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A mysterious figure bearing a resemblance of Monkey King. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Depicted as a child deity with three heads and six arms, Nezha is a famous mythological figure in China, spawning literary works, films, TV series and animated titles.
As the latest retelling of the household character, the animated feature New Gods: Nezha Reborn is scheduled to hit domestic theaters on the first day of Spring Festival, Feb 12.
Unlike previous works – which mostly set Ne Zha's story in ancient China -- the new film occurs in a fictional time, around 3,000 years after the ending of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) novel Fengshen Yanyi, or The Investiture of the Gods, an influential work which has laid out the blueprint for most Nezha-themed movies and TV dramas.
A still image features two dragons. [Photo provided to China Daily]
"Nezha is a like a superhero idol. Most of us are familiar with his story, so our top challenge was to seek a new way to retell this household tale," director Zhao Ji said.
A graduate of digital filmmaking from the University of California in Los Angeles, Zhao shot to fame after co-directing Light Chaser Animation's hit White Snake.
Inspired by household folklore about two snake spirits, the White Snake film, made in association with Warner Brothers, has earned 470 million yuan ($72.8 million) at the box office and accumulated 550 million "clicks" from online subscribers.
An action sequence in the upcoming animated film New Gods Nezha Reborn. [Photo provided to China Daily]
In early 2016, Zhao teamed up with director Amp Wong to work on White Snake. But in keeping with Light Chaser's timeline — one new film each year — Zhao also started brainstorming on Nezha.
In the original Ming Dynasty story, Nezha is fictionalized as a naughty child raised in a general's family. After slaughtering a dragon in the raging East Sea, the dragon's father gathers powerful fellow dragon kings to seek revenge, forcing the child to commit suicide. But Nezha's master resurrects him, transforming him into a deity with multiple heads and arms to ride on two wheels set ablaze.
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