In 2006, Liu Cixin began to serialize the first part of the novel “Three-Body Problem” on “Science Fiction World“. In the novel, the alien civilization “Three-Body Problem” is looking for a new living space, and the earth’s civilization is in jeopardy. Because of the respect for other planetary civilizations in his heart, the listener of “Three-body Universe” No. 1379 chose to conceal the existence of the earth’s signal, and issued a warning to the earth, “Don’t answer! Don’t answer! Don’t answer!”.
In the following 16 years, the “Three-Body Problem” series of novels won Liu Cixin the “Hugo Award”, which can be called the Oscar of science fiction, and also gained many readers around the world, becoming one of the largest IPs in the field of Chinese science fiction literature. There are constant rumors of adaptations into movies and series.
On July 18, 2022, a sci-fi talk show called “Don’t Answer” was launched on Youku. Director Jia Zhangke, as the “Chief of the Future Research Section” of the show, talked with two or three guests in the eight episodes respectively. Explore the various topics of the future and science fiction sparked by The Three-Body Problem. These include changes brought about by cutting-edge technologies such as interstellar travel and artificial intelligence, as well as topics closely related to daily life such as human sleep and big data blind dates.
The program is named “Don’t Answer”, not only because this sentence comes from the important plot of the novel “Three-Body Problem”, but also to remind the audience not to make too arbitrary and eager judgments when facing new things. In the first episode, Jia Zhangke discussed “immigration to Mars” with science fiction writer Liu Cixin, artist Xu Bing and scientist Zhang Shuangnan.
This isn’t the first time filmmaker Jia Zhangke has focused on science fiction. He introduced to the Southern Weekend reporter that movies have been inseparable from science fiction since their birth, especially movies about interstellar travel, which are accompanied by the development of movie history. In recent years, in the face of the development and crisis of science and technology, film creators continue to use the form of art to show people the possibilities of the future.
Jia Zhangke’s films are known for showing and revealing reality, but fans can find his interest in sci-fi elements in them, as early as 2003’s “The Three Gorges Good Man” featured buildings that suddenly flew away. In this regard, Jia Zhangke believes that the surreal is just a presentation of reality, which is not the same as real science fiction, but “if you pay attention to reality for a long time, it is easy to become a science fiction fan.”
On July 26, 2022, a Southern Weekly reporter interviewed Jia Zhangke by telephone.
Jia Zhangke’s personal reason for participating in “Don’t Answer” is his curiosity about the impact of science and technology on human beings.
“The Three-Body Problem kept pulling me into the real world”
Southern Weekend:“Don’t Answer” is a sci-fi talk show related to “Three-Body Problem”. How did you become attached to this show?
Jia Zhangke:At first, when the producer asked me to participate in this show, it only said that it was a variety show. I thought it was the kind of singing and dancing, but I didn’t pay much attention to it. Later, they sat down and talked, saying that the show was about various topics about the future and science fiction that were extended from the novel “Three-Body Problem”, and the discussion was not about rambling fantasy, but about the content closely related to the development of science and technology.
I am very interested in the impact of future science and technology, but the director usually has few opportunities to contact scientists, and there is no opportunity to systematically discuss cutting-edge technology with people. This program can help us find the top scientists and scholars in China. I became curious and entered this job with a learning attitude.
Southern Weekend:How does it feel to host a talk show like this for the first time? Especially when you’re probably expecting you to talk about some movie-related topics, but this time it’s all cross-border conversations.
Jia Zhangke:If it was a movie show, I wouldn’t do it. I do movies every day, which has taken up too much of my time. Fortunately, “Don’t Answer” is completely complementary to me. It is a place where I am interested and very blank. Although the work of recording this program is very complicated and the pressure of recording is not small, the pleasure of seeking knowledge is quite pleasant.
My role in the program is mainly to thread the needle and guide everyone to discuss a topic.At the beginning, I also tried to make a lot of professional reserves, and bought