Special Effects and Spectacle: Integration of CGI in Contemporary Chinese Film

Abstract Film production in China, like that in Hollywood, increasingly attempts to achieve blockbuster status, through reliance on large budgets which enable the cultivation of star systems and world-class production values. More and more we see a reliance on computer-generated special effects to drive audience appeal and, thus, ticket sales. This article compares two recent films from Chinese auteurs, Zhang Yimou’s The Great Wall and Jia Zhangke’s Mountains May Depart, to examine the degree to which integration of computer-generated effects is achieved and how that translates into film art.