Comic adaptation takes off in China

Nov 18, 2025 CFM Daily, Film x Internet, Industry 0

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After novel and music adaptation fever, literary property (IP) of anime and comic has emerged as the new focus in the Chinese film market. Tencent Comic, Enlight media and Alpha Animation and Culture are a few of those who are trying to take up the game.

The three companies have been moving forward aggressively, which seem to have become three tycoons in the industry. But the domestic comic scene is still at a primary stage and there has been no real competition between them. Meanwhile, a growing number of companies including Internet giants are stepping up to fill the gap. Youku Tudou, which was bought out by Alibaba recently, invested 50 million yuan in AcFun, a major video-sharing website that features anime, comic and games (AGG).

Tencent Comic itself is a comic-sharing platform that has the largest number of domestic audiences. Rumors are rampant that the company will acquire 15 percent of Bilibili with 1.5 billion yuan. Like AcFun, Bilibili is one of China’s most influential ACG associated screen comments of video sharing sites. If this is true, Tencent will reinforce its advantage in upstream content production.

Moreover, Tencent also has its own film studios, of which Tencent Pictures especially concentrates on adapting Tencent’s IPs including Tencent Comic. However, the conversion rate is rather low. After all, whether these IPs can be hatched into some thing of commercialized value or not is still a large problem.

Enlight, on the other hand, is a traditional film production and distribution company, without many comic genes. However, the company managed to take a stake in 13 comic and anime companies in a short time, constructing its layout in the industry. These 13 animation companies all have one thing in common: they hold relatively mature technology and IPs that can be directly used.

As a major film studio, Enlight boasts strong business dynamics and marketing skills. But it has been relying on films to grow and thrive for such a long time and has hardly created any original anime products. If the company cannot further enrich its layout, it may soon run out of the steam.

Alpha’s case is a little different; the company is neither a content producer nor distributor. It started as a toy maker.

Alpha Animation and Culture was founded in 2004. But it wasn’t until Alpha acquired Creative Power Entertaining, which over 700 episodes of PLEASANT GOAT AND BIG BIG WOLF, a popular Chinese animated series, in 2013 that it has a say in the industry.

In 2015, Alpha acquired a 100 percent equity stake in u17.com, 20 percent in Eryuanci Technology, 3.5 percent in Changxiang Games, 60 percent in Mianmiantang Technology, 9.25 percent in Magilm Pictures, and 6.5 percent in Yoyotu. With a series of acquisitions, Alpha has gradually built its own supply chain covering upstream content production, midstream distribution channel and downstream derivative business.

Comic and anime was as an industry that filmmakers didn’t pay much attention in the past. As the film market continues to boom, people begin to realize that animated films can also make huge profits. But it is still hard to say whether their strategy will work out.

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