Blockbusters such as Detective Chinatown 3 are delaying release dates in response to the pandemic. The country's film industry is striving to get back on its feet. The first installment of the Fengshen trilogy is one of the films ready for theatrical release when cinemas reopen.[Photo provided to China Daily]

China's top film authority is working to introduce relief measures to help the domestic industry survive the COVID-19 crisis.

The China Film Administration, the country's top regulator for the sector, released a statement on its official website on April 3, announcing that it has coordinated with the Ministry of Finance, the National Development and Reform Commission, the State Taxation Administration and other related departments to research preferential fiscal and tax policies.

Such policies include exemption from a 5 percent levy on ticket revenues by the National Film Industry Development Special Fund.

Initiated in 1997, the fund was established to support quality film production, urban cinemas' maintenance and renovations, and filming in areas where ethnic groups reside.