Do you like movies? Do you like comic and animation? Nowadays, people are seeking for visually pleasing things and as a result, animation and films became the famous way to create and enjoy art. In my view, China has already been out of fashion in these areas.
First, let's have a look at animation If you ask this question in any senior high school in China: "what is your favourite comic book?" I think more than 90% of the answers are Japanese comic books. The enthusiasm for that once became so high that the government considered that Japanese culture had already invaded China, and all the Japanese animation programmes on TV were abandoned. It seemed that Chinese cartoons would occupy the market later but the truth proved that there are still only a few children who are interested in Chinese products. In my opinion, there are several reasons for this situation.
◆The contents of the animation are not suitable. As I know, the stories included in that are almost made up according to ancient Chinese mythologys or masterpieces, which may be familiar or boring to teenagers.
◆The artists whose job is to draw comics in China are not creative. This may be similar to the first one, because that is the result of this fact. I can assure that more than half of the cartoons created by Chinese cartoonists patterned some famous Japanese comics. Consequently, teenagers will go for the original one.
◆The appearances of the roles are scratchy. I do not know the reason about that, maybe our government still have not understood the importance of a good Chinese animation, so no one would like to treat it seriously. To be honest, I do think handsome men and beautiful women can attract more attentions.
◆Most of the roles in Chinese cartoons are animals. As a result of the previous reason, artists can only try something that is easy to draw. As far as I know, the most successful animation in China is a long story about two wolves and many sheep. However, teenagers like heroes and one of their hobbies is the behave like super heroes. I can hardly believe they will perform like a sheep, and that is dangerous for a cartoon.
◆Anything about violence, sex and whatever the government thinks sensitive is abandoned in both comics and cartoons. That is actually a positive rule, but perhaps it was carried out too thoroughly, which makes these things unacceptable for teenagers and adults. How can that hold the big market with customers only under 12 years old?
The similar problems occurred in movie industry in China, too.
In conclusion, the fashion of art has already turned into a competition about how can people express their feelings and imaginations, for example, movies, cartoons and comic books. China has to do something to improve its position in these areas.
I stongly approve your opinions.I'm confused about this issue for a long time.China,as a great power,couldn't ignore the profit and effect that the animation and movie bring to us because watching animation and movie takes most of the time we spend and virtually has some unconscious influence on children and adolecsence as a way to entertain.The reason that you summarize on the weakness in China's animation and movie industry is very clear and meaningful.I do hope one day what the next generation enjoys most is the animation and movie created by us Chinese.I hope China will develop it quickly.Your blog really give me some reflections.Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI think your topic is quite profound. The comic and animation of China do have many aspects to improve. I think we can learn a lot from the counterparts of Japan. I also notice the anxiety of our authorities about the cultural invasion of Japan. I think, indeed, the Japanese comic influences the life ways of adolescents in China. However, if our domestic comic industry is advanced enough, there is no need to worry about these things. So, the first thing government should do is not limit the import of other countries’ comic, but to enhance our own technique of producing a funny and meaningful comic!
ReplyDeleteYes, I also wonder that why the anime market of China is just like a new-born baby while the one of Japan is a mature adult; Compared to Japanese comics, Chinese comics focus more on children instead of teenagers and young adults, which results in a small scale of market. Chinese comics are usually childish and not soul-stirring for producers' lack of imagination and fantasy. Also, the lack of intellectual property protection prevents the market from developing.
ReplyDeleteYour opinions are really inspired and your analysis is thorough. I also think the biggest problem of Chinese animation industry is lack of innovation and promotion.However,honestly speaking,some of your opinions are not so correct. China does have many good animative movies and comic books for teenagers and they are not childish, for example,the books drawn by Xia Da. Xia da's work were published in Japan as well. There are also many other fantasitic cartoonists in China such as the cartoonists work for 'zui comic'.I like them very much. Hence, maybe the basic problem is that government doesn't pay much attention on this industry but I hope this situation can be changed soon.
ReplyDeleteI think animation in China is supposed to be for kids. That is the reason why people find it boring. And if we want to improve its quality， we have to change this concept first.
ReplyDeleteMoreover， we do have some good comics. Ji MI ,Ji Di and Xia da are very gifted artists.
Animation industry is a big market and I think China has to try to possess a seat in this area because a lot of can be made from it and this area can influence the mind of young generation. If most Chinese children see the Japanese animation, they are very likely to be misled by some wrong conceptions in the cartoons. It seems that Chinese children’s mind has been controlled by other countries, so I think it is a very serious problem. It may influence Chinese development in the future. I think you have come up with many good points and I hope with the effort of Chinese animation and movie artist, China can regain the market of animation and movie industry.
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