Chinese technology companies and movie theaters are positioning high-dynamic-range LED screens as both a remedy for sluggish domestic box office revenues and a means to challenge America’s long-held hold on international film standards, according to a panel at the Shanghai International Film Festival.
The push is being led by tech giant Huawei through its Ultra HD Video Alliance, which is promoting its own HDR Vivid standard as an alternative to the Digital Cinema Initiative’s certification framework that has governed film exhibitions globally for decades.
Hank Xiao, senior director of Huawei, said: “Whether it’s LED screens or other certifications, why do we need to pass DCI certification domestically at this time? Because we need to screen Hollywood movies.” “Hollywood movies are expected to account for only about 8% of our country’s box office revenue, already well below double digits,[but]hardware manufacturers and their content producers are actually still paying high royalties to the United States.”
“This is also a big problem that we need to urgently solve domestically. Our promotion of this industry standard and international standard is aimed at solving these problems. The HDR Vivid version that we are currently promoting does not actually charge money from movie theaters or charge money from movie distributors. It is completely free,” Xiao added.
The strong push towards self-reliance and controlled technology standards stems from lessons learned from the US-China trade war. “After Huawei received sanctions from the United States in 2019, we found that many of our chips and operating systems would become unusable,” Xiao said. “Development towards national self-reliance may still face difficulties if countries are still using software and technologies that were monopolized in the past.”
Panelists claimed that the HDR Vivid standard outperforms DCI on several technical metrics and pointed out that the majority of LED screen technology deployed around the world is manufactured in China. This screen delivers higher frame rates, higher brightness, deeper blacks, and better contrast ratio compared to traditional digital projectors. James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash premiered on one such screen at the Hainan International Film Festival in December.
However, there are still constraints to rapid commercial adoption. Of China’s approximately 93,000 movie theater screens, only about 270 currently have LED lighting, with the majority concentrated in first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Industry officials predict that number could reach around 1,000 by the end of 2027, a modest target for local box office revenues that are down about 41% from a year ago, raising questions about exhibitors’ appetite for large capital investments.
The panel, which included representatives from Huawei, LED manufacturer Huaxia, animators, cinematographers, and academics, also touched on the integration of artificial intelligence into China’s filmmaking education. Professor Lei Zaixing, dean of the cinematography department at Beijing Film Academy, announced that the school has received approval to launch a new major in “intelligent imaging” that combines cinematography and AI-generated images. The first group is expected to enroll next year. Unlike BFA’s normal competitive admissions process, applicants are not required to take an art entrance exam or submit a preliminary portfolio.
