(Photo: CGTN)

The COVID-19 epidemic is impacting the entire Chinese film industry. After a widespread industrial shutdown for over two months, small and medium enterprises are returning to work despite difficulties.

RevoTimes is one of them. Being specialized in animation and visual effects enables it to begin work without too much manpower, which is important for the control and prevention of the coronavirus. 

The company's director Chen Chao said that it's better to avoid people gathering during the epidemic.

"We make sure to carry out programs for clients on condition that we are also doing the jobs safely," he said.

The problem for the company is there are not many commercial orders at the current time.

"In fact, some orders were cancelled. For the first half of this year, we will lose millions of yuan," Chen said.

Without deep pockets, the company now has to think of other ways to make profits based on its own specialty. It launched a mobile app recently. Though it's simple, it wins applause through web casting and the company says it's worth trying when people can be entertained.

This is just one example of how small and medium-sized companies in the industry have struggled during the epidemic. And the process of returning to work is a very slow one for many.

Zhang Yang is in charge of Beijing ELF TIMES, an equipment leasing company with some 20 staff.  

Zhang's company reopened recently, beginning to join commercial filming in studios, but it got only a few orders, while in the past, it's very busy at the time.

"I feel anxious and could not sleep at night," Zhang sighed.

Without any income and added operating cost in the past two months, the fate of the company is now uncertain, and he says that the entire film industry is closely connected.

"I think even when we gradually come back to work from now, things would only have positive changes in the second half the year," he said.

There is a concern whether the companies without deep pockets in the industry could get over the recent and the most difficult months.

What's a bit reassuring is some supportive measures are in position, like cutting rent and providing subsidies for them. And small-scale programs already began shooting in some studios in China. 

These are the good signs but the recovery for the industry will not be easy, particularly for the SMEs and great efforts are needed.