China wants sci-fi industry, led by megahit 3 Body Problem, to help tech make the jump to lightspeed
- Revenue from China’s sci-fi industry grew by 29 per cent year on year to 13.29 billion yuan (US$15.6 billion) in 2023
- In the spotlight after Netflix hit 3 Body Problem, the industry can also offer a boost to China’s drive for technological advancement
China’s US$15 billion sci-fi industry, which has gained global attention after the success of the Netflix show 3 Body Problem, offers a potential boost to the economy while aligning with Beijing’s aspirations to become a tech powerhouse, analysts said, underscoring the need for stronger government backing to fortify the sector.
The industry achieved 113.29 billion yuan (US$15.6 billion) in total revenue last year, representing a 29 per cent year on year increase according to the 2024 China Science Fiction Industry Report, released last week during the eighth China Science Fiction Convention in Beijing.
Science fiction could also help companies conceptualise and produce new ideas, such as the establishment of a human settlement on Mars or brain-computer interfaces, according to Wu Yan, who co-authored the report.
“Sci-fi products with rich content offer expansive imaginative realms for future technology.”
This upwards trajectory is expected to persist in the years ahead
China’s sci-fi industry has enjoyed steady growth, with revenues climbing from 10 billion yuan to over 100 billion yuan in the last eight years, Wu said.
“This upwards trajectory is expected to persist in the years ahead,” added Wu, who is also a professor at the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen.
“In my upcoming industry assessment, I plan to quantify the impact of sci-fi on technological research and development.”
Beijing has already explicitly named the sci-fi industry as a catalyst for advancing China’s scientific and technological progress.
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In 2021, the State Council released the “National Action Plan for Scientific Literacy 2021-35”, which highlighted the genre as a vital tool for fostering scientific innovation, literacy and cultural development.
The plan aimed to establish a high-level platform for the creation and exchange of science fiction, and integrate science and technology communication with the film and television industry.
Last year, China’s sci-fi film and television industry enjoyed a 38.8 per cent increase in revenues, paralleled by a 15.4 per cent increase in income for the sci-fi gaming sector, according to Wu’s report.
Sci-fi literature recorded year-on-year growth of 4.3 per cent, while revenue from science fiction-themed tourism, including scenic spots, amusement parks and stage plays surged to 31.06 billion yuan, up by 106.7 per cent year on year, report authors found.
Sci-fi will seamlessly blend with emerging industries, fostering avenues for new productivity
“In the future, AI-generated content is poised to revolutionise the creation of science fiction literature, film, and beyond,” said the report, which was jointly published by the China Science Fiction Research Centre and the Research Centre for Science and Human Imagination at the Southern University of Science and Technology.
“Sci-fi will seamlessly blend with emerging industries, fostering avenues for new productivity.”
In 2022, nearly 70 per cent of China’s science fiction sales were attributed to The Three-Body Problem, according to the “China Science Fiction 10-Year Industry Report”.
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China and viewers there criticise Netflix's 3 Body Problem adapted from Lu Cixin’s sci-fi novels
The show, which depicts human contact with a more technologically advanced alien civilisation, was first serialised in 2006 by Chinese engineer and science-fiction writer Liu Cixin in Science Fiction World, a renowned magazine with over 40 years of history. The novel is considered a landmark success in Chinese sci-fi.
“The government should increase the promotion of sci-fi literature and integrate them into education, including by introducing sci-fi to schools and offering educational programmes for juveniles,” Wu said.
“Thus it can ensure the long-term viability of the industry.”
Chen Ruiqi, a 36-year-old lawyer living in Shanghai, is an avid sci-fi fan, but he only spent a few hundred yuan last year on the hobby due to the limited availability of merchandise.
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“Sci-fi literature has immense potential for adaptation in films, yet China’s efforts in integrating sci-fi literature into the films is not as vigorous as the US, and China is still in its nascent stages of market development,” said Chen, a sci-fi reader for over two decades.
In 2019, China released The Wandering Earth, a film adapted from Liu’s novel of the same name, and it was heralded by the state-run Xinhua News Agency as the initiation of the country’s foray into sci-fi cinema.
