Related stories

World Carnival Coming to Beijing Ancient Temple Reopens Past and Present Collide in Capitals Confucian Classic Lavish Staging of Chinese Culture Renaissance of the Imperial Garden

New Year Blockbusters Mark Cinema Revival

Blockbuster movies for Lunar New Year audiences are a tradition in China, but the box-office success of this season's home-made hits over foreign imports is a sign that the country's struggling film industry may finally be ready for take-off in its centenary year.

Two festive big-budget comedies -- Steven Chow's Kung Fu Hustle and Feng Xiaogang's crime caper A World Without Thieves -- have already raked in estimated takings of more than 100 million yuan (US$12 million) each.

"We are happy to see the success of Kung Fu Hustle and A World Without Thieves," said Woody Tsung, chief executive of Hong Kong's Motion Pictures Industry Association.

"The Lunar New Year movie tradition started in Hong Kong but the mainland is fast catching up. There's no doubt China is a huge market and this is only the tip of the iceberg," Tsung said.

Chinese cinema takings rose to a total of 1.5 billion yuan in 2004 from 1.1 billion the previous year, according to the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT).

But analysts stress the numbers are still small for a country with a population of 1.3 billion and warn the perennial problem of rampant piracy remains an impediment to the industry's growth.