Editor's Note: Box office collections fell 2.3 percent year-on-year to 31.2 billion yuan ($4.53 billion) in the first half of this year. What measures should the film industry take to revive its fortunes? Two experts share their views on the issue with China Daily's Yao Yuxin. Excerpts follow:

Good movies can increase footfalls in cinemas

It's typical of the first half year in China's film industry for blockbusters to contribute most to box office profits. Chinese science fiction film Wandering Earth and Marvel's Avengers: Endgame together accounted for about 30 percent of first-half revenues at the box office, while 77 films earned less than 1 million yuan each.

Due to a dearth of successful movies in the first six months, China's box office dropped compared with the same period last year. Yet it is understandable that after years of growth, the world's second-largest film market is witnessing a fall in revenue.

Since the film industry is not free of bubbles, the movie market is exhibiting signs of a slowdown, especially in small and medium-sized cities.

Many film companies' profits dropped in the first half, not least because audiences seem less interested in superstars and films with extraordinary visual effects but little substance. So it's time film companies realized "content is king", and started making movies with rich contents, and good acting and production qualities.

Marvel and DC superhero films have become big money spinners in China because the comics on which they are based originated in the Cold War days and gradually caught the imagination of readers in the United States, as well as other countries.

As such, Chinese filmmakers should make movies on meaningful subjects which can promote Chinese culture both at home and abroad. For example, Chinese sci-fi novel The Three-Body Problem has sold more than 21 million copies around the world, and therefore can be made into a powerful film.

Films based on realistic topics close to people's hearts, such as Dying to Survive, which shows the difficulties a group of patients face in getting cancer medicines at affordable prices, have not only been appreciated by audiences but also earned good revenue.

Sun Jiashan, a researcher at the Chinese National Academy of Arts

Film industry needs to change business model

To grab a larger share of the market, China's online film ticketing platforms used to scramble to subsidize viewers; as a result, one could buy a movie ticket for as little as 9.9 yuan. Which attracted huge audiences to the cinema over the past few years.

But the withdrawal of subsidy after the National Day Holiday last year, along with a dearth of good movies, has made even many regular moviegoers reluctant to go to the cinema. This partly explains why box office collections and the film industry's profits dropped in the first half.

Also, the record 60.98 billion yuan ($8.88 billion) box office collection last year suggests the film market is reaching saturation point. Besides, the film industry is in the process of adjusting to the regulations implemented after investigations last year revealed that many celebrities had been evading taxes using fraudulent means.

Interestingly, the movie market in smaller cities showed a higher slowdown rate in the first half of the year because more foreign movies were screened in the first-tier cities.

Moreover, since the number of cinemas has been continuously increasing, it's likely that some of them would either merge or go bankrupt in the next few years if enough content-rich and well-made films do not hit the screens.

It's good to see the introduction of foreign capital in the domestic film industry. But cinemas could face tougher competition as the number of screens is expected to reach 80,000.

Therefore, filmmakers have to make films with not only good contents but also on varied subjects using creative ideas that would attract more audiences and, consequently, help the cinemas, rather the entire film industry, to overcome the difficulties they are facing.

Plus, domestic film companies and cinemas have to change their business model. For instance, they should aim to not only earn profits by selling tickets but also develop the entertainment industry in such a way that it keeps yielding dividends in the long run.

Chen Shaofeng, a professor of cultural studies and entertainment at Peking University The views don't necessarily represent those of China Daily.