Korean film 'Leafie, A Hen into the Wild' premieres in Beijing

Characters from the movie "Leafie, A Hen into the Wild" pose during the premiere of the film in Beijing on Sept 28, 2011. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

The animated film "Leafie, A Hen into the Wild" premiered in Beijing on Sept 28, 2011.

Based on a best selling Korean novel by the same title that sold more than 1 million copies in Korea, "Leafie, A Hen into the Wild", as the name suggests, is about the adventures of Leafie (Yaya in the Chinese version), a laying hen, in the wild.

Tired of laying eggs every day and longing for the "free" life in the garden, Leafie, the protagonist, does everything she can to escape from her confinement. Her fate changes dramatically when she meets a mallard duck and ends up hatching a duck egg. The story then unfolds, with Leafie taking off into the world to raise her child, a duckling who innocently takes Leafie to be his mother.

Director Oh Sung-Yoon (L2), producer Lee Eun (R3) and characters pose during the premiere of the film "Leafie, A Hen into the Wild" in Beijing on Sept 28, 2011.[Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

In an industry dominated by animation studios like Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks of the U.S. and Studio Ghibli from Japan, the new Korean kid on the block was a breath of fresh air. Its drawings were not as refined and vivid as the anime moguls in the world, but this kept the visual distractions away and helped to focus the audience on the touching storyline.

Love between a mother and a child was the central theme, while maintaining innocence, willingness to sacrifice and courage to follow your heart were echoed throughout the film.

"Leafie" has surpassed "Rio" in ticket sales in Korea. Producer Lee Eun hopes the film could touch more people's hearts in China.

Emotional at times, thrilling at others, and best of all, cute and adorable at all times, "Leafie, A Hen into the Wild" is the family film of choice for the upcoming National Holiday.