Shanghai cinemas reopen after six months

SHANGHAI: After the closure of cinemas for six months due to the Covid-19 outbreak, moviegoers finally returned to their beloved silver screen.

On Monday, cinemas in low-risk areas started to reopen under Covid-19 prevention protocols.

Most chose to screen old films that have already won great popularity in the past few years, such as the Disney animated film Coco, last year’s Chinese thriller Sheep Without A Shepherd and the animated film Ne Zha.

New high budget productions, which should have come out during Spring Festival, have yet to be released.

Nevertheless, one film, the story of two children in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, is an exception.

The award-winning A First Farewell became the first new film to be released after the reopening.

According to Maoyan, the major Chinese business analysis website on the movie industry, the film was released in 44 cities, including Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, and became the highest-grossing film shown on Monday.

On Monday, more than 2,900 screenings, accounting for 29% of the total nationwide, were arranged for A First Farewell.

Tian Shan Cinema at Hongqiao Art Center, one of the most historic cinemas in Shanghai, started preparations to receive its first customers as early as 8.30am on Monday. — China Daily/ANN