QINGDAO -- As China marks the 120th anniversary of its film industry this year, the country is bringing lessons from other industries into the sector's development, using the latest tech to streamline all phases of production.

From the first black-and-white silent film made in China in 1905 to today's global blockbusters produced using the very latest technology, China's film industry is looking to take the next steps as a global leader in the movie world.
Insiders explain that the "industrialization" of film making is about using technology to increase production efficiency without compromising any of the creative vision of the minds behind the camera.
The massive, state-of-the art LED screen in the China Film Group studio is a dynamic digital backdrop that adjusts to camera angles in real time to match the camera's movements. Compared to traditional green-screen filming, where effects have to be added in the background in post-production, using the LED studio saves time and cost.

Virtual preview technology uses special motion suits to capture actors movements in real time and then generate virtual 3D imagery of the movie set as an "instruction manual" for filming. This allows the production team to finalize shot composition, actor positioning, and other elements through animated footage before actual filming begins, significantly boosting production efficiency.
This new way of working is also making set design and building more efficient.
A 20-hectare city with more than 200 concrete buildings which was created as a set for Chinese blockbuster film series Detective Chinatown was finished in just seven months thanks to a more industrialized approach to the job.
Using technology, and a more industrialized approach, means more scenes can be filmed in studios rather than on more challenging and costly location shoots. Studios that are embracing the changes, such as Oriental Movie Metropolis in Qingdao City, in east China's Shandong province, stand to benefit from growth in China's movie business.
It boasts 40 advanced studios and 32 set-building workshops, as well as a world-class underwater studio equipped with water filtration and temperature control systems, capable of simulating oceans and lakes.
With so many more movies being shot in studios like this, these spaces have also become valuable networking hubs, connecting thousands of people in film-related businesses looking to play a leading role in China's blossoming film industry.