The Film Industry in the People's Republic of China

The author, a longstanding member of the Australian film industry, reports from his notes (made during two trips) on the motion-picture industry in the People's Republic of China. A fairly complete status report on the industry is presented. Production methods, the influence of the cultural revolution on film production, and general studio organization are described in the first part of the paper. The second part discusses some technological aspects of China's film industry. Interestingly, color rawstock — negative, print film, color reversal intermediate — is now manufactured in the country. An infrared screen technique is used to obtain traveling mattes, and process photography is carried out using the “Crystal Ball” front-projection process (which employs a beaded screen). A non-Western standard for 8.75mm film is described. The manufacture of studio equipment in China is mentioned. Printing and processing methods and release-print inspection are also described.

Print ISSN

0036-1682

Published

1976-11

Content type

Original Research

DOI

10.5594/J07524