In 2025, domestic animated films achieved a surprising result: among the top ten box office rankings for the year, animated films accounted for 4 spots, of which 3 were domestic animated films; The box office of animated movies has exceeded 25 billion yuan, with a market share of nearly 50%. Behind this is the continuous increase in audience acceptance of animated films, which reflects the increasingly diverse content themes and production techniques of domestic animation that are constantly in line with international advanced levels. Facing the new year, maintaining the courage to explore and create, domestic animated films will better step onto the world stage. Looking back at the Chinese film market in 2025, animated films have performed outstandingly. The total box office revenue of animated films in China for the whole year was 51.832 billion yuan. With the strong pull of "Ne Zha 2", the box office of animated films exceeded 25 billion yuan, accounting for nearly 50% of the market share. Among the top ten box office rankings for the whole year, animated films accounted for 4 spots, namely "Ne Zha 2", "Zootopia 2", "The Little Monsters of Langlang Mountain", and "Boonie Bears: Reborn the Future", of which 3 were domestic animated films. A series of market data has doubled the confidence of China's animated film industry, with domestic animated films such as Nezha 2 having a huge impact. How to view the Chinese animation film market in 2025 is particularly important for seizing market opportunities and taking new steps towards development in the new year. Supported by blockbuster films, releasing spillover effects. In 2025, "Nezha", riding on the wind and fire wheel, will gather the world's attention: "Nezha 2" has become the global box office champion of animated films with a global box office of 15.949 billion yuan, and also the first Asian film in film history to enter the top ten global box office, ranking fifth in global box office history. Not only 'Ne Zha 2', but also many animated films that have left a deep impression on Chinese audiences. Both domestic animated films such as "Little Monsters of Langlang Mountain" and imported animated films such as "Zootopia 2" have performed well in the Chinese film market. Yu Zhou, President of Chasing Light Animation, believes that from the perspective of the domestic animation film market in 2025, the driving force of blockbuster and top films is particularly significant. At the beginning of the year, "Ne Zha 2" attracted 324 million viewers, many of whom were repeat viewers and many were "new viewers" who had not been to the cinema for many years. Nezha 2 has attracted high attention from audiences to animated films, and has played a driving role in the performance of animated films throughout 2025, "said Yu Zhou." The topic effect formed by popular films has further driven up the box office of animated films. "" The acceptance of animated films by Chinese audiences is becoming increasingly high. ”Peng Kan, a member of the Theoretical Review Committee of the China Film Association, said. Data shows that from 2011 to 2018, animated films accounted for about 10% of China's annual box office; From 2019 to 2024, this proportion will be around 14%; By 2025, the proportion will be close to 50%. Currently, the post-95s and post-00s are the mainstream audience for cinema viewing. Compared to the post-70s and post-80s generations, this generation has been exposed to more animated movies during their growth process and has a higher acceptance of animated movies, "said Yu Zhou. The IP genes of animated movies are driving the market up continuously. The vast majority of domestic and foreign animated films released in 2025 are IP movies. Nezha 2, Zootopia 2, Boonie Bears: Reborn the Future, and Luo Xiaohei's War 2 all have previous works. "Little Monsters on Langlang Mountain" is based on the animated series "Chinese Strange Tales," while "Liaozhai: Lanruosi" is developed from a classical literary work with a strong foundation. Peng Kan stated that animated movies are easy to implement IP and release spillover effects. The development of IP movies is multidimensional, it can be sequels, derivatives, or joint marketing. ”In recent years, co branding with other brands during the release period has not only increased the popularity and influence of animated films, but also brought higher box office and peripheral revenue, thereby creating a strong viewing atmosphere, enhancing user stickiness, and expanding consumption scenarios. The quality continues to improve, and "domestic" dominates. Looking back at the past few years, domestic animated films such as "Chang'an 30000 Miles", "White Snake: Floating Life", "Deep Sea", "Tea No. 2 Middle School" have not only achieved good box office results, but also gained a good reputation. Chinese audiences are increasingly fond of domestic animated films, which have become the mainstream of the domestic animated film market, "said Peng Kan. Industry insiders generally believe that the fundamental reason why domestic animated films are becoming increasingly popular among audiences is the improvement of quality. On the one hand, the content themes are more diverse. Looking at the current domestic animated films, there are not only the "Nezha" and "White Snake" series adapted from traditional Chinese mythology, but also the "Chang'an 30000 Miles" and "Liaozhai" series derived from classical Chinese literature, as well as the "Lion Boy" series that focuses on real life, the "Little Monsters of Langlang Mountain" series with realistic allegorical colors, and the "Boonie Bears" series that continues the family friendly attribute... On the other hand, in terms of animation technology, the production technology of Chinese animated films has been in line with the international advanced level. In recent years, the atmosphere of inheriting and developing excellent traditional Chinese culture has become increasingly strong, and the soil of cultural confidence has become deeper. Young audiences grow up in an era where the comprehensive strength of the country is constantly increasing, and at the same time, school education and the whole society's emphasis on excellent traditional Chinese culture are becoming higher and higher, which makes them naturally close to domestic animated films, "said Yu Zhou. From the perspective of industrial layout, the investment entities of domestic animated films are showing an increasingly clustered trend. At present, the production companies of animated films are becoming more concentrated, and the increasing clustering of investment entities means that the industrial chain of Chinese animated films is more complete, and the risk resistance ability of animated film enterprises is enhanced. This is of great significance for the future development of Chinese animated films, "said Peng Kan. Daring to explore and create, telling good Chinese stories brings joy to the achievements, but we should also calmly see the challenges behind them. To achieve sustained expansion in the animated film market, a large number of mid budget films are needed as support, which requires more small and medium budget films to gain audience and market attention. ”Yu Zhou stated. At the same time, the Chinese film market has become the world's largest ticket market for Zootopia 2. This not only confirms the strong digestion ability of China as the world's second largest film market, but also demonstrates the tolerance and welcome of excellent imported films in the Chinese film market and industry, becoming a microcosm of China's continuous deepening of reform and opening up. While excellent overseas animated films have achieved success in the Chinese film market, how can domestic animated films better go global, tell Chinese stories well, and convey Chinese voices? This has become a new task and topic for the Chinese animation film industry. The characteristics of animated films make them stand out in terms of expressiveness and have unique advantages in cultural dissemination. ”Yu Zhou said, "Chinese animated films need to think about how to explore and express common human emotions when creating products with Chinese culture as the main content, so that audiences from different cultural backgrounds can accept and love our stories, and thus help Chinese animated films better step onto the world stage