Streaming sites show more documentaries

Streaming sites have become the main platform for producing and broadcasting documentaries in China, luring an increasing number of young viewers, according to a recent report.

The report on the development of Chinese documentaries in 2020 was released by the National Radio and Television Administration at the Guangzhou International Documentary Film Festival, which ran from Dec 14 to 17.

The report shows that more players have entered documentary production and the genre has become prominent on streaming sites.

On Bilibili, for example, a total of over 3,500 documentaries are available to stream, while nearly 100 of these are original productions, according to Zhang Shengyan, general manager of the site's copyright cooperation center.

"Watching documentaries has become an important way for young people to understand and explore the world," says Zhang, noting a surge in documentary viewers on the site, from 30 million in late 2018 to 90 million this year.

Tencent Video also notes that 66 percent of its users are members of Generation Z, and the platform is catering to their demands by providing documentaries with greater interactiveness, diversity of themes and innovative expressions, says Zhou Mo, with the platform's documentary IP content operation center.

Online platforms have been producing original documentaries and securing copyright works to offer more such films to attract young viewers, according to the report.

"We'll continue to support innovations in the production and dissemination of documentaries, and encourage more innovative production methods and forms to attract more viewers, especially the youth," says Gao Jianmin, deputy director of the National Radio and Television Administration.