Chinese animated film 'Ne Zha 2' earns acclaim from Singapore's show-business insiders

Chinese animated film "Ne Zha 2" has gained acclaim from industry insiders in Singapore who hailed its stunning visuals and compelling storyline ahead if its wide release in the Southeast Asian country.

After smashing box office records worldwide, the hit film launched in Singapore on March 6, but a group of lucky fans and invited show-business insiders graced the premiere a few days earlier.

Joyce Lee, director of local film distributor Encore Films, said the viewing bolstered her confidence in the film's potential to take Singapore by storm.

"Over the last 22 years of my career, I've never seen a response like that, I've never seen anticipation from the audience, all the news it has made on social media. I've not seen something like that. So initially I was thinking probably I would be very happy if it could do 2 million dollars in Singapore and that would have broken all records for Chinese films in Singapore, but then after today, after everybody's response, I think I'm actually adjusting it, I'm being very optimistic here, so I think 5 million. I'm gunning for that," said Lee

As a sequel to the 2019 animated hit "Ne Zha", the latest installment in this rebellious diety's saga has captivated audiences worldwide. The film is now the world's highest-grossing animated film of all time and only the seventh film to pass the 2-billion-dollar mark globally, joining the likes of "Titanic" and "Avatar".

If it can achieve similar success in Singapore, that would be fantastic news for The Projector, an independent cinema that specializes in art-house films and is committed to creating a space where audiences can experience different types of film.

Impressed with the success of "Ne Zha 2" and other Chinese releases, The Projector's program curator Adeleena Araib said she plans to bring more Chinese content to Singapore.

"I also think that Chinese animated films, and also Chinese films in general, are getting a lot more traction for diverse audiences around the world who want something different other than the traditional Western style of animation or even the storytelling," she said.

For others at the pre-viewing, "Ne Zha 2" represents the advancement of quality cinema in the Asia-Pacific.

"I'm very proud that an Asian animation film is completely owning the scene and I think it deserves every bit of credit, because the animation is 10 upon 10, the storyline is 10 upon 10, so I'm really happy that they are showing our fight, our might and our skill set in animation," Isaac Ong, musician and founder of Colours Global.

Chinese animated film 'Ne Zha 2' earns acclaim from Singapore's show-business insiders

China's experience in eradicating poverty offers valuable lessons for the rest of the world, said Kishore Mahbubani, former permanent representative of Singapore to the United Nations, in an interview aired Friday.

Mahbubani highlighted the historic significance of China lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, describing it as a powerful example of effective governance, in an exclusive interview with China Central Television (CCTV) in Shanghai.

"So, for a country like China to lift 800 million people out of poverty, the sense of personal liberation that people get when they escape poverty is so powerful. I experienced it, I came out of poverty. I can understand how these 800 million people feel. And so the sense of personal liberation is enormous. It takes an incredible amount of good governance to eradicate poverty. And so clearly, China has done some things exceptionally right to be able to rescue so many people from poverty," he said.

He also noted that China's success has reflected governance capacity that merits serious study.

"And if we can move into a world 10 to 20 years from now, where every country in the world replicates what China has done and eradicates poverty, then we would have improved the human condition dramatically. And that's why China's governance needs to be studied carefully by all the countries in the world," said Mahbubani.

China's poverty alleviation experience worth global study: former Singaporean diplomat