China Snow Flower and the Secret Fan returned 9.9× its production cost, earning $1.3M against a $134K budget — one of the highest-return China films in our catalog.
Synopsis
A story set in 19th century China and centered on the lifelong friendship between two girls who develop their own secret code as a way to contend with the rigid cultural norms imposed on women.
Budget & Box Office Efficiency
At a 1h 44m runtime, production spent $1K per minute on screen and earned $13K per minute back.
Drama + History in China
53 China titles in our catalog blend the Drama and History genres. Below: the top-rated of them (excluding Snow Flower and the Secret Fan itself).
The 2010–2012 China Window
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan holds position #63 of 98 China films in the 2010–2012 window, below highlighted by audience rating.
The 2010s China Landscape
Catalog density by release year across the 2010s in China, 515 titles in total. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Snow Flower and the Secret Fan premiered alongside 39 others.
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 39 other China films in 2011.
The 262nd China title from China we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1935).
Our China catalog contains 946 titles in total (747 films).
Audience Engagement
79 audience reviews — more than 73% of China films in our index.
Review volume (73th percentile) outruns trending popularity (54th) — a durable title with sustained audience attention.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #718 of 946 China films indexed here (24th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -0.7 points below the China average of 6.7/10.
Among China Drama productions specifically: #448 of 547 (top 82%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | China |
|---|---|
| Original Language | En |
| Spoken Languages | Mandarin, English |
| Production Companies | IDG China Media |
| Runtime | 1h 44m |
| Release Date | July 15, 2011 |
| IMDb | tt1541995 |
| Official Site | www.foxsearchlight.com |