Talking at a TIFFCOM seminar, Cai Gongming, founding father of Chinese language distributor Highway Footage, defined how his firm has constructed up Japanese anime to be one of many strongest movie import classes within the mainland China market. And though Chinese language audiences stay targeted on native, Chinese language-language films, he additionally mentioned that Hollywood has been making a sluggish comeback out there this 12 months.
Highway Footage scored main hits in 2023 with Japanese anime titles Suzume, which grossed $117M, and The First Slam Dunk, which took round $84M. Because of this, the overall field workplace of this class within the China market elevated by 90% year-on-year.
This 12 months, Cai mentioned the mixed field workplace of Japanese anime films is on the identical stage as 2023, though the per image common is decrease as twice as many titles have been launched. Highway Footage’ greatest hits have included Spy x Household Code: White, with round $40M, and the re-release of Your Identify with $19M. (Studio Ghibli’s The Boy And The Heron, launched by Alibaba Footage, is the highest-grossing Japanese anime to date this 12 months with $110M).
“Japanese anime titles are very sturdy due to their IP attributes – younger folks know the IP as a result of it has reached them via completely different channels over a few years. Japanese stay motion films have much less of those IP attributes and the celebs are much less acknowledged by the Chinese language viewers,” Cai defined.
He added that Japanese arthouse films may also carry out effectively however have a ceiling, Highway Footage launched Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Shoplifters in 2018, which stays the highest-grossing Japanese arthouse launch in China with round $14M.
However he additionally attributed the sturdy efficiency of Japanese anime in China to proactive advertising and marketing actions. He defined that his firm has launched an “built-in enterprise technique”, combining movie distribution with a brand new enterprise, GuGuGuGu, spanning merchandising, bodily shops, stay occasions and different exploitation of IP. Up to now, the enterprise has opened round six GuGuGuGu House standalone shops and one other 40 shops positioned inside cinemas.
“Chinese language audiences anticipate this built-in service – we realized this from the distribution of One Piece and different movies, that they not solely go to the theatre to see the film, but in addition need to purchase items, meet associates and have fun collectively,” Cai defined.
In China, these actions have included particular premieres with immersive parts, merchandising and in-store occasions: “The Chinese language followers need the whole lot that the Japanese followers are receiving, irrespective of the expense.”
Highway Footage’ Cai Gongming
Speaking usually concerning the China market, Cai mentioned that earlier than the pandemic, imported movies had round a 47% market share (it was throughout this golden interval that Highway Footage launched Shoplifters), however the share is now underneath 20%. Final 12 months, round 70-80 overseas films had been imported into China, throughout revenue-sharing Hollywood titles, and the so-called flat charge movies that typically obtain a income cut up.
Hollywood films have been declining in market share because the pandemic, and whereas their mixed field workplace is thrice that of Japanese anime films, the per image common is across the identical stage.
Nonetheless, Cai mentioned there are indicators that the market is beginning to recuperate this 12 months for US studio titles, with Alien: Romulus grossing $110M, a lot greater than anticipated, and the continuing re-releases of all of the Harry Potter franchise movies.
“Japanese anime is powerful in China due to the fanbase, which extends to TV collection and different types of merchandising and media. Hollywood shouldn’t be so energetic in China. Additionally, anime appeals to youthful audiences and Hollywood has been shedding younger folks.”
Cai additionally talked concerning the regulatory framework in China, noting that he additionally faces challenges securing approvals from the Japanese firms concerned in every launch. “However not less than Japan has the manufacturing committee system, which is an effective, coordinated method. In China, it’s not so coordinated as a result of plenty of completely different enterprise companions management completely different components of the IP. They don’t discuss to one another, so it may be troublesome to synchronize.”
On the China facet, he mentioned there are at the moment fewer restrictions by way of the quotas and general numbers of movies imported into the market: “The viewers wants range, and the coverage is following this demand”. He additionally mentioned that censorship seems to be stress-free for some style movies, together with Alien: Romulus and Taiwanese crime thriller The Pig, The Snake And The Pigeon, which each contained content material that may have been thought of problematic earlier than the pandemic.
“Alien was a shock for many people when it handed censorship – the coverage appears to be getting extra relaxed for style films,” Cai mentioned. “We see that as factor because the viewers desires to see completely different sorts of content material and the regulator desires to satisfy this demand to see a robust field workplace efficiency.”
