Promotional material for Our Times Photo: Courtesy of Douban

Several TV works, including dramas and documentaries, depicting the development of different aspects of China over the past decade were launched recently, most of which have received warm reactions from audiences and critics.

From the farmlands to the front lines of the fight against COVID-19, from soccer stadiums to performing arts stages and from cracking down on crimes to stories of poverty alleviation, these works surrounding different themes such as the economy, culture and ecological protection focus on countless people who have worked hard for the country and society over the past decade.

The stories of numerous ordinary Chinese people have been condensed into these works, which have resonated with many viewers who have felt they are watching moments from their own lives.

Shi Chuan, vice chairman of the Shanghai Film Association, told the Global Times that such TV productions appeal to audiences because every ordinary story they tell is a "mirror" reflecting the true life of Chinese people over the past 10 years.

Flourishing times 

Fourteen dancers in brightly colored Tang Dynasty (618-907) silk dresses and makeup line up on stage as exaggerated expressions flash across their faces. Suddenly, they are surrounded by antiques such as tri-colored glazed pottery or bronze wares, and the next second they are strolling into the ancient painting masterpiece Ten Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains.

The novel dance performance Night Banquet in the Palace of the Tang Dynasty stunned audiences around China when it appeared at the Henan Spring Festival Gala in February 2021. Netizens replayed it millions of times over the following few days, making the performance a representative of reviving traditional Chinese culture through creative means.

The story behind the creation of the dance performance was explored on the TV series Our Times, which has been airing since October 10 on TV stations and overseas video platform YouTube in 200 countries and regions around the world.

The Our Times episode about the dance show has grabbed the attention of netizens. Tang Yi (pseudonym), a dancer based in Zhengzhou, Central China's Henan Province, is one of them. Tang told the Global Times that she could empathize with the experiences of one dancer who had struggled for years to achieve her dreams of performing on stage.

"Dancing is in fact an extremely difficult career to pursue and is the opposite from the glamour and elegance audiences normally see on stage. On the contrary, it's a career full of uncertainty," Tang said.

"I think it was one of the best interpretations of the term 'cultural confidence.' They are proud of our tradition and gave the audience a perfect modern twist on Chinese tradition. And what's more, the episode began with a small look at normal everyday life, which resonates with us as well," Tang added.

Besides the dance show, the series also tackled diverse topics such as the story of a soccer coach and his students in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the growing friendship between Chinese construction workers and local people in North Africa.

"There is a sentiment of a 'national consensus' in such productions. China's reform and opening-up and the fast economic development… Ordinary Chinese people are eyewitnesses to the country's decade of development. It is hard for someone to not relate to what people have experienced," Shi noted.

Filled with hope

Our Times is not the only TV program to cover China's achievements in the past decade. 

The newly released documentary series Tales of Happiness in China not only includes well-known people in industries like sports and culture, but also focuses on ordinary people who have been devoting their lives to efforts that help common people.

Another 50-episode documentary series Zheshinian (lit: these 10 years) records the efforts of Chinese people, some of whom worked to lift poor villages from poverty, while others devoted themselves to researching advanced technology or protecting natural green forests.

After watching these TV works, many netizens said that the show made them feel full of hope living in China. 

Shi emphasized that these true stories counter Western media's stereotypical and incomplete portrayals of China. 

"Not to say these shows have the power to change how Westerners see China, but it is a window for many audiences overseas to learn that China isn't what has been described in Western media," Shi noted. 

"I'm a big fan of such TV productions. When I studied film in London, I produced a short documentary about China's Yi ethnic artists. I got a lot of comments from peers in the UK, Netherlands and Germany. They said Chinese stories are poetic and humanistic," Jiang Xinjie, a filmmaker in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, told the Global Times. 

"Surprisingly, many of them are in my age, born in 1994. As a young creator, I can make my own success into a cultural story," Jiang noted.