After China joins the WTO, its film industry will face great challenges. Therefore, the industry should start in advance and get fully prepared for the challenges. Among all, analysis of films' subjects is of significance when it comes to macro control and policy guidance in the industry. On the surface, subjects are a matter of categories but they are in fact a matter concerning artistic expressions and creativity of filmmaking. Generally speaking, Chinese films produced in recent years include historical ones and realistic ones from the perspective of subject matters. The immediate task for the industry is to make some adjustments according to market demands.

1. The market will still favor historical films, which include films of major political events and people's life in the history. Films of major political events in the history are catered to the requirements of social politics but the number should be small and quality should be high. In these films, producers are advised not to blindly pursue magnificence in a conventional way but to reflect big historical events through portraying small roles. The subject matter of historical life is a folk prescription to please filmgoers. However, Chinese filmmakers haven't done a good job in this aspect yet. The market calls for refined historical life films that feature outstanding artistic traits and good imagination while the products in the market are poised to demonstrate marvelous spectacle and philistinism. So it is necessary to strengthen planning and guidance in making historical films.

2. Realistic subject matters should have held an important position but, due to the tradition, excellent films emerging shortly after the founding of the New China were mostly historical films such as The Shop of the Lin Family, New Year's Sacrifice, Early Spring, Song of Youth, Song of the Red Flag. After the reform and opening up, more realistic films came into being but there was no essential leap forward in the content of these films, which did not fully depict people's colorful life under the reform and opening-up policy. Realistic films simple as Beautiful Mother (Piaoliang Mama) are not appealing to filmgoers.

In respect of realistic subject matters, filmmakers should pay attention to the following aspects:

First, they should shift focus from countryside to urban life. Domestic films on countryside subject matters were once prevalent. Though the countryside still remains the focus of attention in today's China, films simply about life there can no longer meet the demand of the market. In fact, interactions between countryside and townships produce a lot of dramatic stories and colorful subject matters for filmmakers.

Second, urban life provides a big world for realistic films. Films depicting urban life will inevitably become the mainstay of homemade films. In recent years, films  did not witness big improvement in creators' standard and films' quality mainly due to difficulty in breaking traditional taboos. The existing films about urban life have presented certain variety in ways of expressions. For instance, Fatal Decision is a very realistic picture that reflects in arts about political/economic corruption and anti-corruption in China．The film shows a highly artificial appreciation while expressing common Chinese people who want to have a good government and to have a strong country for legally developing the economy and to secure the survival for people. The film provides us with a series of impressive figures. The film Shower thoroughly depicts the ways of the world in people's life. Spicy Love Soup and Love in Cyberspace are about the colorful inner world of the young generation. A Love of Blueness is about behaviors and inner feelings of people living in cities, while Something About Secret portrays the secret mentality and feelings of urban couples.

Third, subject matters about the young generation should be strengthened. Chinese films seldom vividly depict complicity of young people's inner world and freshly manifest conflicts in traditional family education but often portray adults who consider themselves always right. Young people are the majority of Chinese filmgoers and they hold the balance in the development of China's film market. In addition, new directors, who are more poised to focus films about subjects of the youth on campus life or individual life, need certain guidance.

Finally, family conflict is the basic conflict in people's life. However, many domestic films are not good at depicting it. Actually, this subject matter leaves much room for filmmakers and the key to success is to express people's living condition and inner world. Take the film A Sigh as an example. Touching on one of the most sensitive topics in China today, the film about extramarital affair has proved to be a tearjerker, especially for married women audiences. But the film did not fully demonstrate delicate relation among people or reflect the diversified society, and let go of the conventional way of depicting human warmth.