The accumulated domestic box office sales exceeded 10 billion yuan ($1.7 billion) in August. The number seems impressive but can be misleading. The domestic market performed not as well as imported films in China, and Chinese films abroad performed even worse.
According to the 2011-12 China Film Industry Report by China Film Association, imported movies occupied around 65 percent of the box office in the first six months of 2012, though nine out of the top 10 most watched films were Hollywood blockbusters. Then, of the 52 Chinese films that were distributed internationally last year, 50 of them were co-productions.
Tuning out, not in
Liu Jia, one of the writers of 2011-12 China Film Industry Report, was quoted in the Shanghai Financial News as saying that the market in China is attractive to foreign filmmakers but the influence of Chinese film outside the domestic market is minor. It is still very difficult for Chinese films to appeal abroad. Foreign audiences' understanding of Chinese culture is still limited.
Shelly Kraicer works for Vancouver International Film Festival's acquisitions team. Kraicer commented in Beijing Youth Daily that there used to be cinemas in Toronto's China Town screening Chinese films only. But now they have all disappeared.
According to an annual report about 2011's Chinese films' international performances, released in June this year by the Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture (AICCC) and Huaxia Film Distribution Co., Ltd, the foreign income of the Chinese film industry was about 2 billion yuan, a 43 percent decrease from the previous year.
The report is the result of research based on audiences in nine countries including the US, Canada, UK, France and Germany, which suggests that only a very limited number of Chinese films were screened in mainstream foreign cinemas. The research said that 55 percent of foreign audiences watch Chinese films on video or DVD, while 32 percent did not watch a Chinese film in the year.
The report indicates more than one-third of foreign audiences have no knowledge of Chinese films at all.
Huang Huilin, director of AICCC, said the Chinese economy is the second biggest in the world. But Chinese films still play a very small role in the world cultural market. China's cultural development does not match the speed of its economic performance.
The Chinese version of Dangerous Liaisons was screened during the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) this year. Its copyright has been sold to nine countries so far. Many say that Zhang Ziyi, the leading actress of the film, attracted much attention. Industry insiders see its success so far being tied to the idea that it is a "global story."
Dangerous Liaisons is originally a French novel. In 1988 it was adapted into an American film directed by Stephen Frears. It became a classic which was later further adapted into many different versions. This Chinese version was written by Yan Geling, the scriptwriter of The Flowers of War, and directed by South Korean director Hur Jin-ho, who is famous for his romantic style in films like One Fine Spring Day.
Think inside and outside the box
Huang said that to change the situation of Chinese films in foreign markets, more work needs to be done on promotion, publicity and marketing.
Gu Guoqing, president of Huaxia Film Distribution Co., Ltd, said to China Youth Daily that the promotion of Chinese films should not be simply about attending a few film festivals. It requires a long-term publicity and marketing plan.
Zhang Yuan, director of many popular films such as Little Red Flowers and I Love You, said to Beijing Youth Daily that when his new film Beijing Flickers was shown at TIFF, he found the festival was a great opportunity to sell films. Although TIFF is not as famous as the Cannes or Berlin film festivals and it mainly focuses on screenings rather than competitions, its film resources attract many buyers and provide chances for all films.
Nicole Mackey, executive vice president from Fortissimo Films UK, a film sales agent which has been responsible for international distributions of Pang Ho-Cheung's Dream Home and the action film Reign of Assassins, told the Global Times that she is working on three Chinese films at the moment; An End To Killing by Wang Ping, Beijing Flickers by Zhang Yuan and Full Circle by Zhang Yang. Mackey said for producers who are not familiar with foreign markets, it is necessary to find an experienced sales agent, or in other words an international distributor, to help them.
Zhou Tiedong, general manager of China Film Promotion International, commented in The Mirror that China has so many stories to tell the world. But if they want to be heard by the world, it is necessary to know who the listeners are. The stories should be told in a language that the listeners can understand. Film festivals and other international events are good platforms for promotion.
"But we should not produce a lot of art films that only target the narrow market just to pursue international prizes. We also need to consider the film business value," Zhou added.