Swift's fans swap the stage for the silver screen

The documentary was filmed during Swift's performance at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, a venue that has hosted many headline-grabbing events, not least of which was the 2022 Super Bowl. Its visual effects are also impressive, allowing theatergoers to see close-ups of Swift on the big screen.

Zhi Feina, a professor at the Chinese National Academy of Arts and an industry observer, says that the overwhelming success of the movie has helped many young people to socialize.

Although this format is new to Chinese theatergoers, Zhi says that similar films that document popular events have already become a regular genre overseas. For example, Japan has introduced ODS (Other Digital Stuff) screenings since 2005, which release recorded versions of stage plays, such as Kabuki, musicals and dramas, as well as concert recordings and sports broadcasts.

"China has more than 80,000 screens in over 12,000 cinemas, but most of the seats remain unsold during the comparatively slow box office season. Swift's movie could serve as a good example for domestic theater operators to learn how to attract a larger audience," says Zhi.

Sha Dan, a curator at the China Film Archive and a veteran critic, views the movie's popularity as a signal to the Chinese film market to seek a breakthrough in attracting the generation born between the late 1990s and 2000s.

He also mentions that one of the top concerns among insiders in recent years has been the growing trend for young audiences to shift to short-video platforms instead of going to cinema.

"If Chinese distributors could import more movies like this, the local market would become more culturally diversified, and cinemas could revive their functions as places for socializing and entertainment," he says.