Framing the past in film

A scene from Shaonian Mao Zedong Photo: Courtesy of Xiaoxiang Animation and Culture Company

To commemorate the 120th anniversary of the birth of Mao Zedong (1893-1976), founder and the first chairman of the People's Republic of China, an animated film about the boyhood of this legendary figure is set to screen by the end of this year.

Titled Shaonian Mao Zedong (Teenager Mao Zedong), the animation, according to producer Li Tao, is based on three poems Mao wrote in his adolescence. The poems reveal the earliest of Mao's opinions toward the self and the future.

As one of three films created to celebrate his birth, and the only animation, it has received support and encouragement from the government.

However, before it has even been screened, the film has drawn critical voices on the Internet.

Making learning fun

In a phone interview with the Global Times, producer Li said that before they launched this project, they carried out surveys to gauge children's knowledge and interest in Mao.

"I find they actually want to know [more], but they do not have the time, nor is there a fun way of learning more," Li noted. "There have been some books and TV dramas, but as they were produced a long time ago, they are no longer interesting [to today's audience]."

The film, produced by Xiaoxiang Animation and Culture Company, is presented from the perspective of a child and tells an encouraging story of how a boy born to a farming family fights for his ambitions.

Pleasing the public

Movies like The Iron Lady (2011) and Lincoln (2012) prove that successful profiles of political leaders don't always have to be flat or one-sided. Nationalism, delivered in small, thoughtful doses, can be box office gold.

Yet, feature films on Chinese politicians have lacked market appeal in the past.

In producer Li Tao's opinion, it's the poor quality of locally-made biographical films that makes them unappealing. Preaching to audiences is no longer how films are done, he said.

The upcoming animated story of young Mao has been met with some suspicious views from netizens.

Zhang Zhi'an, associate professor at Sun Yat-sen University's School of Communication and Design, doesn't think Weibo users' attitudes represent the majority.

"They are only a fragment [of the public opinion]. The 50 million active Weibo users cannot represent the 600 million Chinese netizens," Zhang said.

He said in recent years, there have been some good efforts in presenting the lives of political leaders in film and TV, and pointed to the 2011 TV drama Feng Hua Zheng Mao as one such example.

Produced by Hunan TV, Feng Hua Zheng Mao tells the story of how Mao and other pioneers fought hard for China's future during their young adult lives.

"As long as it's made according to the standard rules of a TV drama, viewers will like it," Zhang said.

Producer Li is confident about their new film as well.

"Parents, especially grandparents of today's children, have deeper feelings for Mao. This animation can be fun for the whole family to watch together," Li said.

Li also cited some other successful examples from the not-so-distant past. In 2003, there was a puppet show about Mao in his boyhood, and the show received good feedback from the kids.

As for the public's doubts about his film, Li explained that the animated flick is focused on the adolescence of Mao rather than promoting political ideologies.

Not an easy story to tell

Portraying a political leader in a cartoon has seldom been carried out by China's mainstream filmmakers.

One Sina Weibo user, under the handle of Li Mochu, posted earlier this month that if he were a parent, this animation wouldn't be fit for his kids to watch.

Cultural critic Sima Pingbang concludes that such distrust comes from the restrictions on movies and TV shows, especially those concerning the most prominent political figure of China.

He explained that from books he read about Mao, he learned that the leader had been a rebellious child - not in line with today's standard for a good child.

But it would be impossible to show the other side of Mao's life in a Chinese film, Zhang said.