Art-house film struggles to find screen space despite winning acclaim

Zhang Dalei, film director

For most movie critics, The Summer Is Gone is seen as being influenced by Taiwan director Hou Hsiao-hsien and Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Otsu for its slow pace and true-to-life story.

But Zhang says: "For me, the movie is emotional and personal, interwoven with my experiences and nostalgia."

To make his point, Zhang says that just days after he chose a 1990s building as a film set, the construction was torn down.

Speaking about the demolition of old buildings, Zhang says he hopes he can preserve "something old" through his work.

Zhang's nostalgia also resonates with the Chinese-language art-house circle.

In November 2016, the indie movie was the biggest winner at the 53rd Golden Horse Film Festival in Taiwan, taking home the best picture and the best new performer awards.

But even after winning the awards, Zhang did not imagine that his directorial debut would be released for general viewing.

Typically, art-house movies struggle for screen space in China, as theaters are taken up by commercial productions, which are much safer commercial alternatives.

However, The Summer Is Gone has beaten the odds.

Since its release, nearly 110 cinemas have promised a prime-time screening every night for the black-and-white drama for at least two weeks.

The cinemas are members of the China Art-house Movie Screening Alliance, the country's first circuit specializing in the distribution of art-house titles, says Sun Xianghui, the head of China Film Archive, which launched the circuit.

Meanwhile, despite the film's success, Ya Ning, the president of the film's key producer iQiyi Motion Pictures, is concerned about how the movie will fare in comparison with Kong: Skull Island, which premiered the same day as The Summer Is Gone.

"The two have a huge gap when it comes to screenings. So, I am begging cinema managers to give the movie a bit more screen space. After all, a big screen is the best way to celebrate an award-winning movie," he says.

However, latest statistics show The Summer Is Gone has been squeezed to just 2 percent of all Chinese screens, while the monster-themed behemoth is dominating nearly 58 percent, according to the live tracker 58921.com.