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Little people set to light up big screen

Prolific author makes his first foray into cinema with protagonists of popular children's story, Xu Fan reports.

By Xu Fan | China Daily | Updated: 2021-09-08 07:55

A scene from the film Little Canned Men featuring two fictional characters as tall as matchsticks in the pocket of a child's suit. [Photo/China Daily]

In the early 1980s, China was still using ration coupons as a measure to tackle food shortages. Despite most people struggling with their appetites, novelist Zheng Yuanjie-dubbed China's "king of fairy tales"-occasionally derived inspiration from the experience.

Then, being a young father of a toddler son, Zheng often bought canned pork-which was not limited by the quota regulations-to add nutrients to the family's meals.

"I remember that most families in Beijing were rationed to 1 kilogram of pork every month, but you could buy canned food with just cash," recalls Zheng, during a recent interview with China Daily in a downtown cinema.

While wrestling with the can opener in the kitchen one day, he was struck with a quirky idea.

"What if the pork magically evolved into several tiny creatures? I was hooked by the scene that popped into my mind and stood there pondering over it for a long time," he says.

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