the corruption behind government funded animation in twentieth-century china

8/10/2019 The Corruption Behind Government Funded Animation In Twentieth-Century China

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The Corruption Behind Government Funded Animation In Twentieth-Century China

Mark Mullan

B00656106

DES130 Design Discourse One


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The arts receive a tiny amount of government funding but deliver big returns for our

economy and for our society. For an investment of just 13p, just look at what we get back

events, performances, exhibitions, concerts, workshops all of which contribute to

improving our society, drive economic growth and jobs creation, and raise Northern Irelands

global profile as a place people want to live in and visit. (Roisin McDonough, 2014) Roisin

McDonough, head of the Arts Council NI makes a valid plea against the proposed cuts to the

arts budget for Northern Ireland in the coming year 2015. In the last three years the arts in

Northern Ireland have faced six consecutive cuts to their funding, and in a time where the arts

were beginning to flourish, it confused me as to why such cuts would be made.

While experiencing this issue first hand as an arts student in Northern Ireland, it is

then understandable why ones interests were peaked upon hearing the animation industry in

twentieth-century China received funding for their work, and were not dependant on

commercial endeavours in order to pursue their artistic ambitions. It felt strange that a

country so densely populated and who, to this day, rely heavily on the tertiary industry of

farming, would provide funding for a creative industry. This was investment beyond

confidence, as it came at a time where cinema was still only at a point of growth

internationally. Why, then, did the Chinese animation industry receive this bountiful gift

while even today arts sectors struggle in a world run by the media?

Roisin McDonough, Head of Arts Council NI


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To understand the relationship of the Chinese animation industry you must look at its

origins. It is commonly accepted that the animation industry as we know it did not begin until

the arrival of the Wan brothers in 1926 (ChinaCulture.org, n.d.). As pioneers in the Chinese

animation industry, it is possible to track and understand the turbulent history of this troubled

industry through the experience of this school of animators. One student studying the

industry expressed his opinion If we look under the surface we can see that not only are

Chinas animated films just as interesting as those from Japan, but the production of the films

reveal a microcosm of Chinas history. (A Brief History of Chinese Animation, 2011)

The Wans had a fascination with making pictures from early childhood, and they

persisted with this interest while still working their day jobs for the Chinese Commercial

Publishing House. Their only instruments were a camera and an old box they had refitted as a

projector with ordinary lightbulbs and a few pencils, for a dark room they simply moved the

stove out of the kitchen in their seven square foot home. At times the brothers even sacrificed

food and clothing in order to pay for materials to pursue their interests in the field (Zhu, Y.

and Rosen, S, 2010, p.112). The Wan brothers humble beginnings gives an insight into how

commercial animation in China struggled while investment was placed in the propaganda

work. It wasnt until the commercial success of the American import of Snow White that

commercialism in Chinese Animation became viable.

The WanBrothers
http://chinaculture.org/


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The Wan brothers work in animation through the period of the Japanese invasion

reveals immediately how the industry was used as a propaganda tool. In the lead up to the

impending war French scholar Marie-Claire Quiquemelle wrote that the brothers produced

six educative and patriotic films for Lianhua before moving to Mingxing studios in 1933.

After the war broke out the Brothers work moved the viewer to share anti-Japanese views,

Zhang Huilin identified types of animation produced by the Wans during this period as those

with patriotic, anti-Japanese, anti-imperialist, and anti-feudalist propaganda and educational

fables. (Zhu, Y. and Rosen, S, 2010, p.113). We begin to see here how the animation

industry was exploited as a tool to influence the thoughts of Chinese society.

The Wan Brothers produced the first animation short Uproar in the Studio running ten

to twelve minutes long in black and white, as well as Chinas first feature length animation

Princess Iron Fan released in 1941. "Eager to legitimize animation as a serious art form,

the Wans sought to merge American entertainment values with Soviet educational

imperatives (Cummings, D, 2012). The introduction of feature-length animations in China

followed the immensely successful import of Walt Disneys Snow White and the

overwhelming reaction from the contemporary Chinese society, assurance that animation had

a place in the Chinese marketplace. Of the Wan Brothers, it is said they believed that

Chinese animation should be instructive, logical and thought-provoking besides being

Princess Iron Fan (Still)


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entertaining to its audience. They wanted to emphasize the development of an animation style

that was uniquely Chinese. (Wikipedia, n.d.)

The growth and steady development of animation in China seemed to parallel the

political and social movements of the time. They followed, and at times influenced, the

changes in Chinese society and culture. On October 1, 1946 the first known motion picture

studio established by a communist party was set up in the Nenjiang province. In 1947

productions such as Emperors Dream used puppets in an exaggerated way to expose

corruption of the Kuomintang Chinese nationalist party (Wikipedia, n.d.). These works

display how the communist party successfully exploited this new and successful art form in

the twentieth century, highlighting the importance of the arts in moving a nation to change.

On October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong would lead China in embarking on a new communist era.

In February 1950 this communist studio combined with other divisions such as the

Wan brothers to become the predecessor of Shanghai Animation Film Studio. The central

government began sponsoring the studio in April 1957, and Chinas first official animation

factory was born. ChinaCulture.org expressed that, It can be said that in the short run, the

financing of the Shanghai Animation Film Studio was strictly an extension of Maos Anti-

Rightist Movement following up on speeches like Let hundreds of flowers blossom and

hundreds of schools of thought contend Mao has publicly admitted that promoting new art

Emporors Dream (Still)
http://chinaculture.org/


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forms and institutions was vital to the new China. Though with time, his political campaign

would prove to be a major backlash to the industry. Putting an end to the golden

era. (ChinaCulture.org, n.d.)

In return for the money to create these works, the animation industry handed over

control to these political forces. The work, while successful and often beautiful, was

corrupted by the forces involved behind its production, which clearly had a lasting effect of

the reputation of the industry within China. In the Handbook of Chinese Popular Culture it

is stated that From 1949 to 1951, the Northeast Film Studio, the Shanghai Film Studio and

the Beijing Film Studio produced 35 features, 280 documentaries, and 6 animations. With

few exceptions, they all glorified the party and the government. (Wu, D. and Murphy, P,

1994, p.207) This statistic gives an impression to what extent the communist government had

an influence over the animation industry.

As previously stated, the state of the animation industry in China paralleled the

countries own social and political movements, iconically the Cultural Revolution, a social-

political movement that took place in the Peoples Republic of China from 1966 until 1976.

Set into motion by Mao Zedong, then Chairman of the Communist Party of China, its stated

goal was to preserve true Communist ideology (Wikipedia, n.d.).

The animation industry was only funded and promoted by Mao Zedong as long as it

served as a useful propaganda tool in his Hundred Flowers Campaign.

A parade during theHundred Flowers Campaign


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The Communist government permitted public criticism and discussion of opinions on

controversial national policy issues in April of 1957. It is said the nation condemned

corruption and criticised the Communist party monopoly on power (Hays, J, 2008). Mao

himself apparently joined the criticism put up against the communist party, and in a

rambling speech on the The Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People, Mao

admitted that 15 percent or more of the Chinese population were hungry and he was not

surprised that some people were disgusted by Marxist inefficiencies. (Hays, J, 2008).

By mid-1957 the government began to have doubts about the campaign and the

freedom of expression it was invoking in society, however. They moved on to launching the

Anti-Rightest campaign, lasting three years.

Mao Zedong sent a message to the animation industry. His regime would allow their

complete freedom of expression, however, if those views contradicted the political

communist party you would face severe persecution. Artefacts, antiques and literature were

destroyed in the red guard destruction crusades, wiping Chinese history of anything of

conflicting value to the Communist agenda (Wikipedia, n.d.).

Some artists who were labelled rightists for their creative works were humiliated,

forced into labour on farms in the country, sent to correctional facilities for re-education or

in some cases imprisoned (Hays, J, 2008).

Cultural Revolution propaganda poster


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Lin Zhaos story is an absolutely haunting account, giving humanity to what Chinese

citizens actually faced at this time. The Anti-Rightist campaign saw between three and six

hundred thousand intellectuals and artists labeled as rightists (Hays, J, 2008), stripped of

employment and many were sent to labor camps with their candid Hundred Flowers

comments and works used as evidence against them. Those who had been given artistic

freedom by the government now suffered for the works they had created.

This can be seen more clearly in terms of the animation industry in the experiences of

Te Wei, a successful artist of the early twentieth century and director of the Shanghai

Animation Film Studio responsible for such acclaimed works as Little Tadpoles Look for

Their Mother. Earlier in his career, Te Wei and the painter Jin Xi had been personally asked

by the Ministry of Culture to go to the Northeast and establish an animation group at the

Changchun Film Studio. His work in animation is better credited as discovering the distinct

Chinese stylisation, taking influence from sources such as the Peking Opera. He felt that if

Chinese animation was successful nationally it would succeed internationally, that is to say,

he felt if Chinese animation was unique in representing its own culture, that would achieve

success in the global market.

He led a group of anti-Japanese cartoonists during the Japanese invasion of 1937 and

of the groups activities stated, "We had exhibitions in and out of doors, printed our cartoon

works as posters put on walls, and published journals against the Japanese. We did everything

Lin Zhao


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ourselves, and though economic conditions were very difficult, we found ways to

survive." (Lent, J, 2015)

Despite all of this strong and politically aligned work within the animation industry,

Te Wei tragically became a victim of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, when the Shanghai

Animation Film Studio was shut down and many of its artists sent to re-education farms or

factories. It was at a pig farm that Te Wei met A Da, another notable animator of twentieth

century China (Cummings, D, 2012).

When the Cultural Revolution began, Te Wei was isolated and monitored closely in a

small for an entire year. He said of the experience, In my tiny room, I had a table with a

pane of glass on it. I drew many paintings on it. When I heard sounds -- the guards coming --

I erased the paintings with a wet cloth. I drew everything by imagination; I drew like I'd been

there and saw it. This capability was from having drawn cartoons and animation. Later when

my job was feeding pigs, I saw a lovely baby pig that I thought I would animate when I got

out, but I didn't. One fat pig we named Wu Fa Xian, after one of the Gang of Four. A Da and I

amused ourselves with humor at times. (Lent, J, 2015)

While in confinement, he was once deprived of sleep for three days due to

interrogation and on occasions was tortured. While in the country, he was forced to endure

labour such as digging rivers, carrying manure and rubbish and raising the livestock, where

his previous job had been as Director of an Animation Studio.

Little Tadpoles Look for their Mother (Still)


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It is important to note, however, that Te Wei expressed his view that he felt there was

very little control of the animation industry previous to the Cultural Revolution. He indicated,

Seldom was there government control of the animation industry. Some believe there was so

little government control so that the industry could develop smoothly. (Lent, J, 2015)

It is clear to see, therefore, that Chinese animation was not always a government

funded art form. In its infancy, the industry struggled through humble beginnings much like

any other industry, with artists such as the Wan brothers working out of makeshift studios in

their kitchens and sacrificing amenities in order to fund their work. This raw passion and

drive for exploration of the field saw the steady growth of the industry within China where it

was on par with the rest of the world. However, the increasing turbulent social issues of the

state led to the industry being used as a propaganda tool in political wars. It can be seen

evidently how the funding of the industry for this purpose alone is what led to its damage,

resulting in the end of Chinas first Golden Age of Animation. The lasting effects can still be

seen today with Chinas significantly reduced reputation as a national source of animation,

such as that of Japan. Government funding came at a price of artistic integrity for the Chinese

Animation Industry.

Te Wei


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