The impact of major infectious disease events and government relief packages on the film industry: evidence from Taiwan

This study investigates the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Taiwan's film industry and the effectiveness of government relief policies. Using multiple regression models on a 52-week sample of 5686 films (2019-2020), the study finds that despite relief measures, box office receipts declined by over 50%. While the number of films remained stable, local productions decreased significantly, and the number of reruns increased substantially, suggesting a decline in film novelty. The regression models reveal that box office performance is positively affected by the number of theaters, films from major studios and countries (US, Japan, Taiwan), and student vacations, while being negatively impacted by the pandemic.

Liza Lee, Ying-Sing Liu