Technical progress

Widely viewed as a milestone in the progress of the domestic film industry, the Creation of the Gods franchise has recruited visual effect teams from all over the world.

With more than 1,900 visual effects shots, the sequel brings to life the immortal figure of Yin Shou's son Yin Jiao, the former crown prince executed by his brutal father. Resurrected by a celestial being, he becomes a giant with blue skin, red hair, three heads and six arms.

"We worked in Los Angeles for two weeks. The technology we used to create Yin Jiao is among the latest. It's called volumetric capture and adds realism to muscle movements and facial expressions. I think it'll feel fresh for the audience," says Wuershan.

Aside from computer technology, the shooting and post-production for the "Mojia Sijiang", four sibling giants each 12 meters tall and possessing magical weapons, was comparatively conventional.

He says that the character design for the four giants was inspired by Tang Dynasty painter Wu Daozi's Taoist silk scroll, Bashiqi Shenxian Juan (The Scroll of Eighty-Seven Celestial Beings). Makeup for the four tall actors playing the giants took four hours a day. Their scenes were shot at 36 frames per second, creating the illusion of slow, clumsy movement.

Other visually striking scenes include those featuring Lei Zhenzi, a green-skinned figure with giant wings capable of flight; Nezha, a child celestial being who wields a magical red ribbon as a weapon and flies on two blazing wheels; and Yang Jian, a celestial being skilled in making use of elements like earth and water to create portals to move around swiftly.

As Wuershan worked with the foreign visual effects artists, he compared Kunlun, a celestial realm inhabited by divine beings, to the moon. He came up with the premise that gravity on Kunlun was roughly half that of the moon, helping them to understand how to visualize the floating realm.

Phillips shares that he volunteered to write the English subtitles. "If we want to promote Chinese culture overseas, it requires translation to be done very accurately. I hope that Chinese films can pay more attention to the translation of subtitles," he says.

The actor watches new Chinese movies in London or New York but often gets frustrated with poor subtitles, fearing that foreign audiences may miss the cultural depth.

He hopes Chinese films will participate in more international festivals, helping global viewers appreciate the domestic industry's technical achievements and the cultural richness of Chinese stories.

As the film gears up for wider international release, Wuershan hopes it will give audiences worldwide a richer and deeper insight into the emotions and values that define the Chinese.