Illustration: Liu Xiangya/GT

China's box office has kicked off the year with a bang, as the pre-sales for the Spring Festival film period have already broken records. By Monday afternoon, the pre-sales for the lucrative season reached over 200 million yuan ($27 million) after advanced film ticket bookings opened on Sunday morning, according to ticketing platform Maoyan. This marks a strong start for the world's second-largest film market. 

Wang Shu, a data analyst from ticketing platform Beacon, told the Global Times that the record numbers for the pre-sales demonstrate the strong effect of the special period and also indicate an increased willingness of Chinese audiences to go to cinemas.

What has given this year's Spring Festival box office such great potential? 

First and foremost, this year's new releases for the holiday season share a common feature - top-tier IP enhancements. Each of these new films is a sequel, adaptation, or extension of one of China's top-tier popular IPs.

For instance, Ne Zha 2 is the sequel to Ne Zha, which features the beloved Chinese mythological figure and holds the record for China's highest-grossing animated film. Surpassing 5 billion yuan at the box office, the first film achieved both critical acclaim and box-office success.

Boonie Bears: Future Reborn is another animation IP in the Spring Festival lineup that should not be underestimated. A family film series, the films have consistently earned 1 billion yuan each year since 2022, while the 2024 film brought in 2 billion yuan. This year's installment focuses on comedy, emphasizing "family-friendly" elements.

Detective Chinatown 1900 is the latest installment in the Detective Chinatown series.  The series possess a broad market base and are comedy films, which appeals to families. The previous two films both released during the Spring Festival, grossing over 3.3 billion and 4.5 billion yuan respectively. 

Each of these IPs has its own loyal fan base. These films, building on the strengths of their predecessors, can achieve innovative breakthroughs while maintaining a high standard in quality.

Furthermore, the film genres for this year's Spring Festival slate are rich and diverse, covering comedy, action, martial arts, science fiction, and animation, with most being strong genre films focusing on enhancing the audience's audio-visual experience. This diversity can widely cover the preferences of different audience groups.

Traditional Chinese culture and Eastern aesthetics is another major creative focus of the new films in the 2025 Spring Festival lineup.

The Legend of the Condor Heroes: The Great Hero, based on the classic martial arts novel by renowned Chinese writer Jin Yong and starring Xiao Zhan, is likely to be an innovative adaptation of the original story with Hong Kong director Tsui Hark at the helm.

Creation of the Gods II, the second installment in director Wuershan's highly-anticipated trilogy, raises the stakes with the city of Xiqi under siege and a climactic showdown over the Fengshen Bang, a mythical register that bestows godhood upon worthy figures and serves as an artifact of immense power central to the film's mythos.

In addition, there has been significant breakthrough in format this year. A total of five IMAX films will be released during the Spring Festival, breaking the record for the number of IMAX films released during the Spring Festival. 

Currently, all the six new films have highlighted visuals in their marketing. Creation of the Gods II features over 1,900 special effects shots, including both large-scale war scenes and battle spectacles among the immortal characters.

Operation Hadal, an action film directed by veteran director Dante Lam, will be presented in IMAX special aspect ratios, with 26 percent more picture on screen than regular cinemas. 

Chinese moviegoers now have certain standards when it comes to enjoying films. 

These Spring Festival films, with their high-level visuals, can provide a more immersive viewing experience in IMAX theaters.

Lai Li, a data analyst from Maoyan, told the Global Times that historical data shows that about 85 percent of viewers only watch one movie during the Spring Festival holiday, so the competition within the period is quite fierce. 

"Not only good word-of-mouth but also promotional efforts and screening schedules will affect a film's box-office performance during the period," he said. 

Although the competition is fierce, considering the smaller-than-expected box office in 2024, the strong momentum of the 2025 Spring Festival box office is like a shot in the arm, injecting vitality into the entire market. 

Zhang Peng, an associate professor at Nanjing Normal University, told the Global Times that the impact of the 2025 Spring Festival box office can effectively boost market confidence.

"Successful examples from the Spring Festival box office will encourage more films to pursue innovation in quality and genre, providing a reference for the market and creators," he said.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. life@globaltimes.com.cn