Constructing a socialist cultural market in the post-World Trade Organization era: Policy shift and tension in China’s film industry

China’s film industry policies play a pivotal role in governing production, distribution and exhibition, shaping the industry’s development. This study empirically analyses 32 national film policies (2001–20) to trace China’s strategic shift towards a state-controlled socialist cultural market – a framework designed to counterbalance the cultural impact of China’s World Trade Organization (WTO) accession in 2001. By introducing the concept of the socialist cultural market, this article offers a novel analytical framework for understanding the evolution of China’s film policy and industry dynamics. The findings demonstrate that the government has institutionalized this model, enforcing ideological conformity through censorship, licensing and screening controls to prioritize ‘social effects’. Meanwhile, to enhance economic returns and global competitiveness, authorities have selectively liberalized production and co-exhibition regulations. This dual approach, however, generates a fundamental tension between ideological control and cultural exportation, which raises a concern on the global reception of its film industry. As of now, new policy documents have yet to be introduced to tackle this institutional tension.