Talk of the city: the Chinese animation film “Deep Sea” is soon to be released

“Deep Sea” is another key project directed by Tian Xiaopeng after “Monkey King: Hero is Back”. It has been highly anticipated since the official announcement was made. Seven years have passed since the project’s approval, preparation and production. As the top investment in animated films in China, the film shocked the industry and many audiences when the new trailer was released. This is the most anticipated Chinese animated film in 2022.

Director Tian Xiaopeng and his esteemed team at October Media created this new “Chinese style” masterpiece “Deep Sea”.

The movie is so much more than a gorgeous visual feast—it articulates a fantasy for the soul. The highly-praised film is even said to mark the advent of a new era in Chinese animation film-making.

Tian Xiaopeng has worked as an animator for many years. Having participated in the CCTV feature-length animation “Journey to the West”, he received inspiration for “Monkey King: Hero is Back”, the first animated film he directed. For “Monkey King: Hero is Back”, Tian Xiaopeng spent a total of eight years on the project—four years devising and four years producing—drawing critical acclaim for his work. In his opinion, technology is not the greatest complication faced by the Chinese animation industry, but impactful designs supported by rich creativity. Many people still think that Chinese animation is only for children. He hopes that his works can slowly change this view and strives to bring an unprecedented experience to his audience.

“Deep Sea” tells an original story, in which the modern heroine makes her debut. A typical girl weighed down by the grey shackles of everyday life, the heroine’s portrayal is highlighted by the stark contrast between her and the vivid colors of the opening scene. “Deep Sea” may thus provide the audience with a temporary escape from reality into a “journey of dreams”. From the mythical “great hero” of  “Monkey King: Hero is Back” to the original “little character” of “Deep Sea”, let us watch closely as the Chinese animation industry ascends a new stage of maturity.

At present, Hollywood’s three-dimensional animation style has become the global mainstream. How to replicate the unique East-Asian ink painting style using mainstream three-dimensional technology is a difficult problem faced by Chinese animators. The “Deep Sea” production team invested two years into visual effect research and development during the early stages of making movie aesthetics, until they finally discovered the “particle ink painting” method, successfully combining three-dimensional and two-dimensional ink art.

The one-minute trailer for the debut of “Deep Sea” that wowed the Internet shows 100 to 200 million particles per frame. Just rendering a single frame takes an hour. In the previous c

Talk of the city: the Chinese animation film “Deep Sea” is soon to be released

“Deep Sea” is another key project directed by Tian Xiaopeng after “Monkey King: Hero is Back”. It has been highly anticipated since the official announcement was made. Seven years have passed since the project’s approval, preparation and production. As the top investment in animated films in China, the film shocked the industry and many audiences when the new trailer was released. This is the most anticipated Chinese animated film in 2022.

Director Tian Xiaopeng and his esteemed team at October Media created this new “Chinese style” masterpiece “Deep Sea”.

The movie is so much more than a gorgeous visual feast—it articulates a fantasy for the soul. The highly-praised film is even said to mark the advent of a new era in Chinese animation film-making.

Tian Xiaopeng has worked as an animator for many years. Having participated in the CCTV feature-length animation “Journey to the West”, he received inspiration for “Monkey King: Hero is Back”, the first animated film he directed. For “Monkey King: Hero is Back”, Tian Xiaopeng spent a total of eight years on the project—four years devising and four years producing—drawing critical acclaim for his work. In his opinion, technology is not the greatest complication faced by the Chinese animation industry, but impactful designs supported by rich creativity. Many people still think that Chinese animation is only for children. He hopes that his works can slowly change this view and strives to bring an unprecedented experience to his audience.

“Deep Sea” tells an original story, in which the modern heroine makes her debut. A typical girl weighed down by the grey shackles of everyday life, the heroine’s portrayal is highlighted by the stark contrast between her and the vivid colors of the opening scene. “Deep Sea” may thus provide the audience with a temporary escape from reality into a “journey of dreams”. From the mythical “great hero” of  “Monkey King: Hero is Back” to the original “little character” of “Deep Sea”, let us watch closely as the Chinese animation industry ascends a new stage of maturity.

At present, Hollywood’s three-dimensional animation style has become the global mainstream. How to replicate the unique East-Asian ink painting style using mainstream three-dimensional technology is a difficult problem faced by Chinese animators. The “Deep Sea” production team invested two years into visual effect research and development during the early stages of making movie aesthetics, until they finally discovered the “particle ink painting” method, successfully combining three-dimensional and two-dimensional ink art.

The one-minute trailer for the debut of “Deep Sea” that wowed the Internet shows 100 to 200 million particles per frame. Just rendering a single frame takes an hour. In the previous century, China’s two-dimensional ink painting animation once amazed the world. This time, “Deep Sea” innovatively breathes new life into “ink painting” animation with three-dimensional techniques, looking forward to letting the world experience this new phase in Chinese animation’s history.

entury, China’s two-dimensional ink painting animation once amazed the world. This time, “Deep Sea” innovatively breathes new life into “ink painting” animation with three-dimensional techniques, looking forward to letting the world experience this new phase in Chinese animation’s history.