The man behind Nezha, summer Chinese box office hit: they call him ‘Dumpling’ and he’s on a roll
- A self-taught animator making his feature film debut at the age of 38, Yang Yu, known as Jiaozi, meaning ‘dumpling’, has seen a long-held dream come true
- He toiled for six years on the film, and struggled for funding, yet it is the fourth biggest grossing in Chinese history and its run has just been extended
Animated film Nezha has become a cultural phenomenon in China. Having taken 390 million yuan (US$55.4 million) at the box office to date, the animated feature is the fourth most popular film to have ever screened in China, and not far behind Hollywood blockbuster Avengers: Endgame, which has taken 424 million yuan.
Born in Sichuan, southwest China, to parents who were both doctors, since childhood Yang has been a big fan of Japanese anime such as Saint Seiya and Dragon Ball. The story of Nezha – a mythological toddler in Chinese folklore who is cursed by evil at birth but, against all odds, becomes a hero to save humankind – reflects his own trajectory.
Yang quit university, after studying for three years for a pharmacy degree, to pursue his dream of becoming an animator.
“I used to suffer from a lot of prejudice after changing my career. Since then, I have thought about making an animated film to encourage young people to chase their dreams and change their fate,” Yang said at a recent media event in Shenzhen.