Giant screen theatrical experience provider IMAX was busily engaged in two events in Beijing over the last weekend, promoting its new upgraded system, "Wonder Woman 1984" and a future project.

A grand IMAX fan gala was held at the China National Film Museum on Saturday to screen the recent Hollywood superhero blockbuster "Wonder Woman 1984" for more than specially invited 150 movie fans coming from 36 cities across China. However, before the film started, there was a presentation for a future project set to hit screens during China's Spring Festival - another adaptation of Chinese deity Ne Zha. The Spring Festival will fall in February next year.

"New Gods: Ne Zha Reborn," produced by Light Chaser Animation and Alibaba Pictures, involves a collaboration with IMAX for a special 3D version, to be released across 690 IMAX cinemas in the Chinese mainland on Feb. 12, the lunar New Year's Day in 2021.

Director Zhao Ji, known for the 2019 animated smash hit "White Snake," revealed he had been a diehard fan of IMAX since he was a college student. He said the giant screen will help the audience to gain a more exciting experience due to his new film's special effects to be shown in a more splendid way.

Jessie Chou, chief marketing officer at IMAX China Holding, said Zhao's production uses unique creativity to achieve a new interpretation of Ne Zha's story in a refreshing oriental Cyberpunk visual style. "We are amazed by the breakthroughs made in the production level of Chinese domestic animated features," Chou said.

Last summer, director Jiao Zi's "Ne Zha" shook the Chinese film market, becoming the highest-grossing animated feature of all time in the country's film history. The new film is expected to follow, if not repeat, the success.

"New Gods: Ne Zha Reborn" will not be the only one to be released in an IMAX version during next year's Spring Festival. The most-anticipated "Detective Chinatown 3" directed by Chen Sicheng is one of a few tentpole productions to be shot entirely with an IMAX camera. Director Lu Yang's action fantasy "Assassin in Red" is another such work. 

Through the "Filmed in IMAX" program, IMAX will certify high-end, best-in-class digital cameras from leading brands to film in the IMAX format paired with the IMAX proprietary post-production process, including launch partners ARRI, Panavision, RED Digital Cinema and Sony. Only a limited number of films will be selected to participate in the program each year.

While the Saturday gala was a rare treat for fans, one day earlier, an IMAX theater in Beijing Shijingshan Wanda & IMAX cinema complex held an inauguration ceremony for its new IMAX screen equipped with "IMAX with Laser" system, the company's most advanced theatre experience. This marks the fifth IMAX with Laser theater in the Chinese capital.

Shijingshan Wanda IMAX theater has been presenting IMAX versions of films through a total of 32,000 screenings in the past 12 years, and once was the first Asian theater to be equipped with digital IMAX projection system. 

Wanda Film Co. and IMAX's partnership dates back more than a decade with several major, multi-theater deals. With this agreement, a total of 378 IMAX screens in China will now be operating in Wanda theaters across all tiered cities. 

In 2019, earnings of Wanda Cinemas totaled 9.87 billion yuan, and the core indicators, such as box office, attendance and market share, ranked No.1 in China for 11 consecutive years. In 2019, IMAX broke several domestic records, including the Chinese New Year box office earnings, record local language box office and an all-time high full year box office of $365.8 million in Greater China. 

Just four days before China could reopen cinemas in COVID-19 low-risk areas on July 20, Wanda Film Co., IMAX and IMAX China expanded their longstanding partnership with a 20-theater agreement. Under the deal, Wanda will upgrade to cutting-edge IMAX with Laser technology at 10 of its top-grossing locations and install the system at 10 new locations throughout the country.

Besides Wanda, as China's film industry continues its strong post-pandemic rebound, Guangzhou JinYi Media Corporation and IMAX China also announced on Dec. 18 they have expanded their longstanding partnership with a new 12-theatre agreement. Under the deal, JinYi will upgrade to IMAX with Laser technology at seven of its most popular IMAX locations -- including one of their top grossing theatres in Beijing, the top-performing Beijing Joy City JinYi IMAX, -- and install five IMAX systems at new locations. 

"This agreement continues to prove the value of IMAX in encouraging moviegoer interest and business growth in China, where we've helped lead the way in bringing people back to the theatre," said IMAX China CEO Edwin Tan.

The deal will bring the total count of IMAX screens, including backlogs in China, to 989. As of Sept. 30, 2020, the company had 726 theaters operating in Greater China, with a backlog of 258 scheduled to be installed by 2028.

IMAX has been a significant promoter of the industry's rebound in China. Recently, IMAX shattered box office records during the National Day Holiday in October, recording 128 million yuan with a 23% increase in attendance despite a 75% capacity limit. The first Chinese film shot entirely with IMAX cameras, "The Eight Hundred," has become the biggest global hit of 2020 earning approximately $470 million to date. Since theaters reopened in late July, IMAX has grossed nearly $80 million throughout the Chinese mainland with a market share of approximately 3.5%, up from 2.6% during the same period in 2019.

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