The Influence Of Film Narrative On Chinese Sci-Fi Movies

Abstract

The purpose of this research paper is to study the narrative structure of Chinese science fiction films. As one of the most important genres in the film industry, sci-fi films from America occupy a huge market share, conversely, Chinese sci-fi films struggle to gain traction in mainstream media. This problem is addressed from the premise that Chinese science fiction films lack strong narratives. Accordingly, by examining world film narratology, the narrative structure and elements of Chinese science fiction films are examined using contemporary film narratology theory.

This research is built on three pillars, firstly the ‘film narrative’ looks at narratology study to build a relevant research framework for the examination of films. Secondly the genre of ‘sci-fi’ originates from literature and expands into the film genre. The specificity and development of this genre are identified in the context of the Chinese film industry. Lastly, the bringing together of these two frameworks to address the question of “What is the most suitable narrative module for Chinese Sci-fi movies?”

The specificity of this research is in the fact that it focuses on the narrative aspect of Chinese Sci-Fi film contributes towards the understanding of specificity in sci-fi film narrative in order to strengthen contemporary Chinese sci-fi films.