Telling China's story more important than ever

chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2018-09-21 11:47

The launch ceremony of "Reporting Changes in a Great Era Via Multimedia" in Beijing, Sept 20, 2018. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

Editor's note: On Thursday, two renowned documentarians shared their perspectives on how to tell China's stories to the world at the launch ceremony of "Reporting Changes in a Great Era Via Multimedia", a series of events hosted by the State Council Information Office from Sept 20 to Nov 20 to mark the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up. Here are some excerpts:

Malcolm Clarke

Oscar-winning British director

My first trip to China was in 1981. In 2013, when I came back, China had undergone a remarkable renaissance. After 40 years of reform and opening-up, China today is very much a global power. And equally when we tell a story about China's remarkable renaissance, we will have to travel around the world to do that. China today is no longer an isolated "middle kingdom" — China is everywhere. So we shot our film Better Angels in Africa, in Europe and in the Middle East, and of course the US and China, and it took almost four years.

Also the more we listened to the opinions of ordinary people, the more we realized the average Chinese person on the street probably understands the US far better than the average American understands China. The information gap could lead to suspicion and fear. Sometimes we fear what we don't understand. It's natural, it's humane. But in the world of geopolitics, fear and distrust can simply and swiftly carry us toward clamorous outcomes. That's why I feel it's increasingly urgent to rebalance this understanding deficit. The rise of China doesn't necessarily mean a foe to the US, or any other countries for that matter. Every country makes mistakes as it develops and grows stronger, and China is no exception. But despite missteps and false starts, it's important to remember how far China has come in a few decades. Today, China feeds 1.3 billion people every day. That single achievement is something China can be proud of. But does the rest of the world know about it? I doubt it. So to help the US and the rest of the world dispel bad feelings about China's rise, China needs to do much more.

There are so many ways that China can do a better job advertising itself — its achievements, its history and culture, science and technology and arts. If China doesn't do it, no one else will. China can't rely on fascinated foreigners to export stories to the wide world, China needs to blaze its own trail and catch the imagination of the world by telling its own emotionally engaging stories that can touch peoples' hearts. Make Chinese films and boldly show the rest of the world what China is. The same way Americans do, because the Americans do it brilliantly. Once the rest of the world realizes that we are all much more like Chinese than different, I believe the misgivings, fears and suspicions will be replaced by admiration about everything China has achieved and the amazing place it has become.

Abram Sitzer

Director of Original Content at Discovery Networks Asia Pacific

When telling a story, so many people immediately dive into details — details about what and how, how has this change been possible, what changes have been taking place to allow this economic growth, how many unicorns does China have, what industries are growing. But if you focus on what and how, you are missing the bigger picture — the why.

Facts about growth are impressive, but they are not inspirational. For the world to understand the true power and potential of China, the key I believe lies in why. Why is China able to achieve more than any other nation in this period of time? It's about the vision of this country and its leadership. A dream, a vision is what pushes us higher and farther. A vision has the power to make change, reduce poverty, improve the environmental protection, reduce public and private debt and rebalance the economy to focus on consumption and services.

Understanding why opens a window into the hearts and minds of the Chinese people. It's the key to their inspiration and dreams. What is the reason for success? Without why, without vision, there is no mission, there is no story, and we likely would not even be here today.

The world wants to know why this change has been possible. Today people all over the world are no longer looking to the US for a vision of the future, they are looking for a new dream to follow. I think if you show us China's past, China's present, and most importantly its future, the world will listen.

Second is first-person storytelling. People seek discovery not just because of the stories, but because how we tell them. People want to hear what has happened from the people it's happened to. A father who wants to create a life for his family, or a tech innovator who has a vision to revolutionize e-commerce, or a leader with a new path for his country. The power of all these stories is hearing them from the mouths of the people that have experienced them.

First-person storytelling makes things come alive. Because experiences are filled with passion, emotion and meaning. The world wants to hear the voices of these visionaries and what their dreams are, with their path that led us where we are today and into the future. So the more first-person storytelling you have, the less narration you have, the more impact and influence your story will have. And that's what we want to hear.