Chinese films seek elusive overseas success

Hong Kong action movie star Jackie Chan (right) and Indian Bollywood actor Sonu Sood attend a promotional event for the film Kung Fu Yoga in Mumbai, India, in January.[Photo provided to China Daily]

The comedy Lost in Thailand became China's highest-grossing domestic film in 2012, with box office revenue of 1.26 billion yuan ($185 million), but when the movie hit the big screens in North America the next year, it flopped, making a mere $60,000.

Few Chinese films have seen the huge commercial success overseas that was achieved by Zhang Yimou's Hero in 2002, so what do Chinese movies need to crack the international market?

Quality is essential, but many more channels are required to help Chinese productions achieve global success, experts said at the seventh annual Beijing International Film Festival in late April.

According to Liu Mian, general-manager of Poly Film Investment's content production department, Chinese films earned about 3.9 billion yuan overseas last year. Though the number was significantly above the 2.7 billion yuan earned in 2015, it represented only about 8 percent of the revenue of the domestic market, which was 45.7 billion yuan in 2016.

"The potential is huge, but Chinese filmmakers need to exhibit more cultural confidence in exploring more genres when they go abroad," Liu said, adding that while kung fu films were once the most popular Chinese films overseas, no Chinese kung fu film has earned more than $1 million abroad since 2008.

"With China becoming a more influential global power, overseas audiences are learning more about China," he said. "They want to see a greater exploration of human nature in Chinese films, rather than just turning to them for novelty value."

Liu said shared values are crucial for future success, praising the 2015 Sino-French coproduction Wolf Totem, which explored harmony between humanity and nature, as well as traditional Mongolian culture.

Kulthep Narula, a member of Thailand's national film council, said it's important to have "Chinese culture consumed by overseas audiences" before focusing on how to sell movie tickets overseas.

"In South Korea, they export their pop culture by creating celebrities," he said. "In order to get Chinese films better accepted and understood, Chinese cinema also needs to push its celebrities to overseas audiences."