China’s film stars on the political scene. Jackie Chan and Feng Xiaogang have offered their insights about the problems in China’s film industry. They presented their ideas at a discussion during the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. One of the major issues they addressed is the practise of box office stealing.
When cinemas hide a portion of their revenues to avoid taxes, or to get around fully paying film studios and distributors, that’s called box office stealing.
Insiders estimate that about 826 million US dollars in ticket sales went unreported in 2013, accounting for 19 percent of overall box office revenues in China.
Renowned director Feng Xiaogang echoed Chan’s plea, and also suggests that the
government should invest more resources into cultivating film talent.
"The government has already penalized 15 cinemas for box office stealing before I put forward this proposal, but I am advocating for stricter penalties. It not only harms our box office income, but also our international reputation. I spoke to many of my counterparts from abroad and they are very concerned about this practise in China." Jackie Chan said.
Renowned director Feng Xiaogang echoed Chan’s plea, and also suggests that the government should invest more resources into cultivating film talent.
"Many South Koreans and Japanese study in Hollywood and later establish film companies in their home countries. The special effects teams for South Korean productions are of a very high standard, and their makeup artists are also top-notch. They learn all of it from Hollywood, so if they can do it, why can’t we? We should support more young talent to study abroad, and it shouldn’t be restricted to state-own film corporations. " Feng Xiaogang said.
Box office revenues of domestic films now take up 53 percent of the total box office revenue in China.
Starting from May 1st, all cinemas in China must upgrade to new ticketing software that meets government standards to rule out shady practises. Analysts believe the measures proposed at the CPPCC meeting will contribute to the further development of domestic films in the future.
