Lion dance underdogs blitz box office in 'I Am What I Am'

In the 1991 Hong Kong martial arts film "Once Upon a Time in China," Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung, played by actor Jet Li, stunned the world with its lion dance skills.

Three decades later, an animation film titled "I Am What I Am" has become a "dark horse" on movie-rating platforms, despite featuring no stars and with a small budget.

It's about a trio of "left-behind" children, kids left in their rural hometowns while their parents go to work in urban areas, who decide to enter a lion dance competition to attract the attention of others.

While lacking the financial resources of peers living in downtown areas, the trio have "lions" roaring in their heads to "catch the sun" and realize their dreams.

The protagonist is A Juan, a weedy, plain- looking teen whose parents have been away from home for many years. He lives in the Guangzhou countryside with his grandpa and is frequently bullied by others. He is initially helped by a girl with the same name who gives him her lion's head mask after performing the dance.

Inspired by her dance and support, A Juan decides to learn lion dancing with his friends A Mao and A Gou, both objects of derision because of their looks. For their coach, they find a man who used to be a member of two lion dance teams but quit to make a living selling salted fish. They now practice much harder than their opponents.

However, after passing the early contest stages, A Juan's father is injured in a fall from a building construction site and lapses into unconsciousness. To raise money, the son has to leave the countryside for work and takes several part-time jobs. Carrying the lion's head mask with him, he practices the lion dance on the rooftop platform of the building where he lives.

As the competition final looms, a co-worker asks A Juan to go to Shanghai to make more money. As he is about to leave town on the day of the contest, he sees his two friends fighting with the coach. So he fetches the lion's head mask left on the rooftop and joins them.

At the end of the competition, he tries to jump up to the highest pole, which is set to warn the dancers to be humble, to create a "miracle" because he was told that his father would wake up if there was a "miracle." Although he fails to jump that high, he is able to hang the "lion's head" on top of the pole.

He returns to daily life after the contest but the "lion" in his head helps him face any challenge life offers.

"As ordinary people, all of us can have a 'highlight' and then return to normal life," said Sun Haipeng, the film's director. Common people could also be protagonists and sometimes gain stronger power, Sun added.

"I set the three teens as 'left-behind' children to give the film a realistic theme and we hope it can reflect the problems triggered when migrant workers flood into cities during rapid urban development," Sun explained.

"Also, we think these children, without their parents' company, have more reasons and motivations to 'go upward' and can therefore appeal more to audiences."

Sun said the aim is to show the growth of A Juan, who is called a "sick cat" by his peers.

"At the beginning of the movie, he wears long hair and appears a bit of a hunchback, suggesting being weak, foolish and easy to be bullied. After he learns the lion dance, he grows taller and has a buzz cut, and his stance becomes straighter."

And, working all day long and living a tough life give him darker skin, longer hair, more muscles, broader shoulders and determined eyes.

"When he 'hugs' the rising sun on the rooftop, though he is still nobody, he is brilliant and handsome. He is no longer what he was," Sun said.

By drawing more attention to "left-behind" children, the film shows that the cohort, although often neglected by society, also have dreams and are capable of realizing them.

Another highlight of the film is the culture of the Chinese Southern Lion, also known as the Cantonese Lion Dance.

The lion is regarded as an auspicious beast by Chinese people and the lion dance is widespread through folk customs.

After thousands of years, the dance custom is divided into two genres by geography. The Chinese Northern Lion evokes a similar style and movement as the real lion, while the Southern Lion gives more emphasis to the beast's strong movements. The latter, also called Xingshi in Guangdong, is performed during holidays or big events, and represents the spirit of struggle and awakening.

Director Sun, who has lived in Guangzhou for 11 years, told Southern Weekly in an interview that the lion dance is an energetic activity.

"I found during my discussions with many young lion dancers that they have much in common with A Juan and his coach," Sun said. "And as the lion dance market is not that large, they don't get much attention or high payment.

"As far as I know, these young people are sent to learn lion dancing because most of them are active and their families are not wealthy," Sun said.

"Some lucky ones remain in the lion dance team while many others give up to take jobs like delivering food or packages. In rural areas, many lion dancers also have full-time jobs."

Sun wanted to show the public the real side of lion dancing.

Producer Zhang Miao observed that the film was like "a teenager running against the wind toward the sun."

"Our nation's progress is also like a teenager's running. It reminds me of sentences like 'China will be strong when its youth are strong' in scholar Liang Qichao's essay 'The Young China'," Zhang said.

"Every generation hopes they can reflect the essence of youth that symbolizes vitality," Zhang added. Lines from "The Young China" have been used in "I Am What I Am."

"Using Chinese animation to tell China stories, inherit Chinese culture and promote Chinese spirit is missions given by the era to people participating in making Chinese animated movies," said Rao Shuguang, president of China Film Critics Association.