Promotional materials for the 4K version of The Legend of Sealed Book rereleased in 2021 Photo: IC

Chinese animated feature film: 'The Legend of Sealed Book'

The Legend of Sealed Book is a 1983 Chinese animated film produced by the Shanghai Animation Film Studio. The story of the film is based on Ping Yao Zhuan (Pacifying the Demons' Revolt), a Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) fantasy novel authored by Luo Guanzhong and Feng Menglong. 

The feature animation depicts a fantastical story of how Yuan Gong, a celestial book stealer, and Dan Sheng, a boy who was born from a swan egg, work together to fight against three sneaky foxes after learning magic.  

In 1979, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) provided a script for a Chinese mythological story, saying that it would be willing to invest in making it into an animated feature film with the Shanghai Animation Film Studio. The script was later rewritten by Bao Lei and Wang Shuchen of the Shanghai team with them adding more content from the Chinese novel Ping Yao Zhuan.

By the time the script was finished, the BBC withdrew from the project due to financial concerns, therefore the Shanghai Animation Film Studio had to continue the production on its own. 

In 1980, the production crew of the film went to the provinces of Heibei and Shandong to survey the landscape and ancient complexes. The artistic style of the film was also decided that same year with the directors Qian Yunda and Wang Shuchen working on the story board.

In the film, many characters' designs took inspiration from Chinese opera. For example, the red cheeks of the fox spirit character were based on the makeup of female roles in Peking Opera.

The characters of the film were designed by Ke Ming, a designer with a deep understanding of Chinese folk culture and art who had worked on several animated films by the Shanghai Animation Studio. The film's bold picture design, wonderful fight choreography and intense plot left a deep impression on audiences at the time. 

On November 5, 2021, The Legend of Sealed Book was rereleased in China in 4k, allowing people of all ages to appreciate the classic Chinese animated film on the big screen with higher quality. 

"It has been a great comfort to us that The Legend of Sealed Book is still being enjoyed by children today,"93-year-old Qian said after seeing the rerelease in 2021.

Global Times