The annual "June 1" International Children's Day provides a time opportunity for us to think about the relationship between children and literature and art. Excellent children's film and television works have a profound impact on children's growth and even their lives, and are also related to the future of the country and nation. Therefore, it is an important responsibility of film and television practitioners to produce excellent film and television products for children.
Inheriting the growth story with the characteristics of the times
Those classic children's film and television dramas have become the childhood memories of generations, and the emotional memories brought by collective viewing have become an important component of the childhood identity of generations.
For the post-60s and post-70s, the images of little heroes Zhang Ga and Pan Dongzi are deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. As classic children's movies, "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" and "The Sparkling Red Star" fully grasped the audience's aesthetic psychology and social atmosphere at that time, and successfully constructed a set of little heroes with rich children's stories, three-dimensional children's images and vivid children's emotions. A revolutionary narrative of growth history. "Gazi" and "Pan Dongzi" are thus transformed into cultural symbols of the pursuit of revolutionary heroes in childhood. During the same period, the animated films "Little Tadpoles Looking for Mother" and "Havoc in Heaven" not only made the small animals in Qi Baishi's "Frogs From Ten Miles Out of the Mountain Spring" and the Monkey King in the classical masterpiece "Journey to the West" move on the screen, but also made Dongfang move. The aesthetics of implication flows into the hearts of that generation.

Stills of "Havoc in Heaven"

For the post-80s and post-90s who grew up following the pace of reform and opening up, TV animation or TV series is the first choice for childhood entertainment. The Black Cat Sheriff, Shuke, Beta, and the Hulu brothers are well-known cartoon characters, and they are also witty and brave children's idols. The father-son relationship that children yearn for most is the "big-headed son" and "little-headed dad". The family of three formed by them and the "apron mother" is the reproduction of the education scene of the Chinese urban nuclear family in the field of animation at that time. Many small interesting things in the film are the epitome of childhood in people's hearts. "Happiness" is not only the daily life of the father and son, but also the spiritual sustenance of a generation of childhood. China's first mythical children's drama "Little Dragon Man" starred by a real person touched a generation of children with the story of finding their relatives. The ending song of "I have horns on my head, and a tail behind me" has become the mind of this generation to this day. Still lingering Divine Comedy.
As for the children born in the 2000s and today, they grew up in an era where information networks are connected in all directions. Their access to images is more convenient, the content they can access is more complex, and children's film and television classics also frequently jump into their field of vision. "Balala Little Magic Fairy" live-action TV series or animation, let the magical girl's adventure story arouse the ripples in the children's heart; similarly, the cartoon "Bear Infestation" and "Super Flying Man" start a fantasy adventure journey, which makes people think about family, Friendship and other diverse topics; "Baby Bus" has become a recognized "artifact of coaxing babies" in the mouths of parents, which combines education with entertainment and stimulates children's imagination and creativity.
Literature and art are the horns for the advancement of the times, which can best represent the style of an era, and can best lead the atmosphere of an era. Children's film and television works of different ages also have distinct characteristics of the times, showing the aesthetic psychology of children in a specific period, and shaping the cultural and spiritual structure of an era. The revolutionary heroic narrative, the daily performance of family ethics, the self-expression of individual adventurous spirit... Children's film and television dramas tell the story of growth with the spirit of the times.
Create a sharing space under parent-child interaction
Images in movies, TV and mobile phones have gradually become an important channel for transmitting information and culture. Moving images are the dominant medium for contemporary children to perceive and understand the external world. In this process, the guidance of parents cannot be missed. In recent years, the gradually developed and mature film and television works with the theme of family fun have provided opportunities for parents and children to travel together, and accompanying movie viewing has become the mainstream scene for parent-child interaction.

Stills of "Bears Return to Earth"

Every year during the Spring Festival or the National Day Golden Week, it is a time when the theme of family fun is concentrated. Movies such as "Bears Return to Earth" and "Peppa Pig's New Year's Eve" are the products of national animation IP content changes and brand value appreciation, providing positive content for building the cultural memory of children in the new era. In "The Bears Return to Earth", the gluttonous and troublesome Xiong Er added a new character of high-tech mecha warriors, making Gouxiongling the first stop for alien creatures to visit the earth. This content expansion echoes the reality of the rapid development of national aerospace and the aesthetic needs of the national sci-fi fever, and has won a good box office and reputation in the audience market. In terms of creative concept, the film continues the action logic of environmental protection and caring for the earth that the "Bear Hounds" series insists on, while the high-saturated color picture strongly outputs a warm and lyrical image, which fits the happy and peaceful movie-watching mood of the family.
In terms of online variety shows, "My Little Tail" and "Master!" The topic discussions set off by programs such as "I'm Going to Dance" prove the value of interactive observation-based variety shows for children and adults in value output and emotional transmission. "My Little Tail" observes the parenting model of the two-child family, observes and records the growth trajectory of brothers and sisters, restores the multi-dimensional relationship between brothers and sisters, and explores the expression of family emotions full of innocence and fun. The values of responsibility, patience, and mutual help among neighbors in the program output are recognized by audiences of all sizes. By "This! It's the mini variety show "Master! "I'm going to dance" shows the superb dance skills of the little hip-hop dancers, the cute baby's love and understanding of dance, and presents the positive spirit of contemporary children. a microcosm. For parents and children, watching this kind of program together can see the shadow of their own life, have discussion, have resonance, and promote mutual understanding.
Accompanying movie viewing is a family education method that combines education and entertainment, and it is an exploratory learning completed through movies or TV programs. It can avoid preaching or low-level content, select suitable images or topics, enter the interactive space between children and parents, and cultivate children's emotional concentration during movie watching and after watching movies through discussion or retelling. self-expression ability. At the same time, accompany watching movies is preserved as a family ritual, which can usually bring positive emotional experience to children and help increase family happiness.
Inject more realism and imagination
The "Compulsory Education Curriculum Plan and Curriculum Standards (2022 Edition)" recently issued by the Ministry of Education clearly includes film and television (including digital media art) as the course content, further confirming the supplementary and expanding role of film and television in basic education. In the era of visual culture, it is imminent to improve children's visual literacy. Families and schools jointly call for excellent children's film and television works.
In recent years, due to a series of related factors such as market type, industrial policy, and creative team, new film and television works and masterpieces suitable for children's growth process have been in short supply in the film and television industry as a whole.

"Great! "Youth" stills

Children's film and television works are an important place for children to cast their souls, and a spiritual place for children to unleash their nature and find the truth. This requires creators to stick to the original intention of "everything for children", pay more attention to the reality of children's lives, and express their lives from the perspective of children's themes, so that children can be emotionally satisfied and understand art and life. beauty of. Such as the documentary film "Awesome! "Youth" is a work with realistic temperature. The main creator spent several years witnessing a group of troubled teenagers from all over the country through learning baseball to change their destiny and gain the ability and dignity to survive. At the baseball base, different kids train together. The friction in life and their delicate thoughts are vividly displayed in the film. This dilemma narrative does not exaggerate suffering, but conveys people's tenacity and an upward and kind-hearted attitude in the face of adversity.
Excellent children's film and television works need not only the foundation of warm realism, but also the blessing of rich imagination. It is the nature of children to be full of fantasy, lightness and romance. Children's sci-fi dramas such as "Bear Infested Wild Continent" and "New Big Head Son and Little Head Dad 4: Perfect Dad" are loved by children because of their imagination and game form. . However, imagination cannot be limited to the drawing of a sense of the future, but also the innovation of cultural inheritance.
Not long ago, among the 2021 outstanding children's programs announced by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, "Little Famous People of Chinese Studies (Season 4)" and "Opera into the Campus Cloud Classroom (Season 2)" tried to express the youth of TV variety shows, combining literary classics, Traditional operas are promoted to children and children, so that children can gain ideological enlightenment and spiritual nourishment in the magnificent and fantastic world of images of traditional Chinese culture.
Excellent children's film and television works can mobilize children's imagination and enthusiasm. "Seeing" is an aesthetic training in which children encounter objects worthy of imitation and learn to express their emotions correctly. This perception and emotional sensitivity are internalized as part of their visual literacy. Therefore, it is expected that more excellent works that meet the growth needs of children in the new era and reflect their spiritual outlook will emerge, and use art, aesthetics and value to nourish the hearts of children in the new era.
(Author: Zhang Kaibin, unit: Zhejiang Normal University Research Center, Zhejiang Normal University Research Center for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Zhejiang Normal University Primary and Secondary School Film and Television Drama Education Research Center. This article was originally published in Guangming Daily on June 1, 2022 15th edition)