First AI theatrical film "Sanxingdui: Future Past" screens in Shanghai; producer Jiang Defu discusses embracing AI
"Sanxingdui: Future Past," the first domestic theatrical film made using AI technology to obtain a public screening permit from the China Film Administration, opened in theaters nationwide on October 23, with a total runtime of 100 minutes; all characters are original digital figures and do not include digital replicas of real actors. Producer and chief producer Jiang Defu said at a special screening event in Shanghai that in the early stage of creation, a 13-episode preview made with AI received 200 million views on Douyin, after which, as the technology iterated and upgraded, the decision was made to produce a feature film, and he said Chinese cinema can only embrace, learn from and accept AI technology.
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The first AI theatrical film to receive a public screening permit has disclosed its production path, and its iterative process—from a 13-episode Douyin preview to a 100-minute feature—can serve as a reference for film and television practitioners.
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“Today, nearly 40,000 people came into the theater to see 'Sanxingdui: Future Past,' becoming the first wave of viewers to 'eat crab' with us.” The first AI hyper-realistic theatrical film, "Sanxingdui: Future Past," held a special screening event in Shanghai on the 25th. Jiang Defu, CEO of Bona Film Group and the film's producer and chief producer, shared the original creative vision and journey with the audience. Jiang Defu said: "In the past, when I attended premieres, I was surrounded by a constellation of stars. Today, our six actors are up there." He pointed to the AI actors on the background poster and said with a smile, "And they can't even come down—they can only stand up there. So times have changed." As the first domestic theatrical film made using AI technology and granted a public screening permit by the China Film Administration, "Sanxingdui: Future Past" opened in theaters nationwide on October 23. The film has a total runtime of 100 minutes and uses hyper-realistic imagery to bring ancient Shu civilization and the future world to the big screen, creating a new genre of science fiction film in which ancient civilization and the future illuminate each other. All characters are original digital figures and do not include digital replicas of real actors. Speaking about the creative process, Jiang Defu said that in the early stage of creation they used AI to make a preview, 13 episodes in total, which received 200 million views on Douyin, and that result won everyone over. So next, with each iteration and upgrade of the technology, they began to have a very bold idea—to make a feature film. He candidly said that the original intention behind making an AI feature film was also to blaze a trail for peers. "Chinese cinema has developed to this day through countless rounds of technological iteration and improvement. Now we face the wave of new AI technology. Chinese cinema can only embrace it, can only learn it, and must also accept it, and make AI technology serve our purposes." "Chinese cinema needs generation after generation of people to dream and to build dreams," Jiang Defu said. "Next, we will seek out more colleagues from among AI industry players, users, and technologists who understand film, want to learn film, and want to contribute to the film industry, and bring them into our ranks to run together for the development of China's film industry!"