kong productions. ==Industry== ===Box Office and Screens=== In 2010, Chinese cinema was the third largest film industry by number of feature films produced annually.
Notable films include 2004's Kung Fu Hustle; and 2010's Aftershock, which had a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Beijing Enlight Media focuses on the action and romance genres.
By the early 2011, Let the Bullets Fly had become the highest grossing domestic film in China's history. ===Chinese International Cinema and Successes Abroad=== Since the late 1980s and progressively in the 2000s, Chinese films have enjoyed considerable box office success abroad.
In 2012 the country became the second-largest market in the world by box office receipts.
It is also the first film to reach . Under the influence of Hollywood science fiction movies like Prometheus, published on June 8, 2012, such genres especially the space science films have risen rapidly in the Chinese film market in recent years.
Back in 2013, Jia won Best Screenplay Award for A Touch of Sin, following nominations for Unknown Pleasures in 2002 and 24 City in 2008.
In 2013, China's gross box office was ¥21.8 billion (US$3.6 billion), the second-largest film market in the world by box office receipts.
In January 2013, Lost in Thailand (2012) became the first Chinese film to reach ¥1 billion at the box office.
As of May 2013, 7 of the top 10 highest-grossing films in China were domestic productions.
By December 2013 there were 17,000 screens in the country.
Palgrave MacMillan 2013, 1-22. Rey Chow, Primitive Passions: Visuality, Sexuality, Ethnography, and Contemporary Chinese Cinema, Columbia University Press 1995. Cheng, Jim, Annotated Bibliography For Chinese Film Studies, Hong Kong University Press 2004. Shuqin Cui, Women Through the Lens: Gender and Nation in a Century of Chinese Cinema, University of Hawaii Press 2003. Dai Jinhua, Cinema and Desire: Feminist Marxism and Cultural Politics in the Work of Dai Jinhua, eds.
In 2014, he was a member of the official jury and the following year his film Mountains May Depart was nominated.
As of 2014, around half of all tickets are sold online, with the largest ticket selling sites being Maoyan.com (82 million), Gewara.com (45 million) and Wepiao.com (28 million).
In 2014, Chinese films earned ¥1.87 billion outside China.
By January 6, 2014, there were 18,195 screens in the country.
There were 299 cinema chains (252 rural, 47 urban), 5,813 movie theaters and 24,317 screens in the country in 2014. The country added about 8,035 screens in 2015 (at an average of 22 new screens per day, increasing its total by about 40% to around 31,627 screens, which is about 7,373 shy of the number of screens in the United States.
The biggest distributors by market share in 2014 were: China Film Group (32.8%), Huaxia Film (22.89%), Enlight Pictures (7.75%), Bona Film Group (5.99%), Wanda Media (5.2%), Le Vision Pictures (4.1%), Huayi Brothers (2.26%), United Exhibitor Partners (2%), Heng Ye Film Distribution (1.77%) and Beijing Anshi Yingna Entertainment (1.52%).
However, as more and more foreign films (such as ones from Japan, Europe, and the United States) are being imported into China, Chinese animated works is left in the shadows of these animated foreign films. It is only with the release of 《西游记之大圣归来》Journey to the West: The Return of Monkey King in 2015, a live-action film where CGI was extensively used in its production, that Chinese animated works took back the rein.
This movie was a big hit in 2015 and broke the gross record of Chinese domestic animated movies with CN¥956 million at China’s box office. After the success of Journey to the West, several other high-quality animated films were released, such as 《风雨咒》 Wind Language Curse and 《白蛇缘起》 White Snake.
As of November 2015, 5 of the top 10 highest-grossing films in China are domestic productions.
On February 8, 2016, the Chinese box office set a new single-day gross record, with , beating the previous record of on July 18, 2015.
There were 299 cinema chains (252 rural, 47 urban), 5,813 movie theaters and 24,317 screens in the country in 2014. The country added about 8,035 screens in 2015 (at an average of 22 new screens per day, increasing its total by about 40% to around 31,627 screens, which is about 7,373 shy of the number of screens in the United States.
Chinese films accounted for 61.48% of ticket sales in 2015 (up from 54% last year) with more than 60% of ticket sales being made online.
Average ticket price was down about 2.5% to $5.36 in 2015.
It also witnessed 51.08% increase in admissions, with 1.26 billion people buying tickets to the cinema in 2015.
Chinese films grossed overseas in 2015.
During the week of the 2016 Chinese New Year, the country set a new record for the highest box office gross during one week in one territory with , overtaking the previous record of of December 26, 2015 to January 1, 2016 in the United States and Canada.
Chinese films grossed () in foreign markets in 2016. ===Film companies=== As of April 2015, the largest Chinese film company by worth was Alibaba Pictures (US$8.77 billion).
In 2016, the gross box office in China was ().
The country has the largest number of screens in the world since 2016, and is expected to become the largest theatrical market by 2019.
China has also become a major hub of business for Hollywood studios. In November 2016, China passed a film law banning content deemed harmful to the “dignity, honor and interests” of the People's Republic and encouraging the promotion of “socialist core values", approved by the National People's Congress Standing Committee.
On February 8, 2016, the Chinese box office set a new single-day gross record, with , beating the previous record of on July 18, 2015.
Also in February 2016, The Mermaid, directed by Stephen Chow, became the highest-grossing film in China, overtaking Monster Hunt.
During the week of the 2016 Chinese New Year, the country set a new record for the highest box office gross during one week in one territory with , overtaking the previous record of of December 26, 2015 to January 1, 2016 in the United States and Canada.
Chinese films grossed () in foreign markets in 2016. ===Film companies=== As of April 2015, the largest Chinese film company by worth was Alibaba Pictures (US$8.77 billion).
After The Dream Factory (1997) demonstrated the viability of the commercial model, and with the growth of the Chinese box office in the new millennium, Chinese films have broken box office records and, as of January 2017, 5 of the top 10 highest-grossing films in China are domestic productions.
The 49 year old Jia set up the Pingyao International Film Festival in 2017 and on the other hand is Zhang, a 56-year-old film school professor who spent years working on government commissions and domestic TV shows after struggling with his own projects.
One young director who does not share most of the concerns of the Sixth Generation is Lu Chuan ( Mountain Patrol, 2004; City of Life and Death, 2010). === Notable ‘sixth generation’ directors: Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng === In the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, two of China's Sixth generation filmmakers, Jia Zhangke and Zhang Meng – whose grim works transformed Chinese cinema in the 1990s – showed on the French Riviera.
The country has the largest number of screens in the world since 2016, and is expected to become the largest theatrical market by 2019.
Released in 2019, it became the second highest-grossing film of all time in China.
On February 5, 2019, the film The Wandering Earth directed by Frant Kwo reached $699.8 million worldwide, which became the third highest-grossing film in the history of Chinese cinema. ===Other Directors=== He Ping is a director of mostly Western-like films set in Chinese locale.
New York: Columbia University Press, 2021.
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