The Chinese animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" was officially released in France on Friday, drawing movie fans from all over the country to flock to the Grand Rex cinema, a landmark building in Paris, to watch this much-awaited film.
"Ne Zha 2," based on a 16th-century Chinese mythology with a bold reinterpretation, is the world's highest-grossing movie of all time in a single market, racking up a staggering 15.28 billion yuan (about 2.09 billion U.S. dollars) in ticket sales in China since its January 29 release.
The film has already entered several overseas markets, including North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, with an overseas box office exceeding 379 million yuan (about 52 million U.S. dollars).
After watching the movie, many French audiences said that "Ne Zha 2" has stunning visuals and a wonderful story. It shows the value concept of perseverance and courage to overcome difficulties, which is refreshing.
"I think it is more than 2 hours but I didn't see the time pass. So I would say that," said Ines, a French influencer.
"At first, I was just probably blown away by the animation, but once I got a second, once I take a second to appreciate the story, I was able to see, I was able to understand it even though I wouldn't speak Chinese or French. I was able to understand it just by watching the movie," said Sky Janoff, a viewer.
The United Kingdom-based pan-European distributor Trinity CineAsia has secured the theatrical rights for the film in 37 European countries and regions, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Spain.
The film will be screened in more than 200 theaters in France on April 23, and is expected to reach 150,000 viewers. The distributor hopes that the oriental mythology and cultural charm presented by the film will bring an excellent audio-visual experience to French audiences.
"There were a lot of people vying for this film. It is as you know, one of the most exceptional films to be ever made an animation. It's also the most successful animation film of all time," said Stefan Boublil, creative director of Trinity CineAsia.
"It's wonderful to see the Chinese culture being represented so fully in an animation film which may have seemed to be just for children. But in fact it's for everyone from nine years old to 99 years old. And so there's a lot of meanings there for anybody who's watching and when we watch it, me as a French person, you as a Chinese person, bring different things to the story that you see on screen and that is how we can share culture, that is how we get enriched," he added.
The China National Tourism Administration Paris Office also teamed up with the film's French distributor to incorporate a "Hello! China" tourism promotion segment into the premiere, leading the audience to experience China's rich and diverse natural scenery and cultural landscape through the film.
Chinese animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" premieres in Paris
Chinese animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" premieres in Paris
Foreign diplomats and scholars are looking closely at this year's "two sessions", saying China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) will not only chart the nation's economic and technological priorities but also reshape global value chains.
The fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the nation's top political advisory body, opened on Wednesday, followed by the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Thursday. Together known as the "two sessions," these meetings offer a comprehensive view into China's development priorities.
Global observers emphasized that the 15th Five-Year Plan, a blueprint guiding the nation's economic, social, and technological priorities over the next five years, marks a decisive shift toward high‑quality growth anchored in advanced technologies, with ripple effects across the world.
"The two sessions will discuss China's five-year plan, which is heavily oriented toward China's major technological development. I believe this is important because it represents the new blueprint for China's economy, which is now oriented toward the renowned high-quality development, and this will undoubtedly impact the entire world. I think it is worth studying. This is very important for Latin America. It will help us integrate more intelligently into global value chains and into all aspects of the major development that China is promoting in iconic industrial sectors, such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and space development, where Latin America also has much to contribute beyond just commercial growth," said Gustavo Sabino Vaca Narvaja, former Argentine Ambassador to China.
"The two sessions are a major political milestone in China, and this year's gathering carries even greater significance as this year marks the start of the 15th Five-Year Plan. This plan represents not only a blueprint for China, but also a guide for other countries. Instruments like the five-year plan effectively provide greater certainty and predictability for the rest of the world," said Chilean scholar of international relations Ignacio Araya Heredia.
"This is a particularly important date, especially due to the fact that the next Five-Year Plan shall be positioned and we're going to see what its main elements shall be. Serbia, which has a very high degree of steel friendship with the People's Republic of China, can expect further assistance in identifying the most prominent areas of Serbian economy and being helped by its great partner, such as it has been done in the previous period, from one part with establishing the main infrastructure projects, but also reshaping the industrial sector of Serbia, not just Serbia, but the region as a whole," said Veljko Mijuskovic, assistant professor of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Belgrade.
Beyond the policy framework, experts also pointed to China's achievements in green energy and technological innovation as models worth emulating.
Tomasz Bielinski, adjunct professor at the University of Gdansk's Faculty of Economics, said the robotics displays at the 2026 China Media Group (CMG) Spring Festival Gala reflected China's broader push in technological innovation.
"I was really impressed about the robotics. I'm very impressed with Chinese development in the technological field, we can still make great deals with Chinese businessmen and we can cooperate together to use this technology for both the good of China and the European Union. I'm aware of the innovation especially in autonomous drive on the on the Chinese side," he said.
"We hope for more of China's economic cooperation, especially in trade and also in investment. Also, and the other focus, if I talk about the focus of the development, don't forget about the green energy. We know that China is great in the electric vehicle field. So because China's electric vehicles in Indonesia nowadays, since couple of years ago, are very, very popular," said Al Busyra Basnur, president of the Indonesia-China Friendship Association.
Observers see China's new five-year plan driving high-quality development, global tech shifts
