(Text/Wang Li Editor/Xu Zhe) With the official launch of pre-sales for the 2024 Spring Festival films, the film market has once again ignited fierce competition.
According to statistics, 9 films have been scheduled for this year’s Spring Festival, with comedies taking the lead, as well as family and inspirational themes, aiming to meet the viewing needs of different audience groups.
It is worth noting that the main creative lineup of the film includes well-known directors such as Jia Ling and Zhang Yimou, as well as the participation of high-grossing actors such as Shen Teng and Andy Lau, which undoubtedly provides a strong guarantee for the quality of these films. At the same time, high-quality IP and adaptations of classic movies also add to the appeal of these films.
Among the many films, films such as " Hot and Spicy ", " Article 20 " and " Speeding Life 2" are highly anticipated. Industry insiders predict that these films are expected to perform well during the Spring Festival and further unleash the box office potential of the 2024 Spring Festival.
Looking back on 2023, the recovery of the film market will benefit from the resonance of both supply and demand. The movie box office for the whole year reached 54.9 billion yuan, rising to 85.4% of the pre-epidemic level. Among them, the contribution of the schedule effect cannot be ignored. Blockbusters have chosen to be released during prime time periods, causing the period's box office contribution to the annual box office to exceed 60% for two consecutive years. This trend reflects the concentration of schedules in the film market and also brings impetus for performance growth to companies related to the industry chain.
Looking forward to 2024, the film market has abundant reserves and is expected to bring new growth during prime periods such as the Spring Festival and summer seasons. As the audience's demand for movie viewing continues to grow and the quality of movies continues to improve, the film industry is expected to continue its recovery this year.
The Spring Festival stalls bring together 9 movies with fierce competition, and diverse content drives box office potential
The 2024 Spring Festival stalls have already been pre-sold this month.
According to Beacon Professional Edition data, the total pre-sale box office of a new film exceeded 100 million on the day after it went on sale, making it the fastest year since 2022 for the pre-sale box office of a new film during the Spring Festival to exceed 100 million. This momentum indicates that the box office of the Spring Festival in 2024 is expected to usher in a big explosion.
Currently, the 9 films scheduled cover a variety of themes such as comedy and drama, which not only conform to the festive atmosphere of the Spring Festival family carnival, but also meet the viewing needs of different audiences.
Among them, "Hot and Spicy", as Jia Ling's directorial work, is controlled by Xinli Media, a subsidiary of China Literature Group (00772.hk), and is highly anticipated. The film continues the golden combination of Jia Ling and Zhang Xiaofei, and tells the story of an unemployed girl who is teased by fate and embarks on a test-filled life.
Jia Ling said on Weibo that she lost 100 pounds for this movie. This news aroused widespread attention and heated discussion among netizens, further increasing the popularity of "Hot and Spicy". The
movie "Article 20" is invested and controlled by Enlight Media (300251.sz) and directed by Zhang Yimou. It draws on daily topics that everyone cares about and brings together many familiar actors, including Lei Jiayin, Ma Li, Zhao Liying, Gao Ye, Liu Yaowen, Wang Xiao, Chen Minghao, Pan Binlong, Zhang Yi, Fan Wei and Yu Hewei. The film revolves around a self-defense case and explores the most basic fairness and justice between emotion, reason, morality and law with warm colors.
Another high-profile work is "Flying Life 2" directed by Han Han, which brings together many familiar faces such as Shen Teng, Fan Chengcheng, and Yin Zheng. The film tells the story of the poorest team chasing their persistent dreams. It is a racing legend full of danger and speed. The producers of
include Shanghai Tingdong Film Co., Ltd., Shanghai Taopiao Piao Film and Television Culture Co., Ltd., Beijing Bona Film Co., Ltd., China Film Co., Ltd., etc. Hengdian Film and Television (603103.sh) participated in the investment. Shanghai Tingdong Film Co., Ltd. was established in 2015. Han Han serves as the legal representative. The company’s shareholders include Zhejiang Dongyang Alibaba Film Co., Ltd., Bona Film Group Co., Ltd., etc.
In addition, Ning Hao and Andy Lau will collaborate again in "Mr. Red Carpet" which is also highly anticipated. This is the second collaboration between the two after "Crazy Stone". The film focuses on the vanity fair of the entertainment industry, showing a ridiculous farce that makes people laugh and cry.
As the top national comic IP, "Bear Bears" also continues to launch New Year cartoons and has never been absent from theaters during the Spring Festival holiday in the past ten years.
It is worth noting that the total box office for the New Year's Day period in 2024 is approximately 1.526 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of approximately 175%, exceeding the 1.303 billion yuan in 2021, setting a record high for the same period. This outstanding performance not only made a good start for the film market throughout the year, but also warmed up the market for the upcoming Spring Festival, increasing the audience's attention to high-quality films.
In addition to theatrical movies, micro-short dramas have also joined the competition during the Spring Festival. The 16 micro-short dramas recently launched by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television will compete with big-screen works during the Spring Festival, covering a variety of themes such as emotion, suspense, urban, and fantasy. This emerging content form provides audiences with more choices and injects new vitality into the film market.
Demand has promoted the recovery of the film industry, and Wanda Pictures' performance has soared
In 2023, the Chinese film market finally ushered in a recovery after a period of downturn. According to statistics, the annual movie box office reached 54.915 billion yuan, an increase of 69% compared with the average from 2020 to 2022, returning to the 2017 level. Among them, the Spring Festival period is one of the most important movie periods of the year, and its box office revenue has reached a record high.
According to Beacon Professional Edition data, the total box office for the Spring Festival in 2023 reached 6.77 billion yuan, becoming the second largest box office for the Spring Festival in film history. This achievement has been achieved on the one hand thanks to the relaxation of epidemic prevention and control measures, which has restored the audience's demand for movie viewing; on the other hand, the supply of high-quality content is also an important factor in promoting the recovery of the film market.
Looking at specific films, the box office of " Azolla " and "The Wandering Earth 2" exceeded 4 billion yuan, ranking 6th and 10th respectively in the Chinese movie box office list in the past ten years. The emergence of these high-grossing films not only attracts a large number of audiences to the theaters, but also improves the overall quality of the films.
In addition, the number of movies released in 2023 has returned to more than 500, reaching 510. While the quantity has grown steadily, the quality of the films has also improved. There were three movies with Douban ratings of 8 or above throughout the year, the most in the past four years. The emergence of these high-quality films has provided audiences with more viewing options and further promoted the recovery of the film market.
Meanwhile, domestic films performed particularly well. The box office of domestic films in a single year exceeded 46 billion yuan, setting a historical record. Even with the rebound in the number of imported films released, domestic films have still maintained strong competitiveness, accounting for 84% of the box office for four consecutive years. This shows that the independent innovation capabilities of China's film industry have been improved, and domestic films have the strength to compete with imported films.
In terms of cinemas, the number of screens in the mainland film market will rise to 86,000 in 2023, continuing to rank first in the world. The number of theaters with high production value among the 12,700 theaters has rebounded, while the number of theaters with an annual box office of less than 5 million has declined. This shows that as the film market recovers, the theater production value structure has also become healthier, with 40% to 60% of theaters being less dependent on popular schedules than the industry average.
As the film market continues to recover in 2023, Wanda Film (002739.sz) has become the focus of the industry with its outstanding performance. According to the announcement, Wanda Film will achieve a domestic theater box office of 7.56 billion yuan (excluding service fees) in 2023, recovering to 96.4% of the same period in 2019; the number of moviegoers will be 186 million, recovering to 92.7% of the same period in 2019.
In the 2023 movie market, the performance of domestic films is particularly eye-catching. Wanda Film's "The Third", which is mainly invested and controlled by Wanda Films, earned about 700 million yuan in box office during the Lunar New Year holiday. It also co-produced "The Wandering Earth 2", "Bear Bears: Come with Me Bear Core", "Space Exploration Editorial Department", "All or Nothing" " and "The Ex 4" and many other high-box-office films. These films not only attract a large number of audiences into theaters, but also improve the overall quality level of Chinese films.
In contrast, the performance of some peer companies in 2023 is not satisfactory. Although Huayi Brothers (300027.sz) has participated in the production of "The Wandering Earth 2", "Volunteers: Heroes Attack", "Wading in the Angry Sea" and "Twinkle Twinkle Star" and other films that performed well at the box office, due to The performance of the main control projects was mediocre, and the overall business segment was still difficult to support.
Bona Pictures (001330.sz) has led the way during the market downturn in the past few years with many hit movies such as the "Changjin Lake" series, but its 2023 performance forecast shows that the company expects a net profit loss of 3.6-5.6 100 million, the box office of the main project film did not reach the target, which affected the profit.
looks forward to 2024. In terms of high-quality film reserves, domestic films show rich diversity, providing a strong guarantee for continued excellent performance at the box office. At the same time, the rise of the branch distribution model has brought new development opportunities to the upper, middle and lower reaches of the industry chain.
In terms of domestic film reserves, there are as many as 21 highly anticipated works in 2024, bringing together many well-known directors and senior and new generation actors. Among them, high-profile works such as "A Thousand Bones of Flowers", "White Snake: The Floating Life", "Dangerous Lines", and the sequel to "Mermaid" will undoubtedly attract the attention of a large number of viewers.
In terms of imported movies, the reserves for 2024 are also eye-catching, including "Godzilla vs. Kong: Rise of an Empire", "Rise of the Planet of the Apes 4", "Kung Fu Panda 4", etc., which will undoubtedly inject new vitality into the film market .
At present, as the full-line distribution model is gradually unable to meet the development needs of the industry, branched distribution has become a new attempt to solve the bottleneck restricting the development of the film market, which will help to further explore the potential of the film market and bring more benefits to the upper, middle and lower reaches of the industry chain. Many opportunities.
In summary, through the supply of high-quality films and innovation in distribution methods in 2024, the film market is expected to continue to maintain steady growth in the future and bring more exciting works to the audience. At the same time, this will further promote the sustainable development of China's film industry and enhance its international competitiveness.
