From Sept 1, Beijing cinemas will issue about 900,000 coupons to moviegoers to encourage them to watch patriotic films as a prelude to China's National Day holiday.

From Sept 1 to Sept 20, after buying a full price ticket for a domestic film at any cinema in Beijing, moviegoers would receive one of the coupons, said Wang Jian, an official with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Radio and Television. "About 900,000 people are expected to go to the cinema during this time."

From Oct 1 to Nov 30, audiences holding a coupon will have to pay only 10 yuan ($1.50) for a ticket to any movie being shown, compared with an average ticket price of 34 yuan, he said.

A string of patriotic films is scheduled for screening from September through October to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China on Oct 1.