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"Patients are expected to arrive within a minute, please be ready for treatment."
"Sudden emergency, there are critically ill patients on ambulances."
"It's too late, let's go to the top first.".
The Ebola Hospital was basically completed, and the Chinese medical team faced the Ebola epidemic for the first time. An ambulance carrying critically ill patients arrived early, disrupting the rhythm of treatment, which seems to be the most original appearance of the epidemic: menacing and overbearing. "Winning the battle and zero infection", China's medical team is facing unprecedented challenges.
In the nearly two-minute long shot, from wearing protective clothing before the treatment, making preparations, to passing through the layers of buffer zones and killing after the treatment, it is announced that this is a professional and mature medical team. Even in the face of unexpected situations, there are Feng Gang's sitting command, Fan Yilin's decisive decision, and Zheng Shupeng's imminent danger. Of course, there are also the physical exhaustion and nervous fear of young medical personnel who have gone to the "battlefield" for the first time.
Recently, based on the 2014 Chinese medical team to aid Africa to fight the Ebola virus as the core prototype, Luo Jin and Mao Xiaotong starred in the major reality theme TV series "Ebola Frontline", which was online and popular on Tencent Video. This is a virus sniper battle at the cost of life, fast pace, strong sense of oppression, vivid character portraits and boundless spiritual power, all of which make the audience feel and empathize with the scene.
A noteworthy point is that this is not only a medical genre drama, but also a microcosm of China's nearly 60 years of medical assistance to Africa. Before leaving, Feng Gang handed over the five-star red flag that the first batch of medical teams to Africa had brought to Africa for safekeeping by He Dong, behind which three generations of he family's grandchildren had embarked on the journey of aiding Africa, and even two generations had buried their bones in other places. After nearly 60 years of China's aid to Africa, there is finally a drama aimed at them, how can people not be deeply touched?
In the TV drama market in 2021, the wave of chasing dramas set off by the main theme theme need not be repeated, and "Ebola Frontline" also lives up to expectations and sets off a new round of emotions at the end of the year. How was such a debauched main melody drama created, and what enlightenment will it bring to the creation of the main theme later?
"The Ebola virus, which has attacked the structure and foundations of our Kabaria faith, can only face it with fearless love."
It was a war against death, and the horrors of Ebola were amplified by the habits of kabaria, medical conditions, and the struggle between forces. From the perspective of film and television, it also means that it naturally has a broader theater space and can accommodate more genre elements.
How does Ebola Frontline tell the main theme story from this new perspective? This is a process of dismantling and integration, not only to have the ultimate expression and professional appeal of the genre theme, but also to have a main line core that always pulls the story, in order to produce the effect of 1+1>2.
The fight against Ebola is clearly the main line. The creation of the core prototype of the Chinese anti-Egyptian medical team in 2014 has made the TV series come with a sense of landing and authenticity, and also made the direction of this "war" touch people's hearts. Under this basic disk, it is how to disassemble more grand and innovative new film and television materials.
This is a very sincere, professional and systematic medical anti-epidemic presentation.
With the arrival of the Chinese medical team in Kabaria, from the construction of the hospital, the authority of Chinese reagents, to the complete process of receiving and killing, and the rotation system of medical staff, there is no avoidance in the most intuitive and comprehensive way to show the audience. The details in the play, including the processing of needles in the test samples and the extraction of internal fluid from the eyes, are also highly professional.
Zheng Shupeng and He Huan's Adventures in Sangyi Village dramatically link the investigation of the virus and diamond smuggling, opening up a social relationship map in a special context, the faith, happiness and plight of the locals, and the forces represented by Tabanasi continue to wrestle, clear and strong, but this is the complete Kabaria. At the same time, the addition of suspenseful branches has also made the Ebola virus more cruel in the force of nature, which is more regrettable.
Finally, the story of the Chinese medical aid team for Africa is also unfolding, silent but directly to the soul.
Behind He Dong is the feat of three generations of grandchildren to aid Africa, Feng Gang, who has aided Africa many times, resolutely served as the captain of the anti-Egyptian aid team, and Zheng Shupeng and Xie Yunhu chose to stay, which is a group of warriors who retrograde in the face of the national mission. In addition, the 40-degree air conditioning in the summer training room prepares for the aid of Africa in advance; the details such as warm notes left for returnees are also touching.
The front line of Ebola has never been only a virus, but also a microcosm of a whole society, medical treatment, suspense, the main theme, various elements of multi-faceted compound, not only not divided, redundant, but more touching.
Because the hospital has not yet been built, in the pleas of the patient's parents, Feng Gang still refused to treat the patient, and he could not eat for a difficult day. Further is the benevolence of the doctors, and the step back is the safety of all Chinese medical teams, which is the mission of "winning the battle and zero infection".
This kind of extremely contradictory pull has become a debatable existence in the play. He Huan, a journalist by birth, can disregard his safety and run to the war-shrouded house just to round the local teenager's cola contract, but as the captain of the Chinese medical team, Feng Gang must make the "right choice".
Regardless of identity background, the choice of different characters in special circumstances enriches the character's personality, and has also become the most dramatic tension and worthy of repeated taste in the whole story of aiding Africa and resisting Egypt.
In addition, there are many defensive scenes in the play: from the fairy friendship between Zheng Shupeng and Lao Gai, to Xie Yunhu, who accidentally touched the fence, taking a deep breath; for He Huandao, who went deep into the tiger's den, he Huandao's fearlessness, but also for Zheng Shupeng's insistence on delivering pregnant women at the head of the gun, and even the suspicious identity of the head of the guard, the upright general's wife, all of which touched the hearts of the public.
Perhaps no drama at present can produce such a strong empathy effect, and behind this is another problem in the creation of the play: every character is alive as promised. The shaping of group portraits under the ravages of the epidemic, as well as the accurate outline of the ultimate character relationship and social relationship, allow the whole drama to break the restrictions of language, region, culture, etc., and enter the public's heart with common and universal emotions.
The TV series did not go to mythical medical staff, including the Chinese aid to Africa medical team. Some of them have repeatedly helped non-mature and stable, some people have embarked on the path of their fathers with heavy hearts, some have tried to persevere by faith after physical exhaustion, and some have emotional collapse after spraying a body of blood, but what is common is that they are all on the front line, even if it is difficult, they always stick to and persist.
In this vicious battle of sniping Ebola, they are also exploring and growing.
It is worth noting that the TV series also created a number of special group portraits in the way of interspersed memories: they are the non-medical aidists who exist in people's mouths and He Dong's father's generation, the doctors represented by Fan Yilin's wife who fell on the front line of the fight against SARS, and the images of medical families represented by Xie Yunhu and Feng Gang's wife, who are also respected.
Two years after aiding Africa, Zheng Shupeng began to sink his heart to feel this place after the Ebola outbreak, and the two lines of tracking down the epidemic and diamond smuggling went hand in hand, making the image of Kabaria people more vivid.
Convinced that death is not the end, Lao Gai left a legacy willing to dissect the corpse for study; his daughter also followed in her father's footsteps and embarked on the front line of the fight against the epidemic; Brahan, a doctor who was forced to come to Sangyi Village on the way to vacation, where he dedicated himself to treating diseases and saving people; in addition, people here congratulated for their new life, but they were also tormented by illness, hunger, and death.
The famous scenes and vivid character group portraits give "Ebola Frontline" the power to penetrate the screen. Of course, these are inseparable from the precise interpretation of the actors, whether it is young actors such as Luo Jin and Mao Xiaotong, or middle-aged actors such as Xu Yajun and Ning Li, all of whom add texture to the series with their down-to-earth acting skills.
Fan Yilin recalled the scene of fighting SARS with his wife, their faces were wrapped in thick gauze in protective clothing; after the Ebola virus attack, many people and even medical staff in Kabalia did not wear masks at any time; Zheng Shupeng stopped the car when he met a patient on the way into Sangyi Village, and silently lowered his sleeve after getting out of the car.
Behind these details is the accurate grasp of the various types of virus transmission methods, the most meticulous restoration of the local epidemic prevention situation at that time, and the most can best explain the careful care of "Ebola Frontline" at the production level. Behind the "adaptation from real cases" is the increasingly stringent scrutiny and requirements of the market for genre dramas.
In order to present the most authentic story of aiding Africa and resisting Egypt and the most professional medical treatment, the crew has done a lot of preparatory work, interviewing experts, field research, etc. In the play, whether it is the biological laboratory, the hospital built by the Chinese medical team, or the portrayal of humanity in the face of the virus, it has brought a strong shock to the audience and recognition from the professional field.
This anti-epidemic story unfolded in the main space of Kabaria, and the presentation of local scenery and humanities are also the key to making the audience feel a sense of substitution. The TV series uses Zheng Shupeng's perspective to enter the audience's perspective, and opens the ceremony of celebrating the new life in Sangyi Village: riverside, bonfire, dancing, prayer, sharing food and drink, and recreating the life of the local tribe in typical scenes. And so on, and locals kiss the dead and like to hug.
The TV series also uses a strongly contrasting narrative structure many times, which continues to bring more intense emotional impact to the audience.
Following the perspective of the Chinese medical team, Kabaria was devastated under the torrential rain, the corpses piled up in mountains, and the killing seemed to have little effect, and they also braved the heavy rain to rescue the medical supplies that fell into the river; and as they arrived at the Sino-Qatar Friendship Hospital, it was a sunny day and white clouds, and new life and light were coming. The same is true of the atmosphere of the hospital at the beginning, the liveliness of the street scene, and the bloodstains and panic of the hospital after the Ebola virus.
Flexible shooting methods such as long lenses and helmet cameras are also significant features of this drama. The long shot of the first visit is clear, smooth and natural, and has a strong sense of spatial oppression; Sangyi Village explores the truth about diamond smuggling and the situation of medical staff in protective clothing. The play uses the protagonist's first perspective many times to advance, and also makes the audience feel more personally and have a sense of common destiny with the characters.
It is precisely because of the careful consideration of all links that "Ebola Frontline", a TV series with a grand pattern and a vertical genre theme, has made the audience sigh "nervous across the screen" after broadcasting, and is truly immersive.
Throughout recent years of film and television works, "Ebola Frontline" has a different meaning: it jumps out of the most common concept of home country, interprets the concept of "community of human destiny" to interpret the true boundless love and boundless medical path, and also conveys China's responsibility and the responsibility of a big country. China's medical aid to Africa for nearly 60 years is undoubtedly a sincere tribute.
Returning to the creation of film and television dramas, "Ebola Frontline" is also a very important "expansion" in the main theme wave. On the one hand, it opens up the creative pattern with an international perspective and puts the Chinese essence in the new era on the creative stage; on the other hand, its exploration of the genre of the main theme provides new creative ideas for the market, and the main theme is not only a grand proposition, but close to the truth, close to the flow of life in all walks of life.
The pattern is open, the vision is open, but it is presented in the theme creation with a "vertical incision", and this collision of "big" and "small" is the biggest charm of "Ebola Frontline". Perhaps in the future, "main theme + genre theme" will be a new outlet for creation. The creation methodology of this drama is also of reference significance.
This winter, "Ebola Frontline" is undoubtedly the warmest and most powerful light. Some people have seen the medical personnel who help Africa block the danger farther away from the battlefield, establishing a safety barrier for us; others have seen the most powerful cry of human beings in the fight against nature, and the spirit of watching out for each other. But there is no doubt that everyone is touched in it and then filled with energy.