‘Aftershock’ is a Chinese drama film depicting the aftermath of the 1976 Tangshan earthquake directed by Feng Xiaogang. The movie is about a young woman named Yuan Ni who must chose to save either her son or daughter who are trapped under a cement block after the earthquake hits. Her choice impacts her life for the next 32 years.
It was released in China in July, and it is the first big commercial Imax film created outside the US. This illustrates the growing Chinese influence within the film industry. Imax CEO Rich Gelfond stated that “There is really nowhere in the world that is as active as China right now. Our approach to China has been to become part of the fabric of the culture.”
Aftershock is showing in an unprecedented 4,000 screens and is the highest grossing domestic movie ever.
Although, there is a lot of praise for Feng, some even calling him the ‘Spielburg of China’. There was some outrage at the amount of product placement within the movie including alcohol, insurance, cell phone, cars and sportswear. He states that he did this intentionally because the commercial aspect of Chinese film is evitable as domestic films can only profit through limited channels.
The use of Imax in China shows that many different companies including Imax see the potential of China as a consumer market. They want to be an part of this growing consumer culture. The success of the movie also demonstrates how using American types of filming makes people believe that the movie produced is better than domestic movies.
It also plays on the history and culture of China, which is becoming more and more important to middle and upper class Chinese people. It plays on the age old themes of family, loyalty and love, which are ingrained into the Chinese culture.
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