YU Zhou

"White Snake: Afloat," the annual feature presented by Light Chaser Animation, China's top animation production team, is continuing its theatrical run until Nov. 10 now in the Chinese mainland. Its current box office has exceeded 60 million USD. The animation, released on the traditional Qixi Festival, known as Chinese Valentine's Day and fell on Aug. 10 this year, tells one of China's most famous love stories. In the animated film, Bai Suzhen (白素贞), referred to as Blanca, is a thousand-year-old white snake spirit who transformed into a beautiful young woman to repay a life-saving debt. Along with her sister Verta the green snake (小青), she seek out and marries Xu Xian (许仙), a gentle doctor and the reincarnation of her benefactor, in Hangzhou during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). However, their brief happiness fleetingly came to an end by the intervention of a monk named Fahai (法海), who imprisons the White Snake under the Leifeng Pagoda (雷峰塔) by the West Lake. In despair, Xu Xian became a monk. Their son would later grow up to become a top scholar to free his mother. Founded in 2013, Light Chaser Animation recognized the necessity of embracing traditional Chinese cultural IPs to establish and distinguish their brand. In 2016, they decided to start with the well-known legend of the White Snake. However, they told a completely new story, setting the events of the White Snake legend five hundred years earlier and recounting the poignant love story between Bai Suzhen and Xu Xian's previous incarnation, A Xuan. This work premiered in January 2019. I also first came across this film then and became a fan. I remembered that I watched this at least three times and was moved to tears each time. The 2019 White Snake film has achieved international success. It grossed 200 million yen in Japan, ranking there as the second most popular animated film of the year. In July 2021, the second installment of the "White Snake" series chronicled Verta, who, overcoming numerous challenges, defeats Abbott Fahai who has trapped her in a virtual realm, and ventures to the modern West Lake in search of her sister. Verta's character, portrayed as both beautiful and audaciously cool, resonates with the aspirations of many young girls in China today. It was launched globally on Netflix in 10 languages, became the third most-watched foreign-language film, with over 40 million viewers worldwide. The 2024 release, "White Snake: Afloat," marks the culmination of this eight-year journey. Unlike the previous two animations that narrated entirely new stories, it offers a fresh perspective on the centuries-old legend of the White Snake to captivate the modern audience. I watched the movie twice, once during a preview screening thanks to an invitation from Mr. @Yu_Zhou , the CEO of Light Chaser. I missed their premiere due to a business trip to Xinjiang, but upon returning to Beijing, I felt an urge to watch it again and bought another ticket to the cinema. Over these months, I've also had the privilege of interacting with the two directors of this animation, as well as the chief designers, gaining a deeper appreciation of both China's top animation team and the film itself than many other fans, which I consider myself truly fortunate for. In "White Snake: Afloat," the depiction of Hangzhou is bustling and vibrant. I was informed by the production team that they referenced some of the most famous surviving Song Dynasty paintings, including "Along the River During the Qingming Festival (清明上河图)" and the "Peddler (货郎图)" paintings I introduced a few days ago, to ensure the visuals authentically represented the Song era. Even the Song Dynasty dishes that appear on the dining table were meticulously researched. The team consulted numerous Song Dynasty records and even remade the dishes from scratch. In an effort to save Xu Xian, Blanca travels to Kunlun Mountains to gather immortal herbs. The smoke from a magic incense burner transformed into a path, instantly transporting her to Kunlun, the sacred mountain on the near-westernmost edge of China. This burner is modeled after the incense burner unearthed from the tomb of Liu Sheng (刘胜), King of Zhongshan in Western Han Dynasty (202BC-25AD), evoking a classical Oriental fantasy. His tomb is located in Mancheng County, Baoding, in north China, and was discovered in the late 1960s. It was carved out of solid rock at the top of a mountain, which prevented tomb raiders from a major discovery. The intact tomb chamber contained a large number of national treasures from China. Moreover, he had over 100 children, which might astonish you regarding his productivity, but indeed, this changed history. Liu Bei (刘备), the emperor of Shu during the Three Kingdoms period (220-280), was one of his descendants. The narrative flow of the work begins and ends with the Lantern Festival, passing through traditional festivals such as Qingming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Double Ninth Festival. "The cycle of festivals symbolizes the passage of time, reflecting the unique Chinese perception of time. Such settings also allow the audience to feel the festive atmosphere of the Song Dynasty," I was told by director Chan Kin Hi, from Hong Kong. The scenes where Xu Xian gently covers a sleeping Blanca with a garment, and later, when they meet in the rain and she comes to fetch him with an umbrella, reflect Light Chaser's understanding and interpretation of Chinese-style romance. Chan believes that such love embodies the most fundamental emotional values of the Chinese. Chinese animation experienced a period of glory from the 1950s to the 1990s. For example, animations like "Little Tadpoles Looking for Their Mother," made with ink painting, and beautifully crafted stories of Sun Wukong (孙悟空) and Nezha (哪吒), many of which won international awards. However, a decline in the film industry during the 1990s and other market factors led to disappearance of such fine works. Entering the 2010s, some Chinese animation studios began to experiment with refined imagery and IPs rooted in Chinese traditional culture, re-launching classics that could be recognized by both domestic and international audiences. Light Chaser is the most outstanding one in my country. "From its inception, Light Chaser Animation has established a clear mission: 'a Chinese team creating Chinese stories for Chinese audiences,' and it aspires to create world-class animated films rooted in Chinese culture," Mr. Yu shared with me. Currently, Light Chaser Animation releases a new work each year. Mr. Yu revealed their team is working on "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio: Lanruo Temple (兰若寺)" and "The Three Kingdoms: The Battle for Luoyang (争洛阳)," which will transform China's classical literary masterpieces into animated films. These projects are set to meet audiences in the summers of 2025 and 2026. This spring, the Light Chaser team also made a trip to Luoyang and Anyang for field research. As a tribute to their use of technology and art powers to showcase the charm of Chinese traditional culture, I accompanied them to visit museums, the ruins of the Eastern Han and Three Kingdoms' Luoyang Palace, and the tomb of Cao Cao, providing interpretations along the way. As a historian with a particular interest in the Three Kingdoms, I am also eagerly anticipating the first Three Kingdoms animated movie in Chinese history, knowing it will make a significant mark. My friend, the super talented Japanese manga artist @shichimi33 has created a series of manga works set during the Qin Dynasty, Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period. She also watched the 2019 release of White Snake. "I was really impressed. The heroine's black hair was as beautiful as an ink painting, and it reminded me of traditional Chinese paintings. Also, the power of the action scenes, the composition of the screen, and the color scheme are all wonderful." She told me she appreciates such a beautiful, sad, thrilling, and gentle work and eagerly anticipates "White Snake: Afloat." It was also a delightful surprise for me to learn the legend of White Snake shares a deep connection with the rise of Japan's animation industry. In 1958, Toei Animation released Japan's first color anime feature film, The White Snake Enchantress. "The characters' shapes and comical movements are reminiscent of Disney animation. Although it is very old, it is still a work that can be enjoyed even today." Shichimi Rou shared with me it also reminds her of shadow puppets and Chinese paintings during Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368-1911). I also discovered that the film influenced a young Hayao Miyazaki (宫崎骏), inspiring him to pursue a career in animation. Now, this 1958 film is on my watch list, and I am very curious and interested in seeing it! In the early 1990s, the Taiwanese TV production "New Legend of Madame White Snake (新白娘子传奇)" aired across the Strait, with Angie Chiu (赵雅芝) and Cecilia Yip (叶童)'s portrayals of White Snake and Xu Xian becoming unforgettable classics for many in China. The ending song of "White Snake: Afloat" is "A Thousand Years of Waiting (千年等一回)," the theme song from this popular TV series, performed by Chiu and Yip. They also attended the global premiere of "White Snake: Afloat" in Hangzhou. "Ms. Chiu was moved to tears and asked us if we would continue the series," director Li Jiakai recalled. Both directors, who watched "The New Legend of Madame White Snake" in their youth, now contribute to the legacy they once adored. Chan was a former DreamWorks animator, used to work on various foreign IPs. After joining Light Chaser, he started showcasing Chinese elements through animation and participated in producing the "White Snake" series, transitioning from an audience member to a storyteller of this legend. For Li, born in 1994 in northeast China, songs of the TV production often emerged during his mother's lunch preparations. "When 'A Thousand Years of Waiting' plays, I feel the passage of the baton of heritage. We grew up with Chiu and Yip telling us the story of the White Snake, and now we pass it on to the next generation. Perhaps in the future, a new team will take up this baton to continue telling the tale of the White Snake, a beautiful story of love in the Chinese tradition, worthy of being sung forever," he told me. Finally, I would love to share four pictures from this animation. On the top left, the gentle Blanca, along with her lover Xu Xian and her companion Verta the Green Snake, enjoy a fine night boating on the picturesque West Lake in Hangzhou. On the top right, dressed in finery, Blanca and Xu Xian cross their arms to sip wine from each other's cup on their wedding night (交杯酒). This millennia old tradition in China symbolizes the unity and inseparability of a couple. On the bottom left is the vibrant and elegant city of Hangzhou, known in China for "Above there is heaven, below there are Suzhou and Hangzhou." On the bottom right, the loving couple, hand in hand, flying through the mountains and rivers, showcasing the production team's understanding and imagination of Chinese-style romance.