Economy

    The lure of the silver screen looms ever larger

    By Bao Chang (China Daily)
    Updated: 2010-11-01 09:22
    Large Medium Small

    The lure of the silver screen looms ever larger

    Audiences watch screens before choosing a film at Hengdian Movie Center, Henan province. [Photo/China Daily]

    Takings to exceed 10 billion yuan in 2010, a 60 percent rise over 2009

    BEIJING - Decorated with lanterns and colored ribbons, Shanghai's Xuyuan, or beautiful park, in the 1890s was the place to go to enjoy dancing, singing and other amusements at a time of peace and prosperity.

    It was also the setting for the first Western film, or Xiyang Yingxi, shown in China, on a night in August 1896, and it started a craze that has got bigger just about every year since.

    Now, Chinese filmgoers' appetite for Hollywood blockbusters and domestic films has pushed Chinese box office receipts to an all-time high.

    According to the China Film Producers Association (CFPA), takings hit 8 billion yuan ($1.2 billion) for the first nine months of this year and are set to reach more than 10 billion yuan for the whole year, a 60 percent increase compared with 2009.

    CFPA also predicted that Chinese receipts will reach 40 billion yuan by 2015, putting the country second only to the United States.

    The cinema market has developed at an unprecedented speed, fueled by media companies establishing new cinemas to bring an increasing number of dramas to the silver screen.

    Cinema building

    Wanda Movie Theater, one of China's largest cinema chains, plans to build more than 70 cinemas by the end of this year and make it more than 120 by 2012, aiming to generate revenues of 3 billion yuan.

    Wanda currently operates 52 movie theatres with 400 screens around the country. It achieved box receipts of 1 billion yuan for the first nine months this year, ranking it top within the industry.

    Related readings:
    The lure of the silver screen looms ever larger Luxury M-Box Cinema offers new moviegoing experience
    The lure of the silver screen looms ever larger Cinema chains ready to cash in on movie boom
    The lure of the silver screen looms ever larger Cinema industry booms on urbanites' growing incomes

    "Looking into the future of China's cinema market, we see a vista of limitless promise," Ye Ning, general manager of Wanda said.

    Poly Film Investment Co Ltd will open one cinema nearly every month in cities including Beijing and Guangzhou until June 2011 to expand its business in the world's second largest movie market.

    Over the next three years, Poly plans to build 100 cinemas in China. "Poly is also considering a listing on the stock market in 2011 and it will succeed if nothing goes seriously wrong," said Liu Debin, general manager of Poly Film.

    The Poly chain anticipates box office receipts of 200 million yuan this year, 70 percent higher than last year. Liu said he expected the company to earn as much as 700 million yuan in revenues over the next three years.

    According to Liu, two of the most important factors in running cinemas are location and the internal environment. He plans to spend 30 percent of the investment on cinema decoration.

    Jackie Chan Cinema, jointly owned by the film star and Beijing Sparkle Roll International Cinemas Management Co, has its own unique style of attracting customers.

    "With several wax figures of Jackie Chan welcoming customers in the lobby of the cinema, I'm sure movie audiences will have a different but happy experience in our cinemas," said Zhao Rui, vice-president of Jackie Chan Cinema.

    "We aim to make watching movies in cinemas more affordable," she added. Jackie Chan Cinema will open more movie theaters in second-tier cities in China next year, including Shenyang, Changzhou, Guangzhou and Taiyuan. The number of screens is forecast to almost triple from the current 4,500 to 12,000 at the end of 2016.

    Despite the apparent enthusiasm for cinema construction, some are worried that it is becoming indiscriminate.

    "Investors without any industry background and professional knowledge are increasingly streaming into cinema investment, creating haphazard competition within the industry," said Liu from Poly.

    Bidding prices have shot up at good locations. Property owners inevitably choose the investor offering the highest price even though he or she doesn't have any experience in the market, he added.

    "The fierce competition will create nothing but a big loss for those investors who are not familiar with the industry but invest a lot before taking wise counsel," Liu said.

    At present, the rental for a property suitable to establish a cinema in Beijing is more than 10 million yuan a year, nearly 20 percent of a cinema's box office receipts.

       Previous Page 1 2 Next Page  

    日韩人妻无码中文字幕视频| 无码人妻精品一区二区三| 亚洲AV无码久久精品成人| 中文无码成人免费视频在线观看| 午夜人性色福利无码视频在线观看| 中文字幕一区二区三区久久网站| 亚洲 另类 无码 在线| 无码国产精品一区二区免费16| 中文无码一区二区不卡αv| 综合无码一区二区三区| 国产午夜无码精品免费看| 亚洲日韩精品A∨片无码 | 久久国产精品无码一区二区三区| 天堂а√在线地址中文在线| 亚洲中文字幕一二三四区苍井空| 人妻丰满AV无码久久不卡| 国产网红主播无码精品| 中文字幕日韩第十页在线观看 | 中文字幕日韩精品无码内射| YY111111少妇无码理论片| 无码成A毛片免费| 无码日韩精品一区二区免费暖暖 | 中文字幕在线视频网| 久久精品中文字幕久久| 大地资源中文在线观看免费版| 天天看高清无码一区二区三区| 国产aⅴ无码专区亚洲av| 精品无码人妻一区二区三区品| 亚洲av成人无码久久精品| 亚洲色偷拍另类无码专区| 精品久久久无码人妻中文字幕| 中文字幕亚洲一区| 国产色爽免费无码视频| 伊人久久精品无码二区麻豆| 97无码人妻福利免费公开在线视频| 人妻无码精品久久亚瑟影视| 人妻少妇AV无码一区二区| 亚洲精品无码久久一线| 日韩亚洲AV无码一区二区不卡| 日韩人妻无码精品一专区| 波多野42部无码喷潮在线|