Beijing (AFP) – China’s first fully AI-generated feature film opens in cinemas on Friday in what promises to be a tough box-office test for the country’s booming tech industry as advance ticket sales lag.
\n\nMore than 10,000 screenings of the sci-fi thriller “Sanxingdui: Future Past” are scheduled for Friday, according to ticketing platform Maoyan.
\n\nPublic reception, however, has been less than enthusiastic.
\n\nPresale revenue as of Friday morning stood at 80,000 yuan ($11,980), while total box-office takings were forecast to remain below 150,000 yuan, only a fraction of the reported production cost, according to Maoyan.
\n\nTicket prices range from 20 to 90 yuan, bringing the number sold to a few thousand at most.
\n\nJiang Defu, CEO of the production company Bona Film Group, acknowledged the lukewarm reception in a recent interview but said the film was pushing boundaries.
\n\n“We are the first to try it, the first to get a theatrical release permit, and the first to be tested by the audience,” he told Chinese film industry outlet Yuli.
\n\n“I think that is not easy at all.”
\n\nNearly 100 people took more than two years to make the film, which cost more than 10 million yuan ($1.5 million), Bona said…
Original source: https://www.breitbart.com/tech/
