The 15th Chinese American Film Festival kicked off its month-long events on November 3rd, 2019. The film festival was created on the premise that cross-cultural productions are essential for both China and the United States. Cooperation within the industry can benefit everyone from film makers to audiences.
Dr. Jack Gao, currently CEO of Smart Cinema was invited as a distinguished panelist at the Co-Production Summit an event that is part of the 15th Chinese American Film Festival. Dr. Gao participated in “The Latest Trends and Technology of the Film Industry” panel which took place at the Landmark Theater in Beverly Hills.
Smart Cinema, a movie-streaming mobile app aims to bring Chinese films to North American audiences. Dr. Jack Gao, CEO of Smart Cinema attended the 15th Chinese American Film Festival to announce the official launch of the app in the United States. Smart Cinema was launched over a year ago in China and it has already proven to be successful. This past year alone, the app has already generated multi-millions of the registered customers.
(Above: Dr. Jack Gao at the CAFF Co-Production Summit)
Smart Cinema entered the industry with a groundbreaking model, its sales are not based on membership but rather on individualized ticket sales. Dr. Gao states that he strongly believes in this model, “one person, one ticket, one movie.” A cohesive unit, created to enhance rather than compete with the box office model already in place. He credits that as one of the major reasons why he funded Smart Cinema, which is “movie plus internet.”
When asked whether he would offer a new pricing model or follow a subscription-based model, Dr. Gao mentioned: “it was worth considering.” Smart Cinema will always find a way to maximize viewership of this business and to have more incentive for moviegoers but at the same time maximize the revenue of cinema. He mentioned, “we have not made changes yet, we are still sticking with our model.” Dr. Jack Gao also mentioned that as Smart Cinema’s popularity grows in the United States, Chinese film makers might consider creating productions that are catered to the US audiences.
As the official online partner of the 15th Chinese American Film Festival, Smart Cinema has launched the “Chinese American Film Festival Online Screening Section” on their APP-Smart Cinema USA from November 7th 2019 to February 2020. More North American audiences will get the chance to enjoy these excellent Chinese films.
