Sci-Fi, AI Anxieties and 93,000 Cinemas: Welcome to Chinese Cinema in 2026

Dip into the productions being promoted at the China Film Pavilion at this year’s Filmart and you’ll find a portrait of contemporary Chinese cinema in confident, expansive mode.

Among the 160 titles on showcase there’s traditional fare — martial arts actioners (Blades of the Guardians), thrillers (Scare Out), comedy (Pegasus 3) — alongside genres that are relatively new to the mainland, including animation (Boonie Bears: The Hidden Protector) and sci-fi (Per Aspera ad Astra).

Sci-fi in particular seems to have captured the imagination of both filmmakers and audiences. China only produced its first sci-fi blockbuster in 2019 — Frant Gwo’s The Wandering Earth, which grossed $700 million worldwide — but the genre has taken root quickly.

For director Han Yan, it has opened up new creative possibilities, both in terms of subject matter and technology. Per Aspera ad Astra weaves contemporary anxieties about artificial intelligence and virtual reality into a pop-inflected entertainment, pairing rising Chinese idols Dylan Wang and Victoria Song with manga-styled future worlds. The story follows a spaceship crew who become trapped in their own dream worlds after the vessel’s VR system breaks down.

“At its core, we aimed to create a light, entertaining popcorn movie that allows viewers to immerse themselves in a visual spectacle,” says Han. “At the same time, we deliberately left room for those who wish to think further by offering entry points for discussion and interpretation. Striking such a balance has been one of the major challenges of the creative process.”

The film’s themes — AI awakening, the tension between carbon- and silicon-based life, the metaverse versus deep space exploration — are ones Han is happy to raise without resolution. “We do not provide definitive answers to these questions,” he says, “because we ourselves don’t have the answers, nor do we have the authority to answer them on behalf of everyone else.”

Filmart itself is marking its 30th edition at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre — a milestone that invites some reflection. When the Hong Kong Trade Development Council launched the event in 1997, the city was weeks away from returning to Chinese sovereignty and its film industry was reeling from falling box office and dwindling productions. The hope was that Hong Kong could serve as a bridge between international filmmakers and a Chinese industry that had barely begun to find its footing. Box office figures from the mainland were barely circulated at the time.

Three decades on, the Chinese industry is keen to broadcast its numbers. Domestic receipts topped $7.45 billion in 2025, a year-on-year rise of nearly 22 percent. Admissions reached 1.238 billion — also up 22.57 percent — and the country now has 93,187 cinemas, more than anywhere else on the planet, with over 2,200 new venues opening last year alone. The traditionally lucrative Spring Festival period this February pulled in $840 million across 120 million admissions. So far in 2026, the collective haul stands at around $1.43 billion.

Chinese film companies now dominate the Filmart landscape, with the China Film Pavilion at its center. In its fifth iteration, the China Film Administration and China Film Co-production Corporation initiative is featuring more than 60 companies and institutions, among them the China Film Group Corporation, CMC Pictures, Bona Film Group, the China Film Archive and the Shanghai International Film Festival.

For Han, the ambitions for Chinese sci-fi extend well beyond this one film. “I hope Chinese science fiction will embrace more innovations and experiment with younger, more dynamic forms of expression,” he says. “There are still many boundaries of science fiction left to explore. In the future, we may see a greater diversity of works — some weighty and profound, others light and agile; some cold and hard-edged, others warm and humane — so that audiences with different expectations can all find something of value.”