Is the future of the Chinese film industry online? With cinemas shut, films released for screening earn big profits fast, and the potential market is vast
- Production budgets are tiny compared with big-screen releases, and films can earn 150 per cent profit in a few months. New production houses are opening
- Blockbuster films, including one starring Donnie Yen, are premiering online, with streaming platforms snapping up the rights to them
While the cinemas in China are closed as part of government measures to contain the spread of coronavirus, films have been making a splash online.
The Thousand Faces of Dunjia, a special-effects-laden film available online since March, has been viewed over 100 million times. Made on a budget of some 20 million yuan (US$2.8 million), the period fantasy, which features no recognisable stars, smashed the record for online revenue in China, earning the producers 50 million yuan after splitting proceeds with online video platforms.
Its producer Wei Junzi, who produced two other online movies this year, As God and Sword and Fire, told the Post that he recently co-founded an online-film production house because of the boom in online movie viewing.
“The reputation of the Chinese online-movie industry was very bad before, as it was filled with [pirated] works based on [existing famous film] franchises. I started to get involved in online movies in 2018 when [online-movie-making firm] Qishuyouyu approached me about the copyright of The Thousand Faces of Dunjia.”
Another recent online movie hit, The Enchanting Phantom , has been streaming since May 1 and has earned over 38 million yuan after also splitting earnings with online video platforms. Adapted from A Chinese Ghost Story , the classic 1987 supernatural romance starring Leslie Cheung and Joey Wong Cho-yin, the movie was made on a budget of 23 million yuan.