Latest news with #JinYong
South China Morning Post
16-03-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
An unexpected link between Hong Kong's Louis Cha ‘Jin Yong' and Labubu doll
The creator of global toy sensation Labubu is a Hong Kong-born artist who attributes his early creativity to his childhood years of reading arguably the city's most famous writer, Louis Cha Leung-yung , also known as Jin Yong. Advertisement The late wuxia novelist whose martial arts books have inspired generations of Chinese youngsters the world over also fascinated Lung Ka-sing as a child, leading him to devour hand-me-down versions from the chefs working in his parents' restaurant. Lung moved to Holland with his parents at age six and credits Cha's novels with helping him learn to read and write Chinese. 'My early impression of Hong Kong was very vague because I left at a young age,' he said. 'But I love Hong Kong culture and used to read a lot of Jin Yong's fiction.' His first exposure to that world came with The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, which sparked his interest in other books in the collection, he said. Advertisement The recollection was one of several the soft-spoken Lung, 52, shared in an interview with the Post, during which he also drew a Labubu character exclusively for the newspaper's readers.
South China Morning Post
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
What Hong Kong can take away from Ne Zha 2's creative success
As the animated Chinese blockbuster Ne Zha 2 gains widespread attention domestically and internationally, hopes are high that it will be a prime example of a Chinese cultural export. This showcase of Eastern aesthetics embodies the maturity of China's cultural industry and against this backdrop, Hong Kong, once known as the Eastern Hollywood, has a historic opportunity to redefine its cultural soft power. Advertisement Hong Kong cinema has made progress in visual effects, with films like Warriors of Future setting new standards. However, the cultural industry faces a structural imbalance in original intellectual property (IP) development, having relied traditionally on the martial arts novels of Jin Yong and more recently, nostalgic content This limits market growth and fails to meet the diverse needs of younger audiences. Although the Hong Kong brand has found success in IP licensing, the city still lags behind the mainland in IP development and industry transformation; it doesn't have a successful work like Ne Zha 2, which resonates with Generation Z through innovation and emotional power. Although the Hong Kong government has supported the creative sector through schemes like the CreateSmart Initiative, the industry still lacks the global reach and influence necessary to compete with major international markets. Ne Zha 2 was five years in the making, with 138 animation companies across China putting together over 1,900 special effects shots; it is a product of a well-established ecosystem. Advertisement Enlight Media's IP development model for Ne Zha and other films drawn from the classic mythological novel Investiture of the Gods seamlessly integrates various stages, including creation, technological innovation, market expansion and derivative product development, ensuring a complete and efficient industry chain.
