Classic Films Return to the Big Screen as Ruyi Film’s “Pai Hao Pian” Debuts First Slate This Weekend

On the afternoon of Saturday, September 12, audiences filed into dedicated “Pai Hao Pian” screening halls at Ruyi Film’s cinemas in Beijing, Shenzhen and other cities. What appeared on screen was not any newly released title, but six critically acclaimed films chosen by a nationwide audience vote.

At the Wanda Plaza branch in Beijing’s CBD, after the credits rolled on “De Xian Jin Zhi,” many viewers posed for photos with their ticket stubs and exclusive posters. “I’d watched it on my phone before and always wanted to see it in a theater,” one audience member said. “When I saw the group-buy option through Pai Hao Pian, I jumped at the chance. Seeing it on the big screen today, the details feel completely different.”

Launched by Ruyi Film in April this year, Pai Hao Pian is the flagship product of the company’s C2B2C multi-content operation model. Users vote to “wish” for content they want to see, Ruyi Film responds by acquiring screening rights in accordance with industry regulations, and then audiences form groups to unlock screenings at cinemas.

Ruyi Film operates more than 710 directly managed cinemas across three brands: Wanda Cinema, Huanyi Cinema and Ruyi Cinema. This round of classic re-releases was born directly from audience demand for films no longer in theaters. On August 21, Pai Hao Pian opened a nationwide wish-collection campaign that drew attention from nearly a million users. Six high-rated titles were ultimately selected: “Nice View,” “Chang An,” “De Xian Jin Zhi,” “B for Busy,” “The Time Keeper” and “Her Story,” spanning drama, comedy, animation and inspirational genres.

Group-buying officially launched on September 6, with “De Xian Jin Zhi”—fresh off winning Best Picture at the 21st China Changchun Film Festival’s Golden Deer Awards—topping the formation rankings. Starting this weekend, Ruyi Film cinemas in Xi’an, Fuzhou, Dalian, Xuzhou and other cities will host gatherings of like-minded fans reliving these classics. The slate will continue to expand with more titles in the future.

The Pai Hao Pian process is simple: wish, group up, watch. During the group-buying phase, users open the Wanda Movie app or the Wanda Movie+ WeChat mini-program, tap into Pai Hao Pian, select a film and click to join a group. Once the threshold is met, the system automatically locks in the screening time and hall, and successful participants receive an SMS notification. On screening day, attendees can collect exclusive posters on site, turning the event into an offline gathering of fans.

Bringing classic films back to the big screen is just one piece of the Pai Hao Pian puzzle. Since April, the initiative has validated five content categories: series, variety shows, anime, live sports and classic re-releases. Through its “fan group-buying, group-triggered screening” mechanism, Pai Hao Pian transforms cinemas from mere exhibition venues into hubs for shared interests, offering both regularly scheduled screenings and one-off themed events.

Series was the earliest focus. “Hei Ye Gao Bai” sold out all screenings across 10 cities within 24 hours of going on sale. “Yao Yan” linked eight cities, pushing effective plays past 100 million and making its “reunion” event a phenomenon in offline fan socializing. For variety shows, weekly Friday-night live viewing parties for “Singer 2026” since June have had audiences singing along with the big screen, creating an atmosphere akin to a mini-concert. Since August, Ruyi Film has served as the official offline exclusive partner for “Call Me by Fire,” hosting live broadcasts of performance rounds with interactive photo walls and energy-voting activities that have turned cinemas into new fan destinations.

Anime and sports have proven the explosive potential of vertical content. Over the summer, Ruyi Film teamed up with Tencent Video to create an anime showcase, bringing Chinese animated series to the big screen for the first time, with 102 events achieving a 90% occupancy rate. Sports broadcasting, a mature multi-business segment Ruyi Film has operated for years, spans Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix to League of Legends World Championship events, drawing motorsport and gaming enthusiasts. These have now been fully integrated into the Pai Hao Pian system. Most recently, German Table Tennis Bundesliga broadcasts launched nationwide, hitting 97.1% occupancy on day one, proving the big screen is becoming a new venue for sports socializing.

Classic re-releases, or long-tail screenings, represent the fifth piece. The rollout of these six films marks full coverage of all five categories under Pai Hao Pian.

From April to September, what Ruyi Film has validated in five months is how much new potential can be unlocked in cinemas under the C2B2C multi-content operation model. This also marks the first time a mainstream Chinese cinema chain has upgraded from a single supply-driven approach to a dual “supply + demand” driven model through structural innovation. As stated in Ruyi Film’s “Super Entertainment Space 2.0” strategy released in June: “Driven by ‘super scenes + super IP’ at the core, build a sustainable value ecosystem.” Cinemas are the most imaginative super scenes, classic films and diverse content are an endless stream of super IP, and what Pai Hao Pian aims to do is deliver audiences all the way to offline fan gatherings and second venues—”making the screen a true medium of connection, a vessel for emotion, and a spiritual coordinate where like-minded people come together.”