Poster of Mulan Photo: Maoyan

Two highly anticipated films were confirmed to be heading to Chinese mainland cinemas on Monday. The announcement ignited hope for the recovery of the Chinese mainland film market.

One Monday, Disney announced that the live-action version of its animated film Mulan, itself an adaptation of the well-known Chinese folk ballad, has been approved for release in the Chinese mainland. The announcement was hailed by many Chinese netizens, though a specific release date has not been revealed. 

On August 4, Disney announced that the new film will not be released in North American theaters and instead will be made available in the region on Disney+ on September 4 for $30. 

Also on Monday, the Chinese poster for the much-beloved 1999 Japanese movie Kikujiro was released. Again no specific date has been set, but the post for the poster noted that it will hit theaters toward the end of the summer. This will mark the first time a work by Japanese director Takeshi Kitano has released in the Chinese mainland.

Although the film is more than two decades old, Chinese netizens were excited about its arrival. 

Other foreign films, such as war drama 1917, have been showing in the Chinese mainland since cinemas reopened on July 20, giving the industry great confidence.

China's film market has recovered more than 70 percent since reopening began. There are currently more than 8,000 theaters open, while the box office has taken in more than 500 million yuan ($71,990,000). 

Additionally, starting Friday some cinemas in China, such as those in Shanghai, will be permitted to increase their audience seating from 30 percent to 50 percent.

Compared with overseas film markets still affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, where film festivals are being postponed and Hollywood movies are releasing online, the recovery of the film industry in the Chinese mainland has gotten a real boost.

The Chinese film market shows the world that despite the pandemic audiences will never give up on film, which in turns provides hope for the global film industry.

According to an announcement on the Beijing Film Bureau website on Wednesday, the bureau will issue a 20 million yuan ($2.9 million) special epidemic subsidy to support 232 theaters in the capital.

Meanwhile, a total of 48 crews are currently filming at China's biggest film base Hengdian World Studios, while 63 crews are in preproduction.