BEIJING, Feb. 3, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- iQIYI Inc. (NASDAQ:
IQ) ("iQIYI" or the "Company"), an innovative market-leading online
entertainment service in China,
recently announced that action film Shaolin Master, will
premiere on its Ultimate Online Cinema section through the
Company's premium video-on-demand (PVOD) mode on February 12, the first day of the Chinese New
Year holiday.
iQIYI's Ultimate Online Cinema section streams high-quality
films via PVOD mode, allowing users to view latest releases online
at a moderate price. A dozen films launched on the section last
year have attracted a growing legion of avid supporters.
"We hope that Shaolin Master can win favor with our audience as
previous PVOD titles have. Going forward, iQIYI's Ultimate Online
Cinema section will continue streaming a slate of high-quality
films, providing premium new offerings for our subscribers. At the
same time, we also hope that the PVOD mode will achieve sustainable
development, as we work with platforms and creators to build a
healthy online film ecosystem where filmmakers can identify their
clients, guarantee their incomes, and seize exciting new
opportunities," said Song Jia, Vice
President of iQIYI and General Manager of iQIYI Film Business
Center.
Shaolin Master - the only action film scheduled to premiere
online during the Spring Festival film season
With the 2021 Spring Festival film season around the corner,
seven films have announced their release in theatres on the first
day of the holiday. Shaolin Master is the first and only
action film scheduled to premiere online for the first day of the
holiday.
In the Stanley Tong-directed
film, Wang Baoqiang plays the role of Ximen Debao, an inn-keeper
with no ambition. The film tells the story of how Ximen Debao who
was framed for crimes, being trained with an eminent monk to prove
his innocence. In recent years, Wang has successfully portrayed a
number of impressive comic roles in a series of well-received and
lucrative blockbusters such as Lost in Thailand and Detective Chinatown.
In this new film, Wang has cast off his stereotypical image of
"comic actor" and transformed into an orthodox warrior monk of the
Shaolin Master.
PVOD mode, a new favored option for filmmakers and
studios
In 2020, the PVOD mode became a new avenue for film distribution
worldwide as movie theaters were closed due to the Covid-19
pandemic. In the Chinese market, iQIYI launched the action comedy
film Enter the Fat Dragon last February via PVOD, allowing
its subscribers to enjoy a new theatrical film at an affordable
price in the comfort of their own homes. In doing so, iQIYI took
the lead among Chinese video streaming platforms in exploring the
PVOD mode.
In the past year, more than 10 films have been released on the
iQIYI platform through the PVOD mode, including Spring Tide,
Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, Knockout, and
Double World. The online distribution of high-quality
theatrical films has quickly covered a wide range of genres. Based
on the runaway success of the mode, the Company launched its
Ultimate Online Cinema section in July
2020 to promote a systematic PVOD-based cooperation with
filmmakers.
Currently, not only have the films on iQIYI's Ultimate Online
Cinema received revenue directly from subscribers, but they have
also achieved widespread acclaim from the industry. Spring
Tide was nominated for Best Feature Film and Best Director at
the 33rd Golden Rooster Awards. Dwelling in the Fuchun
Mountains was selected as one of the top ten films of 2020 by
the Cahiers du Cinéma, a famous French film magazine.
During the 2021 Spring Festival season, iQIYI, together with
several other video streaming platforms will release Shaolin
Master through the PVOD mode. Through these initiatives, iQIYI
is working with a growing number of filmmakers and platforms to
create good content, accelerating the development of
Direct-to-Consumer in the film industry and building a broader
distribution model for filmmakers.
View original content to download
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/iqiyis-ultimate-online-cinema-section-to-premiere-shaolin-master-through-pvod-mode-on-first-day-of-chinese-new-year-301221074.html
SOURCE iQIYI