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Ne Zha, the directorial debut feature of animator Yang Yu, better known by his nickname Jiaozi, which translates as dumpling, unexpectedly rescued a flagging summer almost single handedly, becoming the best-performing film last year.
Ne Zha is one of only two films in the history of Chinese cinema to take more than 5 billion yuan, along with action star Wu Jing's blockbuster Wolf Warrior 2, released in 2017.
Loosely based on a mythological figure evolving from ancient works of literature, it was the 11th-highest-grossing film worldwide last year, according to Box Office Mojo.
Cao Xiaohui, vice-president of the Beijing Film Academy Animation Institute, said that in addition to Ne Zha, the success of White Snake and The Legend of Hei, released respectively in January and September, show that the country's animators have figured out a way to win larger audiences.
