Initiative has been set up by five major cinema circuits in China to screen local language films exclusively across prime screens in China. Provisionally named Chinese Film Union, the network formed by Shanghai United Circuit, Stellar Megamedia Circuit, Wanda Cinema Circuit and China Film Southern Cinema Circuit and New Film Association will consist of 50 screens across the country. The first cinema to allocate a screen to the initiative is UME Huanxin cinema in Beijing, but a further 12 screens in Guangdong and 10 in Shanghai have also been selected. The move has been linked to an influx of blockbuster titles with increasingly wider releases in China, and as a result industry observers have noted a deterioration in the variety of films screened. In 2006 over 200 films were produced in China, with only a fraction achieving theatrical release status.
The initiative is aimed at increasing the profile of local films in top-rated locations (and therefore overall revenues), while still achieving a modest distribution budget, on a maximum of 50 prints. The union will select mid-budget titles up to around $3m and aim to distribute 60 features each year. The initiative follows several high-profile attempts to block foreign movies entering the Chinese market during the summer months and other festive periods. Indeed, only this month (December) the Chinese government body SARFT has imposed what can only be described as the most severe measures to date: a temporary ban on US film imports for at least three months.

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