Released March 1, the film by Gérard Krawczyk has already won over 250,000 spectators in China.
The successful launch of "Fanfan la Tulipe" can be attributed to a highly energetic promotional campaign (with Vincent Perez and Gérard Krawczyk already in China for the preview screenings) and to widespread distribution of the film, which was released on 120 prints dubbed in Chinese, covering a total of 900 screens.
In its opening week, "Fanfan la Tulipe" boasted the highest box office score of all films showing on Chinese screens at this time, against a backdrop of difficulties currently faced by the local exhibition sector. Since the first six months of 2004, admissions figures in China have plummeted. Competition was also fierce, with two Hollywood productions vying for theatergoers' attention ("Mona Lisa Smile" and "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World") as well as two Chinese films with star-studded casts just recently released.
According to estimations, "Fanfan" should reach 550,000 admissions before its run is out. However, March 12 saw the third film in the "The Lord of the Rings" series, "The Return of the King," hitting Chinese screens, which could well stall the film's momentum.
It is worth noting that "Fanfan" is one of the very few French films to have benefited from distribution in China according to the shared box office revenues system (and a first for a French company: Tang Média), up to now reserved only for the American majors.
For all further information, contact:
Gilles Renouard Marketing Department: Asia
