In 2020, a number of excellent documentaries, such as the war on "epidemic", the war to resist US aggression and aid Korea, and the fight against poverty, have effectively exerted the image power of the "national photo album"; This year, many excellent documentaries emerged, which explored the spirit of traditional culture, told about humanity and nature, and reflected real life, greatly enriching the screen.
A few days ago, the State Administration of Radio and Television released a collection of outstanding domestic documentaries in 2020. Twenty-seven documentaries were on the list, including "Fighting the Epidemic with One Heart", "80 Days of Real Shooting in Jinyintan", "Life Destiny Report from Wuhan", "For Peace", "Resisting U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea to Defend Our Country", "The Armageddon against Poverty", "China" and "Aerial Photography of China (Season 3)".
Among these works, documentaries closely related to the theme, such as fighting the "epidemic", resisting US aggression and aiding Korea, and tackling poverty, exert the image power of the "national photo album", tap the spirit of traditional culture, tell about humanity and nature, reflect real life, and continuously enrich the screen in this year. With the change of production technology and the expansion of documentary images, these high-quality documentaries, which are both artistic and valuable, promote the documentary to enter a new situation of high-quality development.
Stick to the main theme and unfold the narrative of home and country in real images.
Looking back at 2020, the sudden epidemic at the beginning of the year tested documentary workers, and a number of images with rapid response and various video recording methods became the window for people to understand the real epidemic progress. Standing in the final year of the decisive battle to get rid of poverty and win a well-off society in an all-round way, it also commemorates the 70th anniversary of Chinese people’s Volunteer Army’s war to resist U.S. aggression and aid Korea. A series of "main theme" documentaries emerged in 2020, which played an important role in the national narrative.
Six episodes of documentaryThe "epidemic" in the battle of one mindThe panorama shows the course of China people’s fight against the COVID-19 epidemic. Medical workers from all over the country rushed to the front line, more than 4 million community workers from all over the country rushed to the front, and scientific researchers fought all night. The whole process of the construction of Vulcan Mountain and Thunder God Mountain hospital wrote "China Speed", which made the world cool and hot, and the international concerted battle "epidemic" highlighted the close connection of the community of destiny.
80 Days of Real Shooting at Jinyintan, Life Destiny, Report from WuhanDocumentaries focus on the center of the epidemic and record the warmth and tenacity of people in fighting the epidemic at close range. "80 Days of Real Shooting in Jinyintan" starts from the first perspective of the epidemic witnesses. The documentary features five COVID-19 patients. Their courage and strength in the ICU ward of Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital and their life stories of ordinary individuals encourage the off-screen audience. As an extension of the brand column of satellite TV, Life Destiny Report from Wuhan records the process of Beijing’s medical team assisting Hubei to fight the epidemic together with patients in Wuhan. Eleven episodes contain the eagerness of medical workers to help Hubei, the sincerity of their comrades and the eagerness to embrace life.
At the same time,Today’s dragon looks upDocumentaries, etc., made new explorations in the form of production during the epidemic. Linking more than 30 provincial TV stations and more than 500 TV workers, 36 stories of wars and epidemics that took place all over the country on the second day of the second lunar month were connected in series, forming a floating day of national unity and mutual help.
"Leaving home is still a teenager, but returning has become a service to the country." In telling the story of resisting US aggression and aiding Korea, the documentaryFor peaceWith the combination of history and theory, documentary images and political commentary complement each other, and the program shows the glorious course and great national spirit of China people’s volunteers going abroad to fight by tracing back major historical events. 20 documentariesResist U.S. aggression and aid Korea to defend the countryA panoramic view of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was presented. The program conducted rescue interviews with the witnesses, and decrypted precious files and telegrams for the first time in the film. Some historical images were made public for the first time, and oral history and detailed data files restored the original appearance of history to the greatest extent. Six episodes of documentaryHeroFocus the story on the "loveliest person" vertically, and combatants, logistics personnel, medical staff, military translators, literary and art soldiers, etc. form a group of heroes to deeply show the story behind the heroes. Touching the national spirit in tracing the history, when the individual narrative meets the national memory, its spirit of the times shines again.
Pulling the timeline to the contemporary life scene, documentary workers came to the fields to record the fiery story of poverty alleviation. Ten episodes of documentaryOur story of poverty alleviation in 2020Eight directors followed the filming for four years. This group of directors with an average age of over 50 years took root in the soil. After a long period of fixed-point observation and follow-up recording, the stories of poverty alleviation in the "three districts and three States" deep poverty-stricken areas such as Medog in Tibet, Nujiang in Yunnan, Jinsha River and Yellow River beach formed a typical sample, and there was no explanation. Let the stories speak for themselves. The documentary witnessed the great achievements of poverty alleviation with the power of time.
Focusing on the process of industrial poverty alleviation, ex situ poverty alleviation, and education poverty alleviation in Guizhou, Yunnan, Shaanxi, and Guangxi, three episodes of documentaries.Armageddon against povertyVividly reflect the life picture of the road to poverty alleviation; With the theme of poverty alleviation cooperation between Guangdong and Guangxi,Drink a river togetherShow the road of "getting rich first" and "getting rich later" in Guangdong and Guangxi, and work together to achieve a well-off life;The most benefit of spring.Taking the story of poverty alleviation in rural Hunan as the context, it shows the past and future of rural China;The field of hope, Ussuri’s new songDeeply focus on the story of Hezhe people living along the Wusuli River since the reform and opening up. On the one hand, the soil and water have changed and remained unchanged, and precious local chronicles have been written.
Resonate with the times and reflect the national spirit with multiculturalism.
Grasping the pulse of the times and looking back at the new connotation of traditional culture, a number of cultural and historical documentaries with novel themes and expressions have made new breakthroughs in their production and dissemination methods. With upgraded content quality, rich cultural heritage and based on an international perspective, these documentaries exude vitality in the collision of multiculturalism.
From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Tang Dynasty, DocumentaryChina.Following the historical context to sort out the long-standing Chinese culture, the evolution of civilization in system, economy and culture has jumped to the screen. Different from the production of traditional historical documentaries, "China" further explores the audio-visual language and forms of expression. The artistic scenery setting, 8K photography and soundtrack are quite magnificent. At the same time, the documentary breaks the traditional linear narrative, captures key events, and imagines real-life scenes, which is both aesthetically elegant and historically heavy, presenting a comprehensive, three-dimensional and true national image.
"Xiling is not cold", documentaryXiling printing societyTaking the century-old historical changes of a printing press as the axis, this paper tells about the culture of Chinese studies and the spiritual character of literati and officialdom. With the help of media communication, the documentary triggered a heated discussion after it was broadcast.Hometown of literatureFollow-up filming of six writers Jia Pingwa, Alai, Chi Zijian, Bi Feiyu, Liu Zhenyun and Mo Yan’s trip to their hometowns, which is both their hometown and their habitat. From north to south, their relationship with their hometown also forms a literary map on the geographical axis, reflecting how the root of culture occurred and how it went overseas.
Beauty of ChinaFocus on the world-renowned artists in China, and start a dialogue between tradition and modernity from the perspectives of architecture, calligraphy and painting, opera, dance, music and design. Among them, there are both artists’ self-reports and creative exhibitions, which dig deep into the aesthetic core of China elements and are full of poetic beauty.Make friends with the pastIt is also a beneficial practice to build a bridge between tradition and pop, to follow the guests’ cultural exploration journey, and to understand the cultural factors, new content, youthfulness and new mode of production in the collision of ancient and modern cultures.
"The United States and the United States are United, and the world is the same". Historical and humanistic documentaries not only take care of the changes of ancient and modern times, but also play the artistic function of "sightseeing" of culture. Documentaries produced by international cooperation and going abroad to visit cultural traces interpret the new connotation of the times in international exchanges.
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy, a 4K micro-documentary based on micro-video was presented.From Chang ‘an to RomeRealize micro-recording and light expression. As the first achievement of film and television cooperation between China and Italy under the "Belt and Road Initiative", the documentary shows the collision and blending of ancient and modern civilizations of the two countries from the parallel perspective of "A Tale of Two Cities", and expounds the Silk Road spirit from different angles such as social life, silk road commerce and military exploration.
Visitors from the seaBased on the first French merchant ship that sailed directly to China 300 years ago, the "Anfeite Park Jung Su" was used as a clue to restore the legendary story of the Maritime Silk Road. The creative team excavated historical materials by visiting many places, and showed the ups and downs of history with a suspenseful narrative method.China’s TreasureProduced in the form of Sino-British international cooperation, following the China Museum’s treasure hunt by the host of the British history program, eight China cities, with a journey of more than 7,000 kilometers, took a year to shoot, and the program presented a colorful picture of the long river of Chinese history and culture in the dialogue between China and the West.
Highlight the humanistic connotation and tell the story of China well.
Extracting creative materials from reality, keenly capturing documentaries of life, or reflecting the great era with little people, or presenting a simple philosophy of life with the relationship between man and nature, these works respond to social concerns with real images and record the new era.
New year’s broadcastLife for the first timeTaking the method of squatting and shooting, we capture the "first time" of ordinary individuals in 12 important stages of life, such as birth, school, starting a family, starting a career and providing for the elderly, and form a life picture full of laughter and tears. Documentary not only warmly touches the dilemma of life, but also brings emotional comfort to the audience in this special year. Documentary film"great! TeenagerLanding in the cinema in December 2020, a group of teenagers from all over the country formed a special baseball team at the Love Baseball Base in the suburbs of Beijing, and did not compromise their fate. The film recorded the ignorant and passionate lives of these teenagers with deep humanistic care.
In addition to observing the relationship between man and the environment, documentaries recording the life of man and nature are also full of humanistic philosophies.Mountains and Rivers in Xinjiang (Season 1)Taking the "Three Mountains" of Tianshan Mountain, Kunlun Mountain and Altai Mountain as the main line, the story of strugglers and builders in the new era, the unique regional culture and the struggle stories of all walks of life present a magnificent land of Xinjiang. The first documentary about animal nature set in Beijing.Our Animal NeighborsTaking the wild animals in the city as the shooting object, the three-year shooting recorded the changes of the city landscape, providing a new reference for the harmonious development of man and nature.
It took four years to shoot.Blue landIt is the first time that China Documentary Team has taken a comprehensive and systematic picture of the ocean in the form of a nature documentary, and it is also the largest, widest and most comprehensive marine shooting action in China so far. From the perspectives of seasons, trends, coastal wetlands, islands, bays and survival challenges, the documentary shows a mysterious and magnificent blue realm.Aerial photography of China (season 3)Taking Yunnan Province, Anhui Province, Guizhou Province, Shandong Province, Tianjin City, Shanxi Province, Jilin Province, Hunan Province, Hebei Province and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region as the shooting objects, it continues to show the vastness of 9.6 million square kilometers and the surging of 3 million square kilometers. Assemble a creative team of 300 people, with a total flight range of more than 250,000 kilometers. With the upgrading of aerial photography technologies such as 4K ultra-high definition and helium balloons, documentaries not only explore the beauty of nature, but also show regional culture and humanistic characteristics.
Zoom in, China’s first nature gardening documentary.Flowers bloom in ChinaThrough the culture and history of camellia, rhododendron, rose, chrysanthemum and peony, the beauty of plants and humanity is displayed. 4K standard time-lapse photography, animation, microphotography and other shooting methods accurately capture the growth process of flowers and bring visual wonders.
"Finding the right topic, telling a good story and making a fine work" is the important mission of documentary creation at present. Documentary workers constantly enhance their "foot strength, eyesight, brain power and pen power" in the creation of real images. This time, 27 works selected for the collection of excellent domestic documentaries in 2020 have innovative expressions in their artistry and ideological connotation. Next, in the face of new voice, new technology and new gameplay, domestic documentaries will bring more excellent works in the high-quality development stage.
Editor | Sui Fangfang Ning Yahong
