Special feature of 1905 film network Compared with many Hollywood film companies that have only recently begun to lay out the China market, DreamWorks animation is undoubtedly in the forefront. Relying on the power of "Meng Shen" Po, the Kung Fu Panda series has been a great success in China, and the first two episodes have successively won the box office champion of the inland film history animated film. The recognition of China fans gave DreamWorks great encouragement and confidence, and filmmakers from Hollywood began to explore and study the strange and distant China culture more seriously.
The good foundation laid by the previous work has given DreamWorks the best opportunity to start in-depth cooperation with China. It is natural to establish Oriental DreamWorks and work together to create Kung Fu Panda 3. On January 29th, the film officially landed in the mainland cinema to meet the audience. What kind of cultural exploration has Kung Fu Panda 3 gone through from the Hollywood animation to the Sino-American co-production? To this end, we talked with Jennifer Yuh and Alessandro, directors of the film, Jeffrey Kasenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation, and Jack Black and kate hudson, who voiced the protagonists "Po" and "Meimei", and listened to them tell us their feelings about participating in the creation of Kung Fu Panda 3 from the perspective of Hollywood filmmakers.
Director: Creating Kung Fu Panda 3 has a stressful culture that depends on good story expression.
Director Jennifer Yuh has made great contributions to the Kung Fu Panda series today. From participating in animation production to acting as a film director, she has obviously become the soul behind the role of Po and the whole story. During the creation of Kung Fu Panda 3, Jennifer also invited her former partner Alessandro to continue another adventure of Po with her.
With the great success of Kung Fu Panda series in the world, Po and his friends are getting more and more attention and love from fans, which makes the two directors feel invisible pressure slowly. However, as the "people who know Po and Kung Fu Panda best" in the world, they still have unlimited imagination when creating. Through a deeper understanding of China, Jennifer and Alessandro also showed more elements of China culture to audiences all over the world in Kung Fu Panda 3.
Many people have expressed their curiosity to them: As Hollywood filmmakers, how did you successfully integrate the eastern and western cultures into your works? Naturally, it took nearly 10 years for the Kung Fu Panda series to gradually mature. However, Jennifer and Alessandro always believe that in order for fans from different countries and regions to accept and understand the culture in the film, it is not necessary for the creator to forcibly add any elements or symbols. As long as the character and his experience are attractive enough, the audience will naturally find resonance with the film.
1905 Movie Network: After so many years, is it easier or more challenging for you to create Kung Fu Panda now?
Jennifer: It must be more difficult. Because the audience who like Kung Fu Panda series now have their own ideas about the characters, we must create more and more exciting and interesting stories to meet their expectations. It is natural for creators to feel some pressure.
Alessandro: That’s it. Because at the beginning of the Kung Fu Panda project, all we need to consider is how to create a character like Po, but now he is a beloved character, so the creator must be more cautious and not act rashly to influence the character itself.
1905 Movie Network: So now you will definitely have a deeper consideration when creating the whole story of Po and Kung Fu Panda.
Alessandro: Yes, you can say that. In the first episode of Kung Fu Panda, Jennifer and I conceived the image of Po together, and then Jennifer finished Kung Fu Panda 2 as a director. This time, she invited me back to participate in the creation of Kung Fu Panda 3, precisely because we both know Po best.
1905 Movie Network: Did you expect Kung Fu Panda to be very popular in China? Have you ever thought about the reason?
Jennifer: I think Po played a big role in this. China audiences like the role of Po, not only because he will have many funny and pleasing performances in the film, but also because he brings a cultural resonance, which enables the cultural and historical elements in Kung Fu Panda to be better expressed. We try our best to make all the cultural details authentic in our creation. I think this is also the reason why China audiences have a sense of identity with Kung Fu Panda.
1905 Movie Network: Will the success of the previous work make the creation of Kung Fu Panda 3 stressful this time?
Alessandro: There will definitely be pressure, but compared with the previous two Kung Fu Panda movies, when all the lessons about China’s history and culture needed to be explored by ourselves, this time we finally found a local team in China as a partner. So we don’t have to worry about whether the content in our works is true enough, because our partners in China have already told us the exact answer, which has greatly helped us to further improve our works and make the Kung Fu Panda series even better.
1905 Movie Network: You were also invited to visit the panda base in Sichuan. What influence did this have on your creation?
Alessandro: She even hugged the panda herself!
Jennifer: I hugged the baby panda myself, about this big. I must say it’s a great honor. The panda babies are really as cute as you think! However, in the process, I also paid attention to and felt their hair. In fact, it was not as soft as I thought, and it was a bit tied. In addition, I also observed their habits. They really love to sleep, and they like to roll around like balls. This visit brought us a lot of inspiration in the creation of Kung Fu Panda 3, which is why we added the role of panda baby in the film. Moreover, we also observed many aspects of their daily life and play, for example, they like to roll down the hillside. We added all these findings to the film.
1905 Movie Network: Kung Fu Panda 3 has more elements of China traditional culture, such as Qi and Fairy World. Are these concepts easy for you to understand? How do you use these in your creation? )
Jennifer: We really did a lot of homework and conducted a lot of research on history and culture with many professionals. It is also because Kung Fu Panda 3 is a real co-production film, and we have the opportunity to really talk face to face with the Qigong master and listen to him talk about what "Qi" and "Qigong" are and how one person steals this Qi from another. So these inspirations helped us conceive such a story, and finally the choice made by Po ensured that the story of Kung Fu Panda 3 would be unique and interesting. In addition, there are many details in the film that are based on the legend of "Fairyland" in China. For example, we specially went to Qingcheng Mountain, photographed every scene and used them in the scene of Panda Village. In this way, when the audience sees the Panda Village, they will naturally feel the feeling of being on cloud nine.
Alessandro: Many people in China will ask me, the cultural concept in Kung Fu Panda 3 is unique to China. How can you understand it as a foreigner? But in fact, I think if you follow the characters into the story, in fact, these concepts become common. For example, the concept of "Qi" is not very easy to understand, but it is easy to be accepted if you use kung fu and show it by two characters fighting for each other. The China culture added in Kung Fu Panda 3 is not a simple and direct concept to the audience, but something unique to China is integrated into the story to explain it to the audience. Therefore, even foreign audiences can easily find resonance in the Kung Fu Panda series.
1905 Movie Network: For example, Master Tortoise wrote the word "Qi" on the screen at the beginning of the movie. Can foreign audiences Get this point?
Jennifer: Some points in the film are specially designed for the audience in China, and there are many connotations that only the audience in China can understand. But I believe these will make the film more interesting. For example, the word "Qi" seems to have written a beautiful and meaningful pattern for foreign audiences, and China audiences will recognize the meaning of the word after seeing it. A similar example is the resurrected zombie, which was inspired by China’s ink painting. For the audience in China, they can know what kind of history and culture it contains, while the foreign audience will find it really very oriental. So we can say that these contents are extra surprises for the audience in China.
1905 Movie Network: Kung Fu Panda, as a Hollywood film, has been very successful in integrating Chinese and Western cultures. Do you have any experience to share?
Alessandro: As I said before, all the elements in Kung Fu Panda are displayed with the characters’ every move. We try to avoid making a film that simply mixes Chinese and Western styles, but focus on shaping the characters. Kung Fu Panda is an experience and a journey for Po. Everything becomes very simple from his point of view, because the world he lives in in the film is a unique world that has integrated Chinese and western cultures, and what we need to show is Po’s living state.
Jennifer: Besides, I think animated film is also a very unique art, because in the animated world, everything is possible, which can help the audience realize anything that is impossible in reality. For example, we have created a panda who can play kung fu, and animated film is a product of fantasy. For example, if we see the cultural elements with aesthetic feeling, we can join in our works, so that the audience can get in touch with some things that they can’t experience personally. I also think that animated films are a very good way to spread different cultures to audiences everywhere.
1905 Movie Network: Many China animators find it difficult to tell a story that resonates all over the world. Do you have similar feelings in your creation?
Jennifer: The process of creating Kung Fu Panda is very difficult. Every step is very difficult (laughs). But I think if you have a story clue that is suitable for everyone, such as the story about family and the story about family members helping each other succeed, then I believe that no matter where you go, everyone can understand the meaning you want to express. Or you can write a story about exploring and finding personal value and discussing the meaning of life, which is also a theme that everyone can understand. Then you add the elements needed for animation with these story clues as the core, and the audience will naturally be attracted to them. Maybe they don’t fully understand the unique time and space where the story is located, but they can understand what the characters want to express. Therefore, in fact, the setting of the story is only the setting, not the most important core. What the audience needs to see and understand is what the character itself wants to express.
1905 Movie Network: There are many new characters in Kung Fu Panda 3. Will they play a greater role in future new stories?
Alessandro: We have no plans for Kung fu panda 4 yet! Once again, we only focus on the creation of the previous trilogy, and we hope to make everyone very satisfied with the quality and effect of the work as much as possible. In the process, we were also inspired by many viewers. For example, after the first episode, someone asked: What kind of story is there between Po and his biological parents? So Jennifer designed a story to answer this question when she created the sequel. At the end, we also left a foreshadowing to tell everyone that Po is not the only panda left in the world. So fans began to guess again: Wow, so Po is going to find his real father, and will they meet again? In this way, the story of Kung Fu Panda 3 appeared again. Throughout the process, we just want to bring you a complete story and make fans happy. Maybe after this episode is released, everyone will put forward new ideas, and then we can see how to create stories to answer your doubts.
Video/Ren Jietu/Yang Nan, Qian Jiayi/Zhang Yuning
