International
Despite robust growth in box office, China’s film industry hits five-year low
MUMBAI: According to a report, China‘s domestic film industry has hit a five-year low despite robust growth in box office sales across the country in the first half of this year.
The industry is going through a rough patch as ticket sales of domestic films started plummeting in the first six months, a time when the country‘s total box office revenues gained by over 40 per cent compared to that a year ago.
In the January-June period, 14 blockbusters hit Chinese theatres among the 38 imported films screened in the country, and only two of them failed to bring in more than 100 million yuan.
In contrast, among the 141 China-made movies screened in the same period, only 5 per cent managed to break even and the rest lost money, it is understood.
The box office for domestic films dropped by 4.3 per cent year on year to 2.8 billion yuan (444 billion U.S. dollars), according to the latest data from the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT).
The slump came just months after China amended rules in February to import more Hollywood movies for national distribution. In the meantime, ticket sales of foreign films jumped by 90.4 percent year on year to 5.27 billion yuan.
China‘s rapidly expanding movie market collected 8.07 billion yuan in the first six months — up by around 41.7 per cent from a year ago.
The country had previously allowed only 20 American films, mostly big-budget Hollywood fare,- to be distributed nationally each year. In February, the country agreed to allow an additional 14 US films to be distributed each year as long as they are made in the 3D or IMAX formats.
China represents one of the most attractive growth opportunities for the US film industry that is facing declining theatre revenues and slumping DVD sales in North America.
International
Utopai Studios unveils 4K three-minute video generation for PAI platform
New Story Agent and editing tools aim to streamline AI-led filmmaking workflows
MUMBAI: Utopai Studios has announced a major upgrade to its PAI storytelling AI platform, introducing what it claims is an industry-first capability to generate three-minute videos in 4K resolution, alongside enhancements to its Story Agent feature.
The update, rolling out from April 15, expands the platform’s capabilities across the filmmaking process, from early concept development to post-production. The company said the new features are designed to help filmmakers maintain continuity across characters, scenes and visual styles, a key challenge in AI-driven storytelling.
At the heart of the release is a next-generation model that enables more structured narrative development, allowing creators to move more seamlessly from idea to execution. With tools such as multi-shot sequencing and multi-turn editing, the platform aims to give both studios and independent creators greater control over complex storytelling workflows.
Commenting on the launch, Utopai Studios co-founder and CTO Jie Yang said, “The next phase of AI in media will not be defined by isolated tools, but by systems that can carry story, continuity and collaboration across the full creative process.” He added that the update is a step towards enabling more practical, end-to-end narrative development at a professional level.
Echoing this, Utopai Studios co-founder and chief scientific officer Zijian He said, “Generative video is opening the door to a new production model, where creative ambition is less constrained by traditional cost and complexity.” He noted that the platform combines multimodal models with iterative editing to give creators more speed, control and consistency.
The company said PAI is already being used in professional film and television productions, particularly in Hollywood, for tasks such as pre-visualisation, scene design and post-production refinements. The latest update adds features including improved voice options, character consistency, unlimited editing and more flexible asset management.
Utopai also emphasised that its models are not trained on copyrighted material, positioning the platform as a cleaner alternative for creators and rights holders navigating the evolving AI landscape.
As AI continues to reshape content creation, Utopai’s latest push signals a shift from standalone tools to integrated systems, aiming to make high-quality filmmaking faster, more flexible and increasingly accessible.
