介绍:
At the end of May this year, the box office revenue of animation films in China has exceeded 1.5 billion yuan. This number alone has surpassed China&`&s total annual box office in 2004.
When the summer vacation is coming for the children to enjoy movies, another round of animation films are to be shown. And this season are dominated by the adaptations from old animation series such as Doraemon and Mr.Black, or literally translated as "Black Cat Detective" and the others.
Films such as Stand by Me: Doraemon and the upcoming Mr. Black: Green Star, which is based on Black Cat Detective, has excited both the children and their parents, who have watched the earlier TV cartoon series during their childhood.
Doraemon, a pudgy little robotic cat that stands 149 cm in height is the main character of its namesake cartoon which first premiered in 1969. The TV cartoon series has accompanied three generations of people through their childhood since then. On May 28th this year, the film Stand by me: Doraemon was launched in China and has earned 520 million yuan at the box office.
Shijian Meigui is a movie critic. This is her view on the spending habits of moviegoers nowadays.
"Now, Chinese people spend more money on movies than before in general. Watching a movie has become a way of communication between children and their parents. Those who have watched TV cartoons during their childhood now grow to be people with the largest financial capacity for going to a movie. Certainly, these people would choose the familiar cartoon characters to watch, thus both they and their children could enjoy such animation films."
Apart from Doraemon, a lot of other animated characters that are familiar to both adults and children in China will make a comeback on the silver screen. Monkey King: Hero is Back and The Little Mermaid: Attack of the Pirates will be released in July.
The Little Mermaid is based on the Danish fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. In the film, the quiet mermaid will face up against a pirate captain.
Based on the Black Cat Detective series, new movie Mr. Black: Green Star is coming to the silver screen. The film will still be produced by Shanghai Animation Film Studio.
Shanghai Animation Film Studio is one of the oldest animation studios in China. It produced numerous children&`&s films such as puppet films, paper-cut films, Chinese water-ink animations and watercolor animations with artistic value. In the first Chinese water-ink animation film "Little Tadpole Looks for Mamma" it produced in 1960, the fishes and shrimps were based on the paintings of Qi Baishi, the master of waterink painting in China.
The Studio also produced Havoc in Heaven in 1960s, which won the outstanding film award at the 1978 London Film Festival and considered as a milestone in China&`&s animation film history. In addition, it produced the popular animated series Black Cat Detective, which premiered on TV in 1984.
Black Cat Detective is one of the most popular animated TV shows for those born after 1970s, 80s and 90s. It tells a series of stories about a smart, brave and handsome black cat detective who leads his fellow officers who protects animals that lives in the forest against criminals and mischief-makers.
The newly adapted film will come out in August.
Yu Shengjun is the director of Mr. Black: Green Star.
"Audience will see a different Black Cat, even with a rumored girlfriend. I believe both adults and children will like it."
But will the audience like it? Here&`&s one of their opinions. This is an unnamed mother born in 1980s and her child.
"Mr. Black is my childhood memory. I think it&`&s great that my child and I enjoy the TV cartoon together and grow up together. "
"Journalist: Have you watched the TV cartoon Mr. Black?
Child: yes, I&`&ve watched it.
Journalist: Who&`&s the good guy in Mr. Black?
Child: Mr. Black."
In order to revive the childhood memories of many people who grew up with the TV series, the film&`&s production company abandoned the use of the popular 3D effect; instead, it has adopted the original watercolor characters, claiming it doesn&`&t want to ruin their childhood memory.
Black Cat Detective will still be the same as 30 years ago, wearing a policeman uniform with a gun at the side and riding his old motorcycle. This is Qian Jianping, head of Shanghai Animation Film Studio.
"It will ruin many people&`&s childhood memory if the new film has some flaws. Recreating Black Cat is a way to carry forward the old series."
It has become a phenomenon in the movie market that "nostalgic" animation films spring up and draw large audience. For instance, the animation film Stand by Me: Doraemon has gained more box office revenue in China within 10 days than the total box office revenue in Japan.
"Japanese audiences have more choices of popular animations in Japan like Crayon Shin-chan, One Piece, and Detective Conan. But Audiences in China have less domestic animations to follow."
Chinese animations have grown 50 times in quantity between 2004 and 2010. With the exception of a few original cartoon characters such as Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf, China still lacks influential animation films. Hence, recreating old cartoon characters is the best chance for animated films to do well at the box office. Here&`&s Shijian Meigui again.
"Chinese people mainly watch animation films with traditional Chinese elements like Journey to the West and those Disney animation films. Few people would invest on original new animation films, because it takes more time to turn intellectual property into economic benefits. Therefore it is easier for the investors to produce a new film based on the already well-known cartoon characters."
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