The news had surprised more than one, Jason Loftus the first: his animated documentary in Chinese eternal spring (VF ofEternalSpring) was chosen to represent Canada in the race for the Oscar for best international film 2023. An off-the-beaten-path and audacious choice. On the day of the announcement, Jason Loftus hadn’t even bothered to book his day. “There are so many other great directors and other great films,” he says amused.
eternal spring, a poetic name that will stir the imagination of more than one, tackles an unknown subject. Namely, the hacking of the Chinese state television channel in the city of Changchun by a handful of Falun Gong followers driven to desperate measures to fight the Chinese government’s persecution of their community. To do this, we follow the illustrator Daxiong, himself a follower of Falun Gong and forced into exile in North America following the hack, even though he had not taken part. The artist left his country with a heavy heart, believing that the outburst of the other members had aggravated the persecution that was already underway, but above all without understanding the reasons for this illegal gesture from a pacifist community.
Besides the honor represented by this selection and the potential gain of a statuette, the Ontario documentary filmmaker Jason Loftus hopes that the publicity that the Academy offers will, perhaps, change the situation in China, where the Falun Gong movement is banned. since 1999 and where its members continue to be persecuted. He also thinks of other persecuted communities, such as the Uyghurs, who could be the subject of an upcoming documentary film. “I have not yet chosen a subject, but there is the question of the Uyghurs, Taiwan, Hong Kong…” So many controversial themes linked to China which make Loftus rise up, as was the case with the story of the state TV hack when he got wind of it.
At the start of the project, Daxiong’s feelings were quite mixed, and because of this, I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea. […] Daxiong was very interested in exploring this piece of his past. He had already made drawings related to this. […] I think he was trying to turn the page.
” Turn the page “
It was a few years earlier when he met Daxiong. They were working on a video game project for which the illustrator lent his pencil strokes. The two men got closer and the Chinese artist told the Canadian his personal story. A story that particularly touched him, because, luck doing things well, like Daxiong, Loftus’ spouse, Masha Yujiao, is from the city of Changchun. “I already knew about Falun Gong, since in high school I had started to be interested in meditation and Eastern cultures, but when I heard what the Chinese media was saying about it, I couldn’t believe it. which did not correspond to my experience of it. That’s why when Daxiong told us her story, it interested us so much, my companion [qui est aussi sa partenaire de travail] and me. »
Their biggest challenge then was making Daxiong feel comfortable during the creative process. “At the start of the project, Daxiong’s feelings were quite mixed and, therefore, I was not sure that it was a good idea”, recalls Jason Loftus. However, the motivation was there. “Daxiong was very interested in the idea of exploring this piece of his past, adds the director. He had already made drawings related to this. […] I think he was trying to turn the page. »
This is also the reason why Jason Loftus took a very risky bet in his realization. Namely showing the work of animated reconstitution of the events in progress and showing the illustrator at work while he shot the classic part of the documentary. “The choice of animation allowed us more freedom and remedied the fact that we couldn’t go and interview the protagonists in China,” explains the documentary filmmaker. It was also an opportunity because we had a Chinese artist living here with this incredible story who can use his art to spread it. […] Showing the work that was being done also brought another dimension, because it allowed to see how the drawing helped his understanding of events. A form of transparency that adds even more credibility to the reconstruction of the facts. The documentary is all the more poignant and makes the pride of its creator, who perhaps will win a well-deserved statuette.
Visually stunning