China Archives | Cartoon Brew

Chinese Animated Feature ‘Niu Lai’ Turns Online Mockery Into Big Box Office Bucks

Made by a mother-and-son team over five years, the low-budget, so-bad-it’s-good film went from selling fewer than 300 tickets to becoming a million-dollar hit.

Feature Film

Peering Through the Cracks: How Sun Xun Spent A Decade Creating The Chinese Epic ‘Magic Atlas’ With 500 Artists

Sun Xun discusses the decade-long production of ‘Magic Atlas,’ its handmade animation, shifting visual styles, political themes, and spiritual ideas.

Box Office Report

‘All Wishes Come True!’ Tops China’s Box Office As Local Animation Boom Continues

Pearl Studio’s animated fantasy had a $43.8 million weekend as locally produced animation continues its historic run at China’s box office.

Distribution

Pearl Studio’s ‘All Wishes Come True!’ Trailer Turns The Eight Immortals Into A Heist Crew

The former Oriental DreamWorks and its parent company, CMC Pictures, unveils a Chinese mythological comedy about eight mortals attempting to rob the gods.

Feature Film

‘Nobody’ Director Yu Shui On Crafting China’s Biggest-Ever 2D Animated Hit

Ahead of an Annecy competition appearance, the filmmaker discusses blending Chinese painting traditions with Western techniques to shape the feature’s look.

Box Office Report

Animation Boom Fuels China’s 2025 Box Office Boom

China’s box office surged 22% in 2025, led by record-breaking animated hits like ‘Ne Zha 2,’ ‘Zootopia 2,’ and ‘Nobody.’

Box Office Report

‘Zootopia 2’ Nears $1B Globally, ‘Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution’ Breaks Out

Disney’s hit sequel enjoys a strong second weekend hold, while ‘Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution’ delivers a standout $10.1 million debut.

Box Office Report

‘Zootopia 2’ Sprints To Biggest Global Animated Opening Of All Time, Fueled By Massive Chinese Turnout

Disney’s ‘Zootopia 2’ achieved numerous historic opening milestones across domestic and international markets, becoming Disney’s biggest-ever animated release.

Shorts

Craving More ‘Zootopia’? These Four Dialogue-Free Chinese Shorts Have You Covered

Disney and Shanghai Animation Film Studio teamed on this four-pack of ‘Zootopia’ animated shorts in different traditional Chinese styles.

Box Office Report

‘Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle’ Leads China Box Office With $52M Opening, Pushes Global Total To $730 Million

The debut expands ‘Demon Slayer’s’ global momentum and has distributors seeing dollar signs with two more titles from the franchise’s final trilogy to come.

Box Office Report

China’s ‘Nobody’ Surges Past 1 Billion Yuan ($185M), Breaks 2D Animation Record

Chinese animation is thriving at the domestic box office, with sweeping historical epics capturing the imagination of local audiences and breaking records.