iQIYI, an innovative market-leading online entertainment service in China, announced that from Apr. 20 to 29, the company is hosting the online screening of the 13th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF). iQIYI will provide various ways of viewing, including online screening and live broadcasting to showcase high-quality films and TV series. The screening features the debut of the restored 4K version of Woman Sesame Oil Maker, Golden Bear Award winner in 1993, a strong example of the Company’s utilizing its self-developed ZoomAI video enhancement technology (“ZoomAI”) to restore the Chinese heritage films.
Technology brings cultural classics back to the big screen
To bring classic films back to the big screen with full colour and enhanced clarity, the film restoration joint laboratory between iQIYI and Xiamen University conducted a three-stage restoration, namely physical, digital and artistic restoration, without compromising the film’s original artistic style. ZoomAI’s key functions, such as video super resolution, scratch removal, and denoising, enabled high-quality video and audio experiences for users.
According to the head of iQIYI ZoomAI restoration team, the implementation of AI technology has improved the restoration efficiency of classic films by 500 times. This not only reduces the costs and expenses of the process, but also effectively addresses the issue of understaffing faced by the industry. In conjunction with manual refinement performed post-AI, 90% of the films have been restored to 4K high-definition picture quality.
Till date, iQIYI has restored more than 150 films with ZoomAI, including Mu Guiying Takes Command, Li Shuangshuang and many other classic films released from the 1950s to the 1990s. iQIYI data shows that since its launch, the total viewing time of the classic movie restoration section of the platform has increased by 52%.
With its cutting-edge AI technology and commitment to providing high-quality content, iQIYI is set to continue providing users with high-quality content and promoting the sustainable development of the film industry.
More on the Festival
The online portion of this year’s BJIFF by iQIYI features a selection of 77 films presented in 11 curated units celebrating themes such as first-person narratives, films from Thailand, the Marvel Series, and others. The roll-out invites viewers to enjoy cinema hits such as X-Men: Dark Phoenix, Deadpool, Deadpool 2: I Love My Home, and Captain America, as well as popular domestic films such as The Dead End and Knock Knock.
It also allows users to have greater experience of the Festival and deepen their understanding of the industry as viewers can stream exciting events that are organized as part of the Festival, such as the opening and closing ceremonies, talks by renowned filmmakers, and high-level industry forums.
