The author | Xie Minghong
Editor| Li Chunhui
Young users' interest in traditional culture was first manifested in the field of documentaries, which is a cultural phenomenon that deserves great attention in recent years.
2016's "I Repair Cultural Relics in the Forbidden City" made a good start for the dialogue between the documentary and young people. The restorers who know the qualities of the object have integrated their own character emotions into the cultural relics, and the small fragments of words and deeds have hit the audience's heart, and the bullet screen has brushed the tears.
For a period of five years, masterpieces such as "If National Treasures Can Talk", "Cultural Relics On the Line", "The Nations of the Warring States", "How to Talk About This Painting" in the documentary market hold the baton, and gradually form a medium landscape of long-term dialogue and common growth between young people and documentaries.
The just-released 2021 Tencent Video Annual Observation summarized 9 major trends for young users, among which "cultural thief confidence", "ordinary is also great", "there are fireworks in the world" can all see the figure of the documentary.
The representative of "Cultural Thief Self-Confidence" is "Dunhuang: Born and Legendary", Dunhuang is like a rich mine in history, there is enough pride and pride for young people to unlock, the creative orientation of digging deep into historical details coincides with young people's learning preferences for traditional culture; the spokesperson of "Ordinary and Great" is the firefighter of "119 Please Answer" and the judge in "Yes, Judge", and also the guardian of every citizen who sticks to his post; of course, there is "Flavor of the World", "Tianshi Pengzhi", "There are fireworks in the world" It is still the warm landscape in the matrix of Tencent video documentaries, and the fireworks are usually the most touching...
"Tencent Video Annual Observation" shows that in 2021, Tencent Video's main historical documentaries will be played 130 million times, and young audiences under the age of 25 account for nearly 30%. When cultural consumption becomes a trend, how do Tencent video documentaries win the favor of young audiences?
In 2021, behind the award-winning reputation of documentaries including "119 Please Answer", "Yes, Judge", "The Journey of the Brave", "Dunhuang: Born and Legendary", what content layouts deserve the attention of the industry?
In the "9th Outstanding Domestic Documentary and Creative Talents Promotion Activity" organized by the State Administration of Radio and Television, Tencent Video was awarded "Excellent Broadcasting Institution" as the only Internet platform to win the award. This is inseparable from Tencent Video's long-term deep cultivation in the field of documentary films, and also reflects the diversified picture of documentary innovation.
From 2021 onwards, "Dunhuang: Born a Legend" and "Recruits Please Be Listed" were promoted by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television - Online Audiovisual Program Quarterly in the first and second quarters. "Flavor of the World Season 2" and "Dunhuang: Born legendary" were both rated as excellent programs for the collection and broadcast of original online audio-visual programs with the theme of "Carrying Forward the Core Values of Socialism and Building the Chinese Dream". "119 Please Answer" won the promotion of documentary at the China University Student Television Festival "College Students Appreciation and Recommendation Works". From the perspective of theme style, the award-winning works have their own strengths, and the power points of innovation are not the same.
"Flavor of the World" and "Towards the Direction of Supper" are like "late-night comfort", "The Journey of the Brave" and "Dunhuang: Born legendary" represent "cultural self-confidence". "119 Please Answer" and "Yes, Judge" unfold "Human Truth", Tencent Video's content layout aggregates diverse life cases, depicts rich social realities, and outlines a vast historical landscape.
Nowadays, documentaries are no longer simply a leisure experience that expands horizons, but more reflects the same frequency resonance of content production and the value of the times. The "Flavor of the World Season 3" that is broadcast is already regarded as the "N generation" in the field of documentaries. The reason why the audience is not tired at all may be that it is constantly switching scenes, striving for a new viewing experience every season.
"Flavor of the World Season 1" outlines a magnificent map of Chinese cuisine, and "Flavor of the World Season 2" explores the ultimate pursuit of taste in human beings from a global perspective. The "Flavor of the World Season 3" on the air uses the theme of "Small Fresh sea" to present the seafood culture of Chinese and the diverse life samples in it.
A kind of seafood, one side of the local, one flavor of human feelings. Li Tianyou of Dalian Ocean Island in Liaoning Province, obtained abalone in the cold waters in exchange for a warm and stable family; Xu Huanming of Wanning, Hainan, collected fishing nets in the terrifying waves and became a hero in the eyes of his daughter; Chen Yuxiang of Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province, picked turtle feet on the cliffs of the sea, and the contest between man and nature was thrilling.
Food documentaries iterate on themselves, and historical documentaries do not lag behind. "Dunhuang: Born legendary" innovates the presentation form of the documentary, and firmly attracts the attention of young audiences with the biographical style + drama legend. Feng Xiaogang's voice acting brings a dramatic immersion experience.
Beginning with the Han Dynasty, Dunhuang: Born legendary follows the trajectory of a city and tells the rise and fall of a thousand years, which can be described as a small encyclopedia about Dunhuang culture. The flourishing of Buddhism and the construction of the Three Caves of Beiliang present the image of a famous cultural city outside the military status of ancient times. The production of multinational teams has made it possible for documentaries to take into account the perspective of both East and West. As a result, Dunhuang: Born a Legend won the Best Documentary Series, best voice actor award, and best international communication work at the 27th China Documentary Academic Festival.
"After watching the explorers re-walk the road of glory, learn more about history, and pay tribute to every hero" Most of the audiences who watched "The Journey of the Brave" had such a sense of inheritance and honor. This admiration for history is the same as the sense of ceremony of young people brushing "Dragon Boat Wonderful Tour" and "Tang Palace Night Banquet", all of which are using new media to approach Chinese civilization.
The theme of historical documentaries is vast, and Tencent Video has developed innovative models under historical narratives, allowing young people to accept the baptism of traditional culture and becoming a representative of Tencent Video's documentary "Learn Well" content category. "The Journey of the Brave" re-shows the significance of the Red Road, including the Long March, from an exploratory perspective, and opens an excellent window for young audiences in the new era to understand the history of the revolution.
In the documentary, Zhong Hanliang and explorer Josie James crossed the steep Jiajin Mountain and crossed the Wujiang River, the "Majestic Wumeng"; Dou Xiao felt the steely military will of General Yang Jingyu in the dense forest of Changbai Mountain; Zhang Xinyu shuttled through the tropical islands to echo the style of the Red Lady Scout Army from a female perspective. Yan Xujia retook the route of the Dongjiang Column to rescue and support the soldiers of the friendly army, and as a young representative of the new era, he inherited the precious spiritual wealth left by his predecessors.
Through a two-line narrative that crosses time and space, "The Journey of the Brave" establishes a more real and perceptible connection between the audience and the history of the revolution. The stories of the two time and space are cross-presented, activating the documentary stories that have long been frozen, and achieving the narrative effect of mutual reflection. It has greatly stimulated the interest of young people in modern history.
Documentaries of "social reality" extend the perspective to occupations that audiences rarely touch. Through the professional perspective, show the truth of the world.
In the annual documentary dark horse "119 Please Answer", chongqing's well-known "ring taking" function of the Changchangkou Fire Station allows the audience to see the witty side of the firefighters' eighteen martial arts;
From the perspective of the real record, the audience understands that behind the blue glory of the firefighters, it is inseparable from the understanding and sacrifice of the family. The son of the firefighter Nguyen Yang Yang went to see him at the fire station, and the father who returned from the police was full of debt.
"119 Please Answer" allows us to see the heroism of ordinary firefighters, and also shows the tragic scene of "not being able to catch it". Not all rescues are 100% successful, they are after their own excellence. Yao Ye just encountered a failed rescue, and regretted that he continued to train and improve himself. Yao Run, a young firefighter, gradually matured: "Now I don't want to be a superhero, a firefighter should appear when everyone needs it most." ”
The fusion of professional truth and human truth makes young audiences emotional, and in the 10th China University Student Television Festival "College Students Appreciation recommended works", Zhihu 2021 high-scoring documentary list, and "Variety News" selection of the annual documentary, "119 Please Answer" have won awards and recognition.
"Yes, Judge", which also belongs to the reality theme of Tencent Video's documentary, uses case presentation and judge image construction, so that judges are no longer a single profession, but people who truly bring a sense of security to the masses. Judge Tan Jianhui once summed up: "Behind every case is a jianghu, and what judges really have to do is how to make legal and social relations more harmonious." ”
On the balance of court love and law, the audience sees the husband and wife who love and hate, the hit workers sitting in the defendant's seat because of labor disputes, the muck car driver who caused the tragedy caused by the difference in one thought, and the old Lai who evaded debts and lost his last dignity... The documentary approach depicts the sentient beings of contemporary courts, and the audience discusses them hotly under the relevant topics of Weibo, forming a popular law education effect with dots and faces. In the newly released TV Landmark (2021) Large-scale survey on the comprehensive strength of China's television and online audiovisuals, "Yes, Judge" stood out as "Excellent Documentary of the Year".
As a window for cultural display, documentaries not only bear the responsibility of cultural understanding internally, but also shoulder the function of external dissemination and international image. Based on the local, looking at the world, telling The Chinese story well is another proposition of the documentary narrative.
"Taking the Ancients as a Friend", which won the "Excellent International Communication Documentary" in the excellent domestic documentary and creative talent promotion activities of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, broke the viewing barriers of foreign audiences and was also an active gesture to embrace overseas markets. Grasping the right of cultural interpretation in one's own hands and showing the treasures of traditional Chinese culture to international compatriots is undoubtedly an important part of the construction of national cultural soft power.
"The Journey of the Brave" was broadcast on Tencent Video and Discovery Channel, covering Europe, the United States and the pan-Asia-Pacific region, adding another boost to the audience of the documentary' external radiation. In the 11th China Documentary Academy Awards, the two documentaries won the honor of Best Documentary Series and the Best International Communication Award. This shows the communication function of documentaries as "cultural business cards" in overseas dissemination.
Tencent Video documentaries frequently publish "hot items" in 2021, which are welcomed by young audiences at the same time, but also allow their interest in traditional culture aesthetics to be subtly nourished. The audience harvests fireworks and a sense of healing in the theme of food, sees themselves, sees sentient beings, sees heaven and earth in the documentary of life, and learns the rise and fall, glory, and ancient and modern times in the history of history. Unfolding the world with documentaries is becoming an intergenerational attribute and group identity of young people.