China’s first fully AI-generated feature film has struggled to attract paying audiences, despite a production process that involved more than a million images and over two years of work. Its weak opening raises questions about whether advances in artificial intelligence can translate into commercially successful cinema.
Sanxingdui: Future Past debuted in Chinese theaters on Oct. 23. Within its first three days, the film generated around 1.21 million yuan (US$181,000) in box-office revenue, according to figures reported by Cartoon Brew. Its production cost exceeded 10 million yuan (about US$1.5 million), according to producer Bona Film Group.
The film is the first AI-workflow feature to receive a public screening license from China’s National Film Administration. Its theatrical release marks a production milestone, but early ticket sales suggest that the novelty of AI filmmaking has not been enough to draw a large audience.
How was the film made?
The science-fiction story imagines a future in which humanity has handed its decisions to algorithms. When a global crisis threatens civilization, clues to resolving it lead to seven ancient symbols associated with Sanxingdui, an archaeological site in Sichuan province known for its distinctive bronze masks and other artifacts.
Nearly 100 people worked on the film for more than two years. The production team generated more than 1.2 million base images and revised the film more than 100 times, according to reports on the project.
Bona used its own Boka Film Cloud Studio platform to develop the feature through an AI-driven production process. The technology generated much of the visual material, while human contributors shaped the concept, script, shot design and overall aesthetic. The workflow also involved specialist roles in directing, cinematography, lighting, sound and editing.
The film’s characters are original digital creations, not replicas of real actors. That distinguishes the project from other uses of AI in entertainment, including the recreation of Val Kilmer’s likeness for As Deep as the Grave and the development of Tilly Norwood, a virtual performer that has stirred debate about AI-generated actors.
Why have moviegoers stayed away?
The warning signs appeared before opening day. On the evening of Oct. 22, presales had reached just 65,000 yuan (about US$9,700), according to ticketing platform Maoyan. The platform forecast total box-office revenue below 100,000 yuan. More than 10,000 screenings were scheduled for the film’s first day, but early reports described low attendance.
Audience reactions offered some clues to the weak response. Viewers who attended a free preview screening told AFP they would not have paid to watch the film because of its quality. Independent AI director Zhang Jun also told the news agency that audiences would not automatically buy tickets simply because a film was made with artificial intelligence.
Those reactions do not establish a single reason for the film’s performance. They do, however, point to a central commercial challenge: audiences judge the finished movie, not just the technology used to make it.
Producing a feature film also presents distinct challenges compared with generating individual images or short videos. Characters and settings must remain consistent across scenes, and the story must sustain attention throughout. The extensive revisions involved in Sanxingdui: Future Past illustrate the work required to assemble AI-generated material into a coherent feature.
The film’s early results should not be treated as a verdict on every AI production. Its performance reflects the response to this particular movie, and the available figures do not isolate the effects of its story, visual quality, marketing or competition from other releases.
Why online popularity does not guarantee cinema sales
AI-generated entertainment has already attracted large audiences in China. AI-generated short dramas on Douyin, the Chinese equivalent of TikTok, accumulated more than 200 billion views in September.
That popularity does not necessarily translate into cinema tickets. Audiences often watch short-form videos during brief phone sessions, whereas a feature film demands a sustained time commitment and a paid ticket. Viewing habits and expectations are different.
For studios, the distinction has financial implications. AI tools may help teams generate images and build fictional worlds, but production efficiency alone cannot establish whether a film will find an audience. Nor does generating images in high volume ensure that audiences will connect with the characters or narrative.
The cost of Sanxingdui: Future Past also puts its opening in perspective. Its reported production budget was more than eight times the revenue it had earned by Oct. 26. Box-office gross does not equal the amount returned to a producer, since cinemas and other parties take shares of ticket sales. The film would therefore need a much stronger commercial performance to recover its reported production cost through theatrical revenue alone.
What comes next for AI-generated films?
Sanxingdui: Future Past has opened in China, but no confirmed release date has been announced for Colombia or other international markets.
A separate project, Gods Don’t Give Gifts, is scheduled for a limited U.S. theatrical release on Dec. 4. The AI-generated science-fiction and horror anthology is also pursuing an Oscar nomination in the best animated feature category, adding an awards-season test to the debate over AI filmmaking.
For now, Sanxingdui: Future Past has shown that an AI-driven production can reach Chinese cinemas. Its opening performance leaves the harder question unanswered: whether filmmakers can use the technology to create features that audiences will choose to pay for and that can justify the investment required to make them.