How does the Chinese smartphone brand attract New filmmakers to make films with their phones?

With the iPhone 13 adding cinematic mode, Chinese smartphone manufacturers have also emphasized filmmaking as a significant function in their new models. By sponsoring film festivals, smartphone manufacturers utilize short film selections, which are aimed at discovering new talent, as a promotional platform to position their brands. This research argues that this marketing strategy reflects the long-standing method of functional positioning of smartphone brands in China as they frequently publicize their brand images by sponsoring different formats of popular entertainment activities related to film and television. This research uses the Chinese smartphone brand Vivo’s marketing campaign at the FIRST International Film Festival held annually since 2006 in Xining, Qinghai Province – a festival dedicated to incubating young Chinese film talents – as a case study. This study conducts a thematic and visual rhetoric analysis of the brand’s promotional materials to explore how it constructs its image to attract emerging filmmakers to smartphone-based film production. Through this case study, the research aims to uncover the foundational elements that define the new cinema of attractions through discussing the nature of smartphone filmmaking and Chinese platform economy.