The summer movie season is heating up. This year, 110 films have been released or scheduled for release. As of 19:40 on July 18, the total box office (including pre-sales) of the 2024 summer season (June to August) has exceeded 5 billion yuan.
Hundreds of new films compete for the summer season, conveying a positive market trend and boosting confidence in the industry's development. Since last year, film management departments have taken multiple measures in copyright protection and market regulation to actively create a good environment. From the national level to local governments, a series of favorable policies have been continuously issued to guide and ensure the accelerated recovery of the film industry.
Abundant supply is the source of market vitality. This summer season is so exciting because there are hundreds of new films with rich themes and diverse genres that can meet the viewing needs of different audiences. For example, the animated films "Falling into the Mortal World" and "Umbrella Girl" incorporate traditional Chinese cultural elements to show the charm of the national trend; the realistic theme "Reverse Life" tells the story of the sincerity, kindness and hard work of small people, allowing the audience to see the upward life force in adversity; the science fiction comedy "Safe Evacuation from the 21st Century" uses virtual reality technology to bring an immersive viewing experience to the audience.
High-quality content is the key to attracting viewers. Since its preview, the box office of "Catching Dolls", which has the potential to be a hit, has been soaring, driving the market's popularity to continue to rise. Platform data shows that from July 13 to 16, the daily box office of summer movies exceeded 200 million yuan for four consecutive days. With the release of more high-quality blockbusters, the film market is expected to usher in a new round of growth.
It should be noted that, outside of the popular schedule, my country's film market still faces the problem of insufficient supply. According to data from the National Film Administration, in 2019, the total number of screens in China was 69,787, and the total annual film output was 1,037; in 2023, the total number of screens in China was 86,310, and the total annual film output was 971. If the big screen is compared to "arable land", the "output per acre" of screens in mainland China still has great potential to be tapped. Therefore, it is necessary to further enrich the supply of the film market, continuously launch more high-quality masterpieces, and use good content to leverage the new volume of the film market.
The film industry will flourish when creation flourishes. We must vigorously support the creation of small and medium-cost films. 80% of the films on the market are small and medium-cost. Small and medium-cost films are an important cornerstone for film creation and production, an important carrier for the continuous prosperity and innovation of the film industry, and an important platform for cultivating outstanding young film talents and the film ecosystem. The industry must increase its support for small and medium-cost films, and work together to promote policy support, talent training, streaming media publicity and promotion, cinema scheduling, and investment channel expansion, so as to empower the creation and production of small and medium-cost films.
A strong industry is built on strong quality. The film industry must continuously improve its quality and strengthen innovation. At present, domestic films have performed well in main theme blockbusters and realistic themes, which shows that domestic films are good at using good stories to strengthen audience empathy and resonate with the audience. However, there is room for further improvement in the creation of animations, science fiction films, etc., both in quantity and quality. We look forward to more domestic films that reflect scientific and technological progress and industrial strength shining on the screen. Producers do not have to blindly follow popular themes. There is no unchanging traffic code for the big screen. The domestic audience's demand for movies is diverse, and only continuous innovation can lead the market.
Precision marketing and effective distribution of movies are also important aspects of the supply-side reform of the film market. Distributors should actively release high-quality films to the market, promote the accelerated release of more new blockbusters, and form a good trend of continuous and continuous supply of excellent films. Only when good content continues to be released can the summer season be truly "hot and sizzling".
