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The total box office for China's summer season crossed the benchmark of 10 billion yuan ($1.39 billion) as of Saturday at noon, reaching that level for the first time in four years, according to Chinese online ticket platform Maoyan, amid the strong momentum of the consumption recovery. 

Three domestic offerings - suspense film Lost in the Stars, feature film Never Say Never and traditional animation film Chang An - took the top three spots, according to Maoyan. 

He Yu, market analyst at Maoyan, told the Global Times on Sunday that the general film market was "as hot as this summer's weather." From June 1 to July 10 - in just 40 days - ticket sales hit 7 billion yuan, up 24 percent over the same period in 2019, she noted. 

She said that the lineup offered films for all kinds of viewers. "A total of 12 films received above nine out of 10 on Maoyan's film ranking site, showing the high quality of films in the summer season," she said.

To boost the sector's recovery, the Ministry of Finance and China Film Administration announced on May 23 to waive contributions to the fund of the national development of the film industry from May 1 to October 31, 2023.

"The fund represents 5 percent of each film's box-office revenue, which can largely reduce the cost for film publishers and increase the number of screened films," Xiang Kai, a playwright and director, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

Xiang said the hot market will return to normal as the support policy expires, but he estimated that the annual box office may hit a new record in 2023. 

He noted that the summer box office has sent a strong signal to the film industry, as shown by the evident rise in film attendance and frequency, which may accelerate the recovery of the weekend film market.

Global Times