Cultural Industry

Hunan's cultural industry began to thrive at the end of 1980s. Since then, the province's strengths in publishing, broadcasting and television, and entertainment and performances have emerged as the three key "calling cards" of Hunan Province. Cultural event brands such as the Hunan Art Festival, Yayun Sanxiang (elegant rhythm of Hunan), and Reading Month, have taken shape. Changsha has been designated as the permanent host of the China Golden Eagle TV Art Festival since the first session in 2000.

In recent years, the added value of Hunan's culture and related industries has grown by an average annual rate of over 6%. The cultural industry keeps expanding steadily with its development resilience continuously enhancing.

Hunan adheres to the leading role of scientific and technological innovation, improving the collaborative research mechanism for key common technologies in the cultural field. The Malanshan Audio-Video Laboratory has submitted over 200 patent and software copyright applications and more than 100 standard proposals, and developed first-of-its-kind products such as the world's first AI binocular 4K live-streaming camera and China's first dual Vivid standard set-top box. China's first vertical large language model for Chinese historical culture and museology—"Shanhai Xuanji"—has been put into use. The model relies on the Mango large model technology base to achieve independent and controllable core technology and is accompanied by digital museology and AIGC creation platforms that accelerate the digital production of cultural content, significantly enhancing technological innovation capabilities.

In 2025, Hunan's audio-video industry achieved revenue of 289.06 billion CNY, building a complete industrial chain featuring "high-quality content + proprietary standards + domestic equipment," serving as the core engine for cultural industry growth.

Rooted in the profound Hunan cultural lineage, Hunan uses digital technology to activate cultural resources, giving rise to a batch of high-growth new cultural formats. VR projects like Yezi Technology's "A Dream into the Tang Dynasty" and Space Warp Engine's "Terracotta Warriors: A Wonderful Night" have been launched in multiple locations nationwide. Creatone's OneStory tool enables AI-driven full-process film creation. Shiyi Cultural's innovative "prepositioned post-production for film and television creation" system has changed the traditional micro-drama production model, realizing "editing starts as filming commences."

In the digital museology field, the Mawangdui Research Institute and the national-level cultural relics scenario-based digital display platform are being constructed at an accelerated pace. The "24/7 online museum" program breaks through time and space constraints, making cultural relics "come alive." In terms of intangible cultural heritage revitalization, Hunan's specialty cultural products like Hunan porcelain and Hunan embroidery are expanding overseas, with their international market share continuously rising. In the cultural expansion field, Mango's global communication platforms reach 195 countries and regions, continuously enhancing the international influence of Hunan culture.

The robust growth of business formats cannot be achieved without the solid backing of targeted policies and platform empowerment. The Malanshan Video Cultural and Creative Industrial Park established the "provincially-owned, municipally-managed" Hunan Malanshan Group, and mapped out a new "two zones and one corridor" layout. Over ten specific policies have been rolled out, covering talents, micro-dramas, new performance spaces. A 6-billion-CNY Malanshan Culture and Technology Venture Capital Fund has also been established. An "Intellectual Property Court Copyright Service Center + grassroots workstations" copyright service network has been developed, which was recognized by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) as a model for excellent copyright protection practices.

Currently, Hunan has 18 provincial and ministerial-level innovation platforms in the cultural and technological integration field. The Malanshan area has gathered over 5,000 enterprises and 68,000 industry professionals, with innovation factors rapidly agglomerating and the industrial ecosystem continuously optimizing.

Hunan continues to deepen reforms and innovations in the "Culture+" sector, stimulating the internal driving force for industrial development.

From the classic red film and television IP "A Dream of Youth," to "Dehang Illusion" which reconstructs landscape narratives with Eastern aesthetics, and to "Twilight River Dance of Snowflakes" depicting Changsha's poetic charm, Hunan's cultural tourism performances are always deeply integrated with technology, constantly seeking new expressions of Hunan culture.

From September to December 2025, the inaugural Hunan Super Football League, through 17 weeks and 98 matches, linked over 2,000 cultural tourism activities and attracted 2,413,500 on-site spectators, driving cultural tourism consumption of 13.679 billion CNY. Passionate sports and poetic cultural tourism perfectly intertwined here.

The much-anticipated "Museum-Park Integration" project for the Hunan Museum and Hunan Martyrs Park was officially launched in April, 2026. People can now enter from the park and walk directly to the museum. A new route connecting the "urban green lung" and the "cultural landmark" has been opened.

The innovative cultural engine brings continuously strengthened development momentum. In 2024, Hunan's cultural tourism industry entered the trillion-CNY level. In 2025, Hunan received 819 million tourist visits, achieving a total tourism revenue of 1,157.63 billion CNY.

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn