China Focus: Domestic animated films win applause during Spring Festival holiday

BEIJING, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- As the 2023 Spring Festival holiday progresses into its fifth day on Wednesday, China's domestic film market continues to flourish.

Statistics from China's box office tracker Maoyan showed that, as of Wednesday morning, the total box office for new movies screened during the Spring Festival holiday had passed the 4 billion yuan (591 million U.S. dollars) threshold.

Of the films opened during the holiday, the animated fantasy film "Deep Sea" had generated a total box office of nearly 217 million yuan. The family-friendly "Boonie Bears: Guardian Code" took third place on the holiday box office chart with over 417 million yuan of box office revenue.

As the latest work of director Tian Xiaopeng, who in 2015 presented the beloved "Monkey King: Hero is Back," "Deep Sea" showcases the wonderful and colorful deep sea adventure of a young girl.

According to the producers of the film, "Deep Sea" is the first film to fully utilize the "particle Chinese painting" technology, recreating the aesthetic of traditional Chinese painting with three-dimensional particle animation.

The visual spectacles the film presents were cheered by audiences. "The effects are truly breathtaking. It felt like a tour in the colorful deep blue sea," said a movie-goer surnamed Su.

Story-wise, different from previous animated blockbusters, which are mostly inspired by classic Chinese folk tales, "Deep Sea" features an original story about an ordinary girl. "I hope Chinese animations can focus on common folks like this film so that audiences can feel more related to the story," Su said.

Combining cutting-edge technologies and profound storytelling, "Deep Sea" appeals more to devoted grown-up fans of domestic animations. "Boonie Bears: Guardian Code" on the other hand, aims to bring laughter and joy to the entire family.

"Guardian Code" is the sixth "Boonie Bears" film shown during the Spring Festival holiday. While the plot revolves around the family story of the Boonie Bears brothers, the film also consists of many sci-fi elements, such as artificial intelligence.

To many family audiences, the series has somehow become a synonym with "Spring Festival films." "Watching 'Boonie Bears' films is now our regular activity during the Spring Festival holiday. The holiday won't be complete without watching it with kids," wrote a movie-goer on Douban, China's leading film rating platform.

"This year's 'Guardian Code' is just as good as previous 'Boonie Bear' films," the user added, saying it is a touching film for adults and children alike.

Since 2014, "Boonie Bears" films have seen steady production for nine years. "We expect 'Boonie Bears' to be a series of films for generations of audiences," said Lin Yongchang, one of the directors of "Guardian Code." "As long as we put our hearts into every film and ensure their quality, we can always attract new audiences."