Zootopia 2: A Look At Importance of China's Market For The Global Box Office

CGTN Europe

CGTN Europe spoke to Will Zang, Founder of Blade Vista Public Relations and Asian & International Cinema expert.

Transcript

00:00Let's talk now to Will Zang, who's the founder of Blade Vista Public Relations and Asian and international cinema expert.

00:06Welcome to the program, Will. Good to see you.

00:08So, Zootopia 2, we're hearing enormously successful already, more than 2 billion yuan made at the box office in mainland China.

00:17How has it become so successful? Is it marketing or is it just a good movie?

00:22Well, you know, I think, Robin, I think it makes perfect sense if you understand China's audience right now

00:28and also Disney approach on this film.

00:30You know, when the first Zootopia movie came out around 2016, China was experiencing rapid urbanization,

00:37and that change is still going on right now.

00:39You know, over the decade, we have seen many young people, they have left their small towns to go to the cities

00:45for seeking opportunities or setting up new lives.

00:49So when they saw Zootopia, you know, the Judy's, the funny story, they sort of saw themselves in it.

00:54You know, that kind of, and I think that Judy's character becoming a symbol of this generation's coming of age.

01:02And that kind of connection even grows stronger as life in China's modern cities continue to change almost every year.

01:10And the other thing I think contributes to success is also Disney's marketing on this film.

01:16You know, we truly see Disney respect the Chinese film market.

01:19You know, sometimes people talk about Disney, they probably just think that it's a big corporation.

01:24But actually, it is behind a group of filmmakers who truly loves movie.

01:28And they have shown their love, their desire to understand the country.

01:32You know, they see the success of the first film.

01:34You know, they have spent years of building that relationship with China.

01:38As you just, the story just mentioned, like, the only, probably the only Zootopia land in the world is in Shanghai, Disney.

01:45And they work closely with many China's well-known actors for the Mandarin Dove version of the film.

01:51And also collaborate with many local brands for merchandising.

01:54I think all this 22 billion yuan success, you know, comes from years of emotional investment.

02:02You know, it's no matter from the audience, from Disney, and also from the way of China's social changes lined up perfectly with Judy's story.

02:10So you talked about Disney respecting the Chinese market.

02:13Just quickly, how important is the Chinese market for global filmmakers?

02:21Well, I think the answer is very clear.

02:23You know, China still is one of the most powerful engines in the global box office, the global box office.

02:30If you look at the data, you know, China remains the second largest theatrical market in the world for more than 10 years already.

02:36And many films, they gain commercial success in China.

02:40It's not just an add-on to their global total.

02:43It might reshape them.

02:44You know, I still remember Avengers Endgame at the time grossed more than $600 million just in China.

02:51That is almost one-fourth of its global total, you know, pushing it, becoming one of the highest-grossing films of all time.

02:58And now we see Zootopia 2 became the highest-grossing film, highest-grossing, important animated film in China.

03:06And that number is even greater than the U.S.

03:08And so I think this has also raised another question why these films truly work.

03:13You know, from my perspective, I think the Chinese audience right now, they are very mature and selective.

03:19You know, because we grew up watching many Hollywood blockbusters.

03:22And because of the rising of the Chinese film industry right now, we also got a chance to see many great Chinese films.

03:29You know, so our tastes are purely global, and we select the films based on the quality.

03:34And I think that's very important, you know, for the industries.

03:38While theatrical attendance from many other countries is still recovering.

03:42Will, I'm sorry to jump in.

03:44I could talk about this all day, but unfortunately we are out of time.

03:46Thanks so much for coming on the program.

03:47Will Zatla Zhang from Blade Vista Public Relations.

03:50Will Zatla Zhang from Blade Vista Public Relations.

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