33 posts tagged with "Chinese Animation"

​The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2 has been screening in Japan for over two months, with impressive results. As of this writing, The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2 has grossed over 450 million yen at the Japanese box office, with more than 245,000 admissions. It topped FILMARKS’s “premiere satisfaction ranking” in Japan, becoming the highest-grossing Chinese-language animated film series in Japan.

The film’s success has driven a boom in IP merchandise and fan creations. The spin-off manga Lanxi Zhen sold out quickly even with a one-copy-per-person purchase limit, and fan communities have seen an influx of fan art and discussion from Japanese viewers — topics ranging not only around the Luo Xiaohei series itself, but also extending to differences in animation between Chinese and Japanese TV series, amusing anecdotes in Chinese–Japanese translation, and Sino-Japanese cultural exchange.

Beyond the film’s own quality, its translation, promotion, and distribution behind the scenes deserve great credit. Donghua Xueshupa reached out to the two major driving forces behind Luo Xiaohei’s overseas release: Omoshiro Eiga and Aniplex, interviewing Omoshiro Eiga’s Mr. Dong Zhiling and Aniplex’s Mr. Sun Zongzhen and Mr. Akiyama, asking them to discuss the key points and challenges of this overseas release from an industry insider’s perspective, as well as their outlook on future Sino-Japanese animation exchange and cooperation.

01 Origins: The Opportunity for Xiaohei to Go Overseas​

​Dong Zhiling: I am Dong Zhiling, founder of Omoshiro Eiga. Six years ago, I founded Omoshiro Eiga in Japan, mainly bringing Chinese-language content into the Japanese market, along with film distribution.

My personal connection with Xiaohei dates back to April 29, 2014 — more than a decade ago. Having known the series since 2014, I started following Xiaohei back then, chatted often with the director, and when the right opportunity for a film came along, we collaborated.

​Sun Zongzhen: I am Sun Zongzhen, a producer at Aniplex, mainly responsible for project initiation, production, and distribution. The person next to me is Akiyama, head of promotion for the two Luo Xiaohei films. At our company, a project typically involves one or two producers plus one or two publicity staff working together. The producer follows everything from finding projects and developing plans, to partnering with studios, to applying for budgets in post-production.

Personally, when Xiaohei was released in Japan in 2019, a family member told me about this great animated film, and I went to see it. At the time, Xiaohei had a single-theater release — that is, a small-scale release. After watching it, I felt it was truly excellent and began exploring a project collaboration.

​Dong Zhiling: I had already watched it many times before the official release — the earliest version I saw was the line-art version, so I already had certain expectations for Xiaohei 2, and the final version exceeded them. From an industry perspective, this film’s overall content and expression are more refined and superior than I imagined; as a viewer, I think Xiaohei 2 takes a further step toward commercial and mainstream appeal. Compared with the first film’s heavier otaku-oriented style, the second film’s final cut is more accessible and can attract a wider audience.

​Sun Zongzhen: Earlier this year (Editor’s note: referring to 2025, at the time of the interview; the same below), to prepare for the Japanese dubbing work, I watched the line-art version early along with a small group of staff. For the translation, we needed to watch the film repeatedly from start to finish to grasp its content — counting from the line-art version, I must have watched it about 15 times in total.

My impression is simple: it’s great — it’s just plain great. For me personally, this work also has an unusual atmosphere that you rarely encounter in Japan — actually, it’s been that way since the first film. I’ve lived in Japan for many years, and Luo Xiaohei feels very different from the domestic Japanese animation I usually encounter, so it delivered an impact beyond imagination, leaving me both surprised and delighted.

​Sun Zongzhen: If we’re talking about initial contact, discussions probably started in 2022 or 2023, while Aniplex’s internal greenlight came around fall 2024. After the greenlight, we first discussed two things with Hanmu Chunhua: when the film would release in China, and when it would release in Japan — preparing as early as possible would benefit later promotion and distribution. This spring, we set the Japanese release date for November 7.

​Sun Zongzhen: That’s right.

02 Content: Why Luo Xiaohei?​

​Sun Zongzhen: I wasn’t too worried about Chinese culture. I think the creative team handled it just right — the work contains no cultural content so obscure that it blocks foreign viewers from understanding the plot, and that isn’t Xiaohei’s focus anyway. Even viewers with zero knowledge of Chinese culture can appreciate how wonderful Xiaohei’s story is.

But when it comes to the differences between Chinese and Japanese, conveying the feel of the original was indeed a huge challenge, especially getting certain jokes across. Take the pun on “closed-door disciple” (closing-disciple vs. door-locking disciple). A literal translation would create two problems: first, the line would be too long and wouldn’t match the character’s lip movements. Even as a subtitle, it would be too long for viewers to finish reading. Second, the expression wouldn’t be localized — to native Japanese speakers, it would be hard to understand. There are many similar issues; we could only do our best to preserve them during localization, but we couldn’t reproduce 100% of what the Chinese means. Moreover, Xiaohei 2 has more dialogue and more characters than the first film, so the localization workload was inherently heavier.

One moment that left a deep impression on me was the scene where Luye and Chi Nian bicker and argue over whether Wuxian is a suspect — the character relationships are complicated, the content twists and turns, and Luye speaks a lot and fast. A literal translation would definitely require trimming lines, but I didn’t want to stray from the original content either. That part was the most painstaking to handle.

​Sun Zongzhen: Actually, compared with past Japanese animation, I feel the work as a whole has many different parts. For Japanese viewers, it should all feel quite fresh. For me personally, while I’m not qualified to make professional judgments, through producing the official program book and interviewing the creative team, I feel Hanmu Chunhua’s production pipeline does differ somewhat from traditional Japanese animation production.

Through multiple viewings, I felt that the film’s “photography” (in Chinese animation circles, post-production is commonly called “later stages,” while in Japan it is conventionally called “photography”) and the visual effect it ultimately presents — call it “texture” — differ from past Japanese animation. I also once discussed this with Mr. Fujitsu Ryota, the lead writer of this program book: the post-production of The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2 really does differ from past Japanese animation. Character shadows aren’t so pronounced, yet the image as a whole has a strong sense of depth. For example, the soft, squishy feel of Xiaohei’s body — especially the scenes where the soft texture of his cheeks is fully expressed — showed me its top-tier animation technique.

​Akiyama Takayoshi: Honestly, everything felt quite fresh. If I had to pick one, it would be the final sequence’s direction.

In Japanese animation, flashbacks without a single line of dialogue are extremely rare. Perhaps because Japan is heavily influenced by TV-station animation culture, creators generally choose more easily understood forms of expression, having characters narrate past events through dialogue. But Luye’s flashback was deliberately made wordless, which I find very creative.

Also, generally speaking, for a sequel, following Japanese animation conventions, if the first film is a hit, the second will continue focusing on the first film’s protagonist’s story. But in The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2, Xiaohei and Wuxian’s story isn’t expanded much; instead, the film focuses on the new character Luye. That also takes confidence in and command of the work.

​Dong Zhiling: Since I’m not a Japanese viewer, I can’t speak for them. From my personal perspective, I think Xiaohei has two characteristics: First, its overall expression is highly accessible. Whether the art style, the plot, or the character design, it’s relatively easy for Japanese viewers to understand.

Second, the content has depth. By the time Xiaohei reached Japan, it had been serialized in China for nearly ten years. Though updated slowly, it had already accumulated depth in content and detail, as well as commercially. What Japanese viewers encountered was a work that already had a certain depth, and they enjoy digging into and understanding it.

Of course, Japanese viewers’ interests vary — everyone’s focus is different. Some say the kitten is adorable, some say Wuxian is so handsome; these scattered points of interest come together to form overall attention for the work.

​Akiyama Takayoshi: It can be broken into three points. First, over these five years, Luo Xiaohei’s official account has updated illustrations nonstop, maintaining its popularity among fans — I think this is very important. The updates for the 24 solar terms illustrations were synced with China.

Second, in the early period of The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2’s release — around July, when it premiered in China — Japan had already announced that both a Japanese-subtitled and a Japanese-dubbed version would be screened, building buzz very early, and the fans were delighted.

Third, of course we value attracting new audiences with a new work, but what matters more are the longtime fans who have supported Xiaohei over these five years. We wanted to create an atmosphere where Xiaohei feels lively in Japan too, to stoke the excitement, letting people discuss details of the content. With this in mind, we carried out our promotional work.

03 Promotion: How Many Steps Does It Take to Send the Kitten Abroad?​

​Dong Zhiling: Omoshiro Eiga was mainly responsible for liaison and assistance. For this second theatrical film, as a co-producer, Omoshiro handled the copyright-related advancement work on the Japan side. On-the-ground execution was mainly left to Aniplex, with distribution also led primarily by Aniplex.

In other activities, Omoshiro Eiga also handled some on-the-ground execution in Japan for rights holders. For example, this year’s China Festival held at Yoyogi Park in Tokyo, as well as sales in Japan of some Chinese licensed merchandise, were handled by us. Going forward, some Japanese merchandise will be sold to China, and we’ll assist with that too. Overall, we mainly do support and liaison work, building a bridge for Sino-Japanese exchange.

​Sun Zongzhen: A 30-minute slot (including commercials) is the most common format for TV anime broadcast in Japan. To air on TV and make time-slot scheduling easier, several shorts have to be bundled together into a full runtime. This model was already tried three years ago when All Saints Street went to Japan, and we adopted the same approach this time.

As for editing, no major adjustments were made — we basically bundled the original episodes together with their openings and endings; mainly out of respect for the original. We synced this approach with Hanmu Chunhua, and since little was changed, not much supervision was needed, and communication went smoothly. Only a few assets needed adjusting due to format issues to match Japanese requirements.

As for the changes to the homage sections that everyone’s been discussing, we ask for everyone’s understanding (laughs) — some homage content had to be modified, resulting in some differences between the Chinese and Japanese versions.

​Dong Zhiling: My consideration was fairly simple: hoping to solve the difficulties and problems encountered during the release of The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 1. Aniplex did most of the rest.

​Sun Zongzhen: For promotion, we usually first set an outline and a theme, then carry out specific work based on it. As for the things you mentioned — anime pre-release buzz, collaborations, and so on — that’s standard practice in Japan; everyone does it.

​Akiyama Takayoshi: For Japanese viewers, five years have passed since the previous work. Regaining momentum among the Japanese fans who have always supported Luo Xiaohei was our top priority. Also, we need to attract new fans for the new film.

What is it that people love? We did a lot of research. Surprisingly, while some love the action scenes and the dazzling fights, among Japanese viewers, what people love most is the gentle emotion in the work. Centered on that, we ran many promotional campaigns in Japan to remove the sense of distance viewers felt.

​Dong Zhiling: Back then, the difficulties were everywhere — basically everything was a difficulty. For instance, no budget, no theaters willing to screen it, not knowing how to make a dubbed version, and so on. After Aniplex joined the project, many of these difficulties were gradually eased and resolved.

But the first film’s overseas release to Japan coincided with the pandemic, making communication difficult. Some things are better discussed face-to-face, but in-person communication was extremely hard at the time. On top of that, five or six years ago, the barrier of mutual understanding between the Chinese and Japanese animation industries was still high — releasing a Chinese animated film in Japan was an enormous challenge for both sides.

These were the problems we worked hard to solve while promoting Xiaohei 2. Much of what Omoshiro Eiga does and solves is rarely seen — it’s all behind-the-scenes work. But we believe, if you want to build a tall building, you can’t just look at what’s above ground; how high a building can rise often depends on how deep the foundation goes — yet the foundation is invisible. From my perspective, I don’t care whether some things get seen; what I hope is to dig the foundation deeper, easing problems step by step, just as we went from Xiaohei 1 to Xiaohei 2.

As for the new problems Xiaohei 2 faced, I think they center on three changes.

First, the change in the industry. Over the past two years, film markets worldwide have been struggling. As part of the film industry, The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2 inevitably felt the impact of these broader shifts.

Second, the change on the market side. This is a big year for the Japanese film industry, with many blockbusters — especially many major domestic Japanese animated films. Numerous well-known titles clashed with Xiaohei’s release window, and competition was fierce. This change means the final result depends not only on Xiaohei’s own quality but also on the contest with other works.

The third difficulty comes from audience expectations. Because Xiaohei 1’s final performance exceeded everyone’s expectations, people raised their expectations for the second film. Could we meet the audience’s new expectations? That was an extremely challenging question.

​Sun Zongzhen: When promoting a work in Japan — whether a TV series or a film — partnering with a singer to create a theme song is a very standard practice.

Since our company is an animation company under Sony, we tend to collaborate with Sony Music artists. We considered whether the singer matched the work’s tone, and whether the singer was known in China, and finally decided Aimer would perform the film’s theme song.

Also, since it had already been decided that the Luo Xiaohei TV series would air on Japanese television, we simply had her sing the TV series’ ED as well. As for Aimer writing the lyrics herself, we didn’t make any hard demands — we just required that the final deliverable be approved, and that was OK.

04 The Future: Chinese and Foreign Animation Moving from Parallel to Intersecting​

​Dong Zhiling: Changes in mutual understanding definitely exist. Two reasons. First, since Xiaohei, quite a few Chinese animations — at least at the film level — have entered Japan. Some did reasonably well, others less so, but compared with the year Xiaohei 1 was released, overall, a from-zero-to-something progress has been achieved. And every time we do a project, we communicate with Japanese theaters, distributors, and other players across the chain, and through this process everyone deepens mutual understanding, more or less.

Second, Omoshiro Eiga is now in its sixth year in Japan. For me personally, and for most of my team, we’ve gained a deeper understanding of how things operate in Japan.

As for the work related to The Legend of Luo Xiaohei 2 specifically, I still hope that through what we do in Japan, industry professionals and some fans can gain a fairly direct understanding of certain things in Japan. So far, the expected results have basically been achieved, because quite a few people in China are indeed following what’s happening on the Japanese side. I also hope Luo Xiaohei 2 receives good feedback in Japan, which would give our partners confidence.

​Dong Zhiling: This trend is indeed a fact — more Chinese animation is going to Japan, and more Japanese animation is coming to China. But from an industry perspective, I think the logic behind Japanese animation coming to China and Chinese animation going to Japan isn’t the same; they just happened to both occur this year. It’s like two directions on the same road — my side is mainly responsible for bringing Chinese content to Japan.

Although more works are indeed going overseas to Japan, I think there are shortcomings at present — at least this year, the vast majority of Chinese animated films brought to Japan came through our single company. That’s nothing to celebrate, because one company fighting alone is far too weak. If more companies were willing to join in and push the industry forward, the situation might improve.

Also, while bringing overseas film and TV content into China isn’t my business — the two operate on different logic — at least this year we can see that exchange between the two sides has genuinely increased, which I consider a very positive thing. I hope this exchange continues in the coming years.

​Sun Zongzhen: I’d say it’s something to look forward to. I remember when I first entered the Chinese industry, everyone was saying: Japanese animation sells so well overseas — how can our Chinese animation sell just as well? But in fact, the Chinese animation industry has only really developed in recent years, while Japanese animation has been at it for forty or fifty years.

So I think there’s no need to rush. We have talent anyway; just take it slowly, accumulating experience and content along the way before going overseas. Relying on marketing alone won’t get you far. In fact, while Japanese anime and manga perform well in overseas markets, many sell poorly even in Japan itself — no amount of promotional effort can fix that.

I’d still hope everyone focuses on making good content. Just like Xiaohei — as long as it’s good, it will attract attention and followers. Of course, I’m not denying the role of promotion, but the premise is still that the work itself is a good work. I feel that since China has the talent and resources, it should build a creative environment capable of producing good content, then think about making what kind of fun, beautiful work, and only after making it consider how to sell it abroad — that’s generally the right order.

I was very lucky to encounter The Legend of Luo Xiaohei. Its quality is excellent on its own; all I had to do was keep my head down and promote it — that’s a virtuous cycle, I’d say.

​Dong Zhiling: From my perspective, the answer is simple: “Chinese animation going overseas” requires a dedicated team to do it, and that dedicated team must do it continuously — I think that’s the precondition for everything.

Someone once asked me: “Why, before Omoshiro Eiga, did it seem like no one was bringing Chinese animation to Japan?” I said, please drop the “seemed like” — no one was doing it. Because no one was doing it, no one in Japan would pay attention; the same applies in other overseas countries.

And our company’s goal is to achieve a breakthrough from 0 to 1 — to have at least one dedicated team continuously doing this, regardless of whether it succeeds.

​Sun Zongzhen: I think you need to maintain a long-term cooperative relationship. With The Legend of Luo Xiaohei, it started with Mr. Dong, then I took over, and both sides have kept doing the work continuously. It’s not that I make a lot of money in one sale and call it a day — it’s about continuously doing localization locally, along with various promotional activities.

With Xiaohei 1, the Japanese side was still fairly passive; this time we were much more proactive. Because our company maintains a good relationship not only with Omoshiro Eiga but also with Hanmu Chunhua, both sides know what the other is doing, which makes communication and requests go smoothly. Although our promotion looks very robust, we actually just did the standard things — but the trust built between both sides made the promotion advance smoothly, achieving twice the result with half the effort. So, working out a good cooperative relationship is also very important.

It was explosive, and it also left us “crying” our eyes out. From midsummer to year’s end, the story of the great demon lord and the little orchid that kept us company for a full six months finally reached its finale amid widespread anticipation.

Since its premiere, the domestic female-oriented animation Love Between Fairy and Devil 2 has consistently topped popularity charts on various platforms, with discussions about the Canglan couple’s relationship, Jiuyuan’s appearance, and other plot points frequently trending on social media. On the finale night, it pulled out all the stops, delivering heartbreak after heartbreak, as fans scrambled to find their “emotional support counselors.”

Looking at this season, it not only continues the previous fantasy worldview and character relationships but also strengthens visual expression and emotional storytelling, methodically resolving numerous foreshadowings from the previous season. Whether it’s the gradually deepening bond between Dongfang Qingcang and Xiao Lanhua, or the dramatic tension of the battle between Shuiyuntian and Cangyanhai, it has resonated widely with viewers.

In the final stretch, reluctance and anticipation have become frequent words in the comments, with “you better release Season 3 quickly” being the most heartfelt sentiment from many fans.

It can be said that the Love Between Fairy and Devil series, across two seasons, has successfully completed a stable leap from literary IP to animation, gradually showcasing the vitality of long-term female-oriented IP operation.

As it concludes, it’s time to look at how this sincere work, Love Between Fairy and Devil 2, was crafted, what breakthroughs it achieved in the female-oriented track, and what new facets it revealed for domestic animation.

01 Burned, Tormented—The Unforgettable Battles and Iconic Scenes​

This season’s animation picks up where the previous left off: A new main storyline opens, and ancient histories are gradually unveiled layer by layer.

Inheriting the predecessor that concluded to high acclaim three years ago, the opening plot reveals a “heavenly secret”: the three realms have collapsed five times, and this is another cycle. The pivotal figure affecting the fate of all three realms is the male lead Dongfang Qingcang（Demon Lord）.

So, what attitude and actions should be taken toward the Demon Lord—war, peace, or standing by? — on the core issue affecting the survival of all beings, the three realms clearly each stand on their own, and the undercurrents and conflicts in this season’s story arise from this.

The curtain slowly rises, from the hidden schemes of Jie Sect on Mount Jin’ao, to the strict order of Shuiyuntian（heavenly realm）, to the turmoil of Cangyanhai（demon realm） and the eerie Shadow Three Realms, and even the mysterious Suian Void Realm and the ambiguous Yunmengze（human realm）—all forces are no longer background props, but interwoven storylines.

Compared to the previous season, this season’s battle rhythm is as thrilling as it is nail-biting. Large-scale summoning battles go on round after round, with magical duels and dazzling techniques appearing one after another.

As the plot progresses, this season’s iconic scenes become ever more spectacular.

The Great Demon Lord, his memories restored, finally grows emotional strings, meets Xiao Lanhua’s intentions, and together they fly to Starcrown Mountain to watch the star sea fall.

This perfectly timed romantic touch carves out a separate space amid the tense battles, allowing both characters and viewers a brief respite—unaware that this grandest of spectacles is quietly rehearsing the impending pain of parting.

Besides the Canglan couple, the War God Jiuyuan, and the Empress, this season also introduces several key figures, such as the rumored “Amao,” who can supposedly climb Kunxu Peak with bare hands and shares a close relationship with Dongfang. He may be the crucial hidden figure who reverses the tide of war and influences the plot’s development. And the legendary artifact that could save the world has only appeared halfway, setting up the perplexing unfolding of the next season.

02 What We Remember—More Than Heartbeats and Tears​

Unlike the previous season, which focused on the lighthearted daily life of the Canglan couple, with the undercurrents of the three realms stirring, the emotional undertones of the characters this season are more complex and three-dimensional.

The daily storyline remains as cheerful as ever, especially during the tense battles large and small, where well-placed comedic moments fit the setting perfectly and work wonderfully. The most ridiculous pair is naturally the Demon Lord and the Empress—this “father-daughter” duo.

For the Empress, a character emphasized this season, “filial piety” is out of the question; she’s definitely going to stir up trouble with her dad. But she is also the most perceptive, keenly noticing Dongfang Qingcang’s care and protection of Xiao Lanhua, and after understanding their past lives, she feels deeply heartbroken.

She truly lives up to her position as a powerful ruler: when things get serious, she steps up and never retreats, rebellious yet responsible, only fighting to protect the people and things she values most—this treatment keeps the character sharp without reducing her to a mere “cheerleader” for the couple.

And the biggest driving force for viewers to keep following—the Canglan couple—not only grows more deeply bonded, but each also matures through their adventures, a true “dual-strong” mutual growth.

The Xiao Lanhua of last season, once frail as a reed, has truly become the intellectual pillar and emotional anchor between the two. When the male lead goes berserk or rash, she can restrain and spar with him, meeting female viewers’ expectations for the character’s “agency.”

Dongfang Qingcang, having regained all seven emotions and six desires, finally speaks of love outright.

A resolute “I’ll marry you,” sugar-coated with glass shards, as blood trickles down his face. From love comes fear; the Demon Lord’s pain stems from past karmic ties, and because he has finally learned to love.

Dongfang Qingcang’s life becomes whole through Xiao Lanhua, and just as shattered by having had and lost her.

As Season 2 wraps up, Xiao Lanhua’s final choice in the face of a hopeless situation becomes the most gripping moment for many viewers—the work ends on a cliffhanger, pulling audiences forward into anticipation for the next chapter.

03 From Breakthrough to Diversity—iQIYI Animation’s “New Female-Oriented” Practice​

In the fiercely competitive domestic animation market, the breakout success of the Love Between Fairy and Devil series is no accident. Its success is rooted in a clear differentiation strategy from iQIYI Animation: entering incremental markets with foresight, building quality barriers with a premium strategy, and then systematically expanding the IP’s boundaries, ultimately constructing a solid moat.

The first practice in this “breakthrough” methodology is precisely anchoring the “new female-oriented” track. Looking back to 2022 when it was born, the market was still dominated by male-oriented cultivation and revenge themes, with scarce supply of animation aimed at female audiences and focused on emotion and storytelling. The Love Between Fairy and Devil animation keenly captured this structural gap. It not only carried the momentum of the live-action drama but also, through the unique expressiveness of the animation medium, deeply integrated the high-intensity emotional relationships, delicate character arcs, and the grand xianxia world, validating the huge potential of “new female-oriented”—that is, going beyond mere “sweet romance” to use fantasy adventure, political intrigue, and deep emotion to satisfy the increasingly advanced, multifaceted aesthetic needs of female viewers.

Second, it builds a unique aesthetic identity through “premium 2D.” While 3D production has almost become the mainstream choice in the market, the Love Between Fairy and Devil series goes against the grain, resolutely committing to the longer production cycle and higher-threshold premium 2D hand-drawn track. This choice makes it stand out among numerous works, forming a unique aesthetic barrier. Through frame-by-frame hand-drawing, the work presents the rhythm of flowing robes, the tension of battle storyboards, subtle shifts in character expressions, and dreamlike landscapes of the three realms, offering viewers a rare visual treat and artistic appeal.

The deeper value lies in its successful cross-media operation and universally relatable emotional core. The IP’s vitality is activated at multiple levels through literature, animation, live-action, games, audio dramas, and cultural tourism tie-ins with places like Wushan and Fengdu, elevating the emotional experience from “watching on screen” to “experiencing in person.” More importantly, the work’s core themes of love, growth, and protection resonate across gender and age, allowing it to deeply cultivate the female-oriented track while also attracting a broad audience, achieving true mainstream breakout.

The success of Love Between Fairy and Devil is not a standalone endpoint but a prominent example of iQIYI Animation’s diversified content strategy. In fact, the platform has always been dedicated to breaking the limits of single-type female-oriented animation. Among its released works, For Form’s Sake deconstructs court intrigue with non-conventional, light-comedy time-travel narratives; The Little Princess’s Troubles explores daily fantasy in a warm, healing fairy-tale style; Nian Wushuang focuses on fate-bound deep affection in a traditional xianxia world. Together, these works form a rich and differentiated content matrix on the female-oriented track.

From the breakthrough of a single work to the deep cultivation of a track, iQIYI Animation is continuously expanding the imaginative boundaries of domestic female-oriented animation through diversified content practices.

Author / Huiye

Edited by < The Reliable Editorial Desk >

In 2025, Chinese animation accelerated its development, with big-screen hits and technological innovation continually raising the industry's ceiling. Shifting market demands and expectations have also posed new challenges for the newly begun year of 2026.

At year's end, Youku Animation's new series The Secret Code of Shanhaijing premiered on December 27, attempting to break through the homogenization of Chinese animation by starting from the traditional cultural worldview of the Classic of Mountains and Seas, refining details across art style, character design, audiovisual language, and more, and exploring new solutions for the next stage of industry development.

On the day its release date was announced, it trended on Weibo's main hot search list, and pre-release reservations on the platform exceeded 1.1 million. The Secret Code of Shanhaijing opens at full throttle — a New Year's gift of Chinese-style visual aesthetics that Youku Animation spent three years crafting for fans of Chinese animation.

The Secret Code of Shanhaijing is adapted from the long-form fantasy web novel by author A'bu, originally titled The Prison of Tong Palace. Produced by Youku Animation's Fengyue Studio and animated by Qingxiang Culture, it tells the story of the adventure of two young companions: Youxin Bupo, a runaway prince of the Shang dynasty, and Jiang Li, a disciple of the Taiyi Sect.

No longer confined to the vivid words of the novel, nor the abstract descriptions of ancient texts, in The Secret Code of Shanhaijing the mythical beasts of ancient legend come vividly alive, together presenting a three-dimensional, lively fantastical aesthetic of the Great Wilderness.

In the first episode, Youxin Bupo rides the ancestral phantom beast, the White Tiger, pressing into the Great Wilderness. Various flying fish and beasts — Xuanqi, the leopard fish, Zhenggu — accompany him, carrying viewers into an Eastern fantasy world of hidden realms among mountains and seas. Ancient myth flows through mountains and seas, and from now on, audiences' imagination of the Classic of Mountains and Seas has a real, tangible form.

The Secret Code of Shanhaijing is set in an overall worldview during the Xia and Shang dynasties, and details across the work's scenes, architecture, costumes, and props naturally blend traditional cultural elements of that era. Great Wilderness scenes resemble the gold-and-blue-green landscape style of traditional Chinese painting, where intertwined brushwork carries both the plain, innocent beauty pursued by Chinese aesthetics and the majestic grandeur of虚实 interplay; in the architectural design of Zhaoge City, Shouhua City, the Tong Palace, Ying Terrace, and other locations, one can see details of classical Chinese architecture such as eaves, dougong brackets and beams, and sculpture.

Chinese style has been a hot topic in the Chinese animation industry for the past three years. What is most praiseworthy about The Secret Code of Shanhaijing is that it brings Chinese-style and traditional cultural elements into everyday life, establishing a self-consistent visual logic system. As the first hot-blooded Chinese animation of ancient myth, The Secret Code of Shanhaijing ensures that, from core settings to detail design, traditional culture is no longer obscure and hard to understand, but naturally integrated into the atmosphere of the work, creating an Eastern aesthetic mood that audiences can easily embrace.

As director Zheng Jia said at a screening event: "Whether in content design or presentation form, we must be rooted in Eastern aesthetics while also fitting the story's logic and audiences' habits of perception, thereby achieving a dual transmission of cultural heritage and emotional resonance." When traditional culture spans a thousand years and transforms from imagination, words, and symbols into living images on screen — that is the ultimate form of Chinese romance.

In the context of Chinese aesthetics, The Secret Code of Shanhaijing tells not only ancient myths and legends, but also universal themes that young people today care about.

As the Xia and Shang dynasties change hands and a storm gathers, the protagonists Youxin Bupo and Jiang Li stand on opposing sides of the two royal camps, and everything they carry is inherently a clash of fate. Hiding their identities as they enter the world, they meet by chance and journey together through mountains and seas. Ice and fire, fervor and coldness, a pure heart and detached indifference — two utterly different people yet become partners in life and death. In this, there is both the sincerity of youthful friendship and the foreshadowing of a fated design. Such an intricate plot deepens the story and leaves viewers curious and eager to explore the future turns and developments of the two protagonists' destinies together.

But The Secret Code of Shanhaijing was never meant to be a heavy story. If fate is the uncertainty of the future, then pursuing freedom is the personal choice of the present. Right from the start, Youxin Bupo sheds the shackles of being a Shang dynasty prince, pulls out the dragon-locking nails that restrict his freedom, and flees — full of rebellious spirit, wanting to defy heaven and change his own destiny, the ultimate embodiment of contemporary young people's pursuit of a return to personal agency.

Beyond the youthful spirit, the delicate and complex emotions in The Secret Code of Shanhaijing also merit close reading. The literary scene when the protagonist Youxin Bupo flees the royal city at the start is the story's first small climax. Facing pursuers and the uncertainty of escape, the old retainer General Zhenbei single-handedly blocks an army of thousands, leaving behind the line "Your Highness, run!" — a moment that moved audiences to tears, shaken by the general's loyalty, forged through years of quiet endurance.

The general conveys his mother's dying words to Youxin Bupo: "My child — if only you could have been born into an ordinary family, and lived a life of freedom." In this single simple sentence, the emotion is remarkably rich: it turns out that years ago, his mother had already thought of what Youxin Bupo would come to think, hoping he could pursue freedom. As a key story node, these words also firm up Youxin Bupo's resolve to step alone into the Great Wilderness, opening the prologue of the protagonist's lifelong struggle against fate in pursuit of freedom.

Chief producer Ma Xuebing remarked during the screening's discussion: "By building a world that breathes and feels pain, we hope audiences not only experience a visual spectacle, but also draw some profound resonance from it." Head writer Qiao Mengfei likewise said: "While ensuring quality, we must also ensure that the characters' emotions are real, so that every viewer can understand and immerse themselves in this world."

Fearless youths setting out hand in hand. A story with this kind of pacing especially needs to build visual impact — and The Secret Code of Shanhaijing did not disappoint. The use of shot composition and lighting is exceptionally textured: in Youxin Bupo's struggle to pull out the nails, montage flashbacks quickly establish the backstory, lending plausibility to his escape. Cold light pierces the deep gloom of the Tong Palace; warm light opens up the vast expanse of the primordial wilderness. The contrast between the two mirrors the protagonist's emotional shift from confinement to freedom.

The coordination of special effects, music, and fight choreography is just right — "satisfying" and "exhilarating" are Youku Animation's classic comfort zone. In the second episode, Youxin Bupo, having left home a thousand li behind, proves remarkably capable: single-handedly holding a pass against the peril of a thousand troops. As the insert song "Two Bows to Heaven and Earth" plays, Youxin Bupo strikes with heavy fists that get the blood pumping; the signature special-effects-laden finisher has tremendous impact, paired with freeze-frame shots and ink-wash text effects, setting an exhilarating and dashing opening for The Secret Code of Shanhaijing's premiere.

Producer Zhang Yu said: "The story needs both direct, hot-blooded lines to ignite emotion and convey the theme, and also restrained lyricism to express the cultural depth of our world." Through a deft combination of visuals and sound, The Secret Code of Shanhaijing creates a comprehensive sensory experience.

Breaking the homogenization problem in Chinese animation is the main challenge for the industry's next stage. But considering bottlenecks in animation production models, production cycles, team experience, and more, achieving disruptive innovation in one leap in the short term is nearly impossible. Playing to strengths, avoiding weaknesses, and optimizing the details to build new competitive advantages is the more commendable path.

Clearly, The Secret Code of Shanhaijing is an exploratory work that draws on years of experience from Youku Animation and its production team, and audiences can see the care and sincerity in it. While retaining their production strengths, they have made incremental expansions across worldview, art style, character design, audiovisual language, and more. As everyone knows, pursuing extreme innovation actually yields lower success rates; multi-angle experimentation at the current stage both fits viewers' expectations and suits the production team's growth through collaboration.

Taking over the slot from Yun Shen Bu Zhi Meng, The Secret Code of Shanhaijing is regarded as a potential year-end dark horse. As early as the warm-up stage, the work's handsome character models met the expectations of fans of the original novel and drew the attention of Chinese animation enthusiasts.

After its premiere, this "easy on the eyes" The Secret Code of Shanhaijing, with its steady plot development and high-octane visual effects, has claimed 30+ trending topics across the internet and an on-platform heat score breaking 7,500 — truly deserving of the dark horse title.

Looking back on 2025, Youku Animation delivered consistently all year: from Cangyuan Tu: Yuanchu Mountain Side Story to Yun Shen Bu Zhi Meng, from the two continuously updated yearly series Senior Brother, Oh Senior Brother and Shen Mu (Tomb of the Gods), to the newly premiered seasonal series The Secret Code of Shanhaijing at year's end. Youku Animation has built a stable audience base and, in response to market demand, continues to expand the boundaries of the Chinese animation industry.

Now, the year-end dark horse is confirmed. Youku Animation wraps up 2025 on a high note, with expectations maxed out for 2026.