【Scholar talk】
Author: Guo Yu (Director and Professor of the Animation Department of the School of Film and Television Animation, Sichuan Academy of Fine Arts)
Recently, the General Office of the State Administration of Radio and Television issued the “Notice on the Production and Distribution of National Domestic TV Cartoons in 2022”. In the field of online animation, looking at the broadcast volume of various domestic animations launched on major video websites across the country in 2022, sci-fi animations also show a rising trend of popularity. Chinese sci-fi animation is growing rapidly.
The artificial intelligence jade rabbit in “Jade Rabbit” comes from Chinese classical mythology.profile picture
The time goes back to the 1950s and 1960s. After the founding of New China, a lot of waste was waiting to be done, and the art of animation has also entered a new stage of development. A batch of domestic animations with artistic characteristics and cultural value have entered the field of vision of the broad audience. Classic cartoons such as “Little Tadpole Looking for Mom” and “Havoc in Heaven” show the world a unique oriental aesthetics, not only attracting widespread attention in the field of animation creation at home and abroad, but also pushing Chinese animation art to a new height. However, domestic animation at that time mostly focused on traditional myths and folk tales, and seldom dabbled in science fiction themes.
“Ling Cage” redesigns traditional Chinese medicine treatments such as cupping.profile picture
In the 1980s, foreign sci-fi animations such as “Astro Boy” and “Transformers” were successively introduced. For Chinese audiences whose cultural life was relatively scarce at that time, these works showed a sense of technology and rich imagination. It not only affects people’s sensory experience, but also triggers many thoughts of Chinese animators on the creation of sci-fi animation.
The scene design of “Out of the Earth” uses a lot of traditional Chinese architectural elements.profile picture
In recent years, with the prosperity and development of cultural undertakings and cultural industries, domestic animation has made many achievements. Among them, the rise of sci-fi animation can be described as “at the right time”. In 2019, the sci-fi movie “The Wandering Earth”, which was born out of nowhere, became a “popular hit” as soon as it was released. The following year, the National Film Administration and the China Association for Science and Technology issued “Several Opinions on Promoting the Development of Science Fiction Movies.” This not only brings new opportunities for the development of domestic sci-fi films, but also ushers in the spring of China’s sci-fi industry. Of course, it also includes domestic sci-fi animations. At the same time, in the face of animation works with various themes and styles, the audience’s preferences and tastes are also changing. Early online animations were mainly martial arts and fantasy works, but the plots and visual effects of such works have gradually become homogeneous in recent years. The loss of audience has prompted many animation practitioners to turn their attention to new fields – Sci-fi animation. In terms of communication and promotion, the development of the Internet and the maturation of the online video industry have provided a variety of platforms for the broadcast of animation works. Under the influence of various factors, many domestic sci-fi animations with strong oriental aesthetics have sprung up like mushrooms.
“Black Gate” combines the calculation method of the future computer system with the traditional Tai Chi elements.profile picture
Take the currently popular sci-fi animated series “Ling Cage” as an example. The film presents a strong Chinese style in terms of art design and soundtrack: future costumes improved on the basis of cheongsam, and a national-style soundtrack dominated by suona , as well as the emergence of traditional Chinese medicine treatments such as acupuncture and cupping, all brought refreshing feelings to the audience. In addition, in order to create works with local characteristics, the production team of the sci-fi animated film “Out of the Earth” spent several months collecting materials in the streets and alleys of Beijing, integrating a large number of traditional Chinese architectural elements into the scene design; the sci-fi animated series “Black Gate” Among them, from the recurring traditional Chinese food, utensils decorated with traditional flower and bird patterns, to the calligraphy works hanging indoors, and the Tai Chi elements displayed on the computer system operation interface, all let the audience feel the strong Chinese style and “cultural flavor”; ” The sci-fi animated short film “Jade Rabbit” in China Strange Story is based on ancient Chinese mythology and rich in scientific fantasy. It fills the gaps in Chinese animation types, and the ingenious transformation and application of a large number of oriental culture and aesthetic elements has opened up new ideas for the creation and exploration of “Chinese-style” sci-fi animation.
In fact, for a long time in the past, there has been a difficult gap between Chinese traditional culture and aesthetic elements and science fiction art. As we all know, science fiction art was initially established on the basis of the Western industrial revolution, which led to the start of the Western science fiction industry much earlier than China. At the same time, in the fantasy world of Chinese people, from the rare animals in the “Shan Hai Jing” to the anecdotes and anecdotes in the strange novels of Tang and Song Dynasties, there is a certain distance from “science fiction” in terms of visual expression.
The futuristic teahouse design in “Heart of the Galaxy” draws on traditional Chinese architectural styles.profile picture
Today, these circumstances have changed. On the one hand, the development and growth of China’s science and technology industry has provided a strong boost for the rise of domestic sci-fi animation. As a cultural reflection of the country’s scientific and technological level, the sci-fi industry also reflects the spiritual outlook of the creative community. The confidence and calmness of contemporary Chinese sci-fi animation creators will give birth to new perspectives and new methods of creation. As Guo Fan, the director of the “Wandering Earth” series of movies, said, only a strong country can support a strong science fiction industry.
On the other hand, more and more animation creators realize the value of combining Chinese style and sci-fi themes, and actively explore and practice the integration of the two. In the creation of sci-fi animation, in addition to incorporating visual elements with strong national characteristics into clothing, makeup and prop design, etc., it is also a Chinese style to show the excellent traditional Chinese culture and national spirit in the overall plot design, theme expression, and ideological connotation. the only way. We can see in many excellent domestic sci-fi animation works, in the face of difficulties and obstacles, the protagonist’s spirit of the foolish old man moving mountains, and the ideal pursuit of “creating a heart for the world, and a life for the people”; In the future world, the laws of operation of everything still contain the wisdom of oriental philosophy.
When sci-fi animation meets Chinese traditional culture, it will present a rich and unique artistic outlook. Many excellent works are like cornerstones, paving the way for Chinese science fiction animation. I believe that in the future, with the continuous improvement of China’s animation creation level, more and more science fiction-themed masterpieces will go abroad to show the world a multi-dimensional image of China.
“Guangming Daily” (version 09, April 23, 2023)
[
责编：李伯玺 ]