1 . Chad Nelson’s five-minute animated film (动画片), called “Critterz”, was shown online this week and introduces viewers to furry creatures that live in an imaginary jungle. It’s an early example showing the possibilities and dangers of using artificial intelligence (AI) in film-making, a development that both excites and worries Hollywood.
Nelson, an independent visual artist, didn’t use AI for the whole production. He wrote the script himself, and invited actors to record the audio and animators to bring the creatures to life. It would normally take a large group of members six full months to create the kinds of high-quality images (图像) in “Critterz,” its movie director Nelson said. But using OpenAI’s Dall-E, the process went much faster, only one week.
Independent film-makers and Hollywood studios have been early users of AI tools, which can create texts, images and videos based on plenty of data. These increasingly advanced products can save time and resources, their supporters say.
But the appearance of these tools is causing trepidation. A recent report said AI could have a great influence on the global economy and subject 300 million jobs to automation (自动化). Actors, such as Keanu Reeves, are raising alarm bells, saying the rise of generative AI (such as Dall-E and ChatGPT) is “scary” and could be a way for managers not to pay artists fairly.
Many Hollywood studios see this technology as a way to cut costs when making movies. Greg Brockman, the president and co-founder of OpenAI, which makes ChatGPT, has argued that AI will improve cinema, allowing people to have interactive (互动的) experiences with art. He gave the example of the ending of HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”
Nelson said, “It’s likely that AI will replace (取代) some jobs in Hollywood while also potentially creating more.” He mentioned the appearance of computer-editing software, and how that replaced more traditional movie-editing jobs and processes.
1. What do we know about the film “Critterz”?| A．It was produced by HBO. | B．It is the first film to use AI. |
| C．Its images took seven days to make. | D．Its script was completely created by AI. |
| A．Concern. | B．Justice. | C．Curiosity. | D．Excitement. |
| A．To explain the functions of AI. | B．To show the trouble caused by AI. |
| C．To introduce the company OpenAI. | D．To praise the advantages of using AI. |
| A．It may open up new job opportunities. |
| B．It may improve people’s job performance. |
| C．It may change the development of the computer. |
| D．It may inspire Hollywood to create more movies. |
2 . Mega-popular TV drama series from 2022
TV dramas are a good choice to kill the time. Let’s review some mega-popular TV drama series in China from 2022!
Reset
The 15-episode sci-G TV drama Reset follows two youths who are trapped in a time loop and trying to save passengers from a bus bombing. An innovative topic and story quickly made it a smash hit, although the characters are just on the same bus most of the time. This TV drama not only presents a breathtaking tale, but also discusses some hot social issues.
★Showtime: 2022-01-11
★Starring: Bai Jingting, Zhao Jinmai
★Rating (Douban): 7.9/10
A Lifelong Journey
A Lifelong Journey, adapted from an award-winning novel with the same name by writer Liang Xiaosheng, was a real hit. This 58-episode TV drama tells the story of a working-class family in northern China. Many scenes and old items help to recreate the past, making the drama a trip down memory lane for audiences. With the characters’ personal ups and downs, this TV drama also reviews some of the country’s development and changes over the course of 50 years.
★Showtime: 2022-01-28
★Starring: Lei Jiayin, Song Jia, Yin Tao
★Rating (Douban): 8.1/10
A Dream of Splendor
With delicate clothing, fine scenes and wonderful performances brought by actors and actresses, the 40-episode TV drama, A Dream of Splendor, offers an eye feast for audiences. Actress Liu Yifei plays an independent teahouse keeper in ancient China, showing traditional Chinese tea art from the Song Dynasty. This show also creates a cultural heyday, publicizing dian cha, a traditional Chinese tea practice and intangible cultural heritage.
★Showtime: 2022-06-02
★Starring: Liu Yifei, Chen Xiao
★Rating (Douban): 8.0/10
Draw the Line
Created with guidance from the Supreme People’s Court, China’s highest judicial organ, this 40 -episode TV drama focuses on several legal issues, reveals how the court works and lets audiences learn about law while they are enjoying the performances. Based on real-life cases, Draw the Line also pays attention to details to ensure the quality. Real judges were invited as consultants to help the crew ensure that all elements matched reality.
★Showtime: 2022-09-19
★Starring: Jin Dong, Cheng Yi, Cai Wenjing
★Rating (Douban): 7.3/10
1. Which of the following might a fan of time travel watch?| A．Reset. | B．A Lifelong Journey. |
| C．A Dream of Splendor. | D．Draw the Line. |
| A．It has the highest rating. |
| B．It features Chinese cultural elements. |
| C．It was released the earliest of the four. |
| D．It was adapted from a novel with the same name. |
| A．They are both realistic. |
| B．They both have more than 50 episodes. |
| C．They are both performed by the same actor. |
| D．They both reflected 50 years of social development. |
3 . A sweet,coming-of-age film has attracted numbers of audiences,including the judges at the Academy Awards. The movie CODA is shining a light,having won Best Picture of 2021. CODA means Children of Deaf Adults,and is about Ruby, a hearing teenage girl growing up with deaf parents and a deaf brother. As opposed to following her own dreams of becoming a singer,she finds herself mostly at home,being an interpreter for her family.
This is an English language version of the 2014movie La Famille Belier,however,CODA takes this story to a new level. Unlike the French version, which used hearing actors, the writer and director Sian Heder insisted on using deaf actors, a first for Hollywood. The film reveals the hardships and challenges experienced by deaf people who are parenting and working in a hearing world. Using deaf actors who understand this reality and who sign fluently has been a game-changer.
“For too long, the industry has rewarded actors and directors who have exploited the trope(比喻)of faking sympathetic disabilities to win awards for themselves without bringing in deaf people or people with disabilities to ensure authenticity(真实性).”Howard A. Rosenblum, CEO of the National Association of the Deaf said. Such authenticity has earned CODA many distinctions, including multiple awards at the 2021 Sun-dance Festival, as well as three Oscars.
Thanks to CODA, cinema lovers may now be able to better understand and respect a world that has been mostly silenced.“It’s a culture that has been ignored and blocked off from access. I hope that people are going to be exposed to deaf culture through this film,and exposed to American Sign Language who might never have seen a scene before where a deaf family is sitting around a dinner table.”Heder said.
This is a feel-good movie full of emotion,love, and the challenges of life. It has touched the hearts of people across the world,both hearing and deaf, and is uniting all.
1. What story does the movie CODA tell us?| A．A deaf girl chasing her dream. |
| B．An interpreter succeeding in becoming a singer. |
| C．A family of deaf children helping each other. |
| D．A girl with hearing growing up in a deaf family. |
| A．It is filmed in two languages. | B．It invited deaf actors to play roles. |
| C．It is adapted from a real story. | D．It involves sign language performances. |
| A．The popularity of the film. |
| B．The development of film industry. |
| C．The importance of authenticity in the film. |
| D．The influence of the film on deaf people. |
| A．Education is the key to success. |
| B．It pays to put theory into practice. |
| C．Challenges make life more interesting. |
| D．Love for the disabled can break down barriers. |
4 . Adaptation and innovation(创新) of traditional opera is the important trend of Chinese opera circle in recent years. In order to attract young audiences of new generation and catch up with the time, traditional opera circle makes efforts to create new works. In recent years, traditional opera came across the change of time and society. They gradually lost the main elderly audiences and traditional opera was not attractive for young audiences.
In order to find new opportunities, using modern sound, light and digital stage effects, China’s traditional Peking Opera is appealing to young people in a fashionable and innovative way, as the classic art faces an aging audience.
The centuries-old Tianleyuan Theater in Beijing has introduced fashionable performances of Peking Opera. The opera combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime(哑剧表演), dance and acrobatics(杂技).
Tianleyuan has a jingju art experience section and fashionable performances. It has attracted more than 2,000 audiences members, mostly young people, according to theater staff.
“Good art should keep pace with the times, so does jingju,” said Zhang Zishang, a 22-year-old performer of The Drunken Beauty, one of the classic jingju plays performed in the theater. “I feel today’s performance is very special,” Zhang said. She was born into a family of jingju performers and has had 10 years of stage experience, “Innovation is good, but we must also carry on the basic elements of jingju,” another young performer Deng said.
According to Deng, innovation is perhaps the best way for jingiju to deal with the problem of an aging audience. It has made successful attempts to combine jingju with local opera forms such as ballet when organizing performances abroad. “Innovation can help traditional arts go further. We are happy to see many young faces, and some of them even come twice to experience the ‘new’ art,” she added.
1. Why is adaptation and innovation of traditional opera important?| A．To run after fashion. | B．To attract the young audiences. |
| C．To improve digital stage effects. | D．To change the traditional opera circle. |
| A．A destroyer of Peking Opera. | B．An objector of modern opera. |
| C．A pioneer of innovative opera. | D．A defender of traditional opera. |
| A．Helpful. | B．Unreliable. | C．Worthless. | D．Conservative. |
| A．The traditional opera is dying out |
| B．The future of the traditional opera is promising |
| C．Traditional opera circle is innovating to attract young audiences |
| D．The performers of the traditional opera are supporting jingju |
5 . A lot of films have tried to describe the afterlife and our memories of family members who have passed away. But few have done as well as Coco, Disney-Pixar’s latest masterpiece animation, which hit the big screen on Nov 24.
Inspired by the Mexican holiday of Dia de los Muertos — Day of the Dead — the film’s team created a young boy, Miguel, who wants his family to understand his love of music. On that year’s Day of the Dead, an accident takes him to the Land of the Dead. While there, Miguel has an unforgettable and adventurous night.
According to the Times, the Land of the Dead is one of Disney-Pixar’s “most visually ambitious worlds yet”. In this land, there are friendly skeletons who can cross a bridge made of flowers on the Day of the Dead to “visit” their living family in the world of the living — that is, as long as their family still puts their photos on the family shrine (神龛). Those spirits who are forgotten by their family will disappear completely.
It’s in this magical world that Miguel gets to meet and discover the truth about his great-great-grandpa. To save him from disappearing, Miguel has to bring his photo back to the living world as soon as possible.
While told with a wild imagination, the story sends out a clear and warm message about family. Family is a concept at the center of Mexican culture. On the Day of the Dead every year, people in Mexico honor their ancestors by putting their photos up on the family shrine, as shown in the film, and share food and drinks to keep the spirits of their family members alive.
“In a time when young people are so easily attracted by celebrities, the film Coco teaches kids to protect and respect the memory of their elders” wrote reporter Peter.
1. According to the passage, in the film Coco, ________.| A．Miguel’s family are very supportive of his love for music |
| B．Miguel was born with the ability to travel to the Land of the Dead |
| C．Miguel has a happy time with the spirits in the Land of the Dead |
| D．Miguel tries to save the spirit of his great-great-grandpa |
| A．It is set in the frightening world of the dead. |
| B．It shows great imagination and visual effects. |
| C．It is full of funny and exciting moments. |
| D．It is based on a real story that is sad but warm. |
| A．It’s important to value the memories of our family members. |
| B．The support from our family helps us to overcome difficulties. |
| C．Family tradition has a big influence on children. |
| D．Family should always come before anything else. |
6 . Do Historical Films Need to Be Accurate?
Historical inaccuracies can be found in many films.
Historic films give us a glimpse (一瞥) into the past. Yet some criticize that there are fictional details in them.
Yes — otherwise they’re misleading
There are so many great people from history and interesting events to learn about the past, particularly when you find the subject boring at school. Yet if films aren’t being completely accurate, then people will be misinformed, and it may mean that historical figures are remembered in the wrong way.
The cinema is not a classroom. If the audience learns something while watching a film, that’s great. But filmmakers are just trying to make something entertaining and dramatic. They should be allowed to change facts to create the best experience. After all, certain events in real life might have taken place over several years, but in order to be shown in a film, they may need to be packed into less than two hours. Some changes will have to be made for that to work.
| A．Yes — films help us learn from the past |
| B．Besides, not all historical films can be completely accurate |
| C．So should film makers be sticking more closely to the truth in their films |
| D．No — films are meant to be creative |
| E．So should films transport viewers into a world of make-believe |
| F．For example, in the film Titanic, a man on the ship was shown as a selfish one |
| G．They can be small, like changing a location |
7 . Dance drama is a kind of stage art which fuses (融合) dance, drama and music. There are many excellent original Chinese dance dramas, bringing audience visual feasts. Here are four representatives.
The Red Detachment of Women
Premiered (首映): in 1964
The National Ballet of Chin
The dance drama of a story is adapted from the movie of the same name. I narrates the tale of a servant girl growing into a female soldier with firm Communist faith. Combining the Western ballet with Chinese ethnic dances, it is a milestone in the history of Chinese ballet.
Dunhuang Dream
Premiered: in 2000
Lanzhou Song and Dance Theater
Dunhuang Dream is a legendary four act dance drama which sets the thousands of years’ creation history of Dunuang art treasure as the background. It follow the storyline of the emotional journey of a poor young painter (Mogao) and the daughter of a senior general (Yueya).
Confucius
Premiered: in 2013
China National Opera Dance Drama Theater
The dance drama Confucius is directed by Kong Dexing, a direct descendent (后裔) of Confucius. The six-part dance drama describes Confucius’ journey of spreading his philosophy and his efforts to preserve traditional culture and history. The dance drama has been staged in a number of countries including the United States, Japan, Italy and Australia.
Princess Zhaojun
Premiered: in 2016
China National Opera Dance Drama Theater
Princess Zhaojun is an epic stage production that is adapted from a true historical event, bringing to life a household story of one of China’s “Four Great Beauties”, Wang Zhaojun. She helped bring peace to the northern border over 2,000 years ago in the Han Dynasty.
1. When was the dance drama about a legend premiered?| A．In 1964. | B．In 2000. | C．In 2013. | D．In 2016. |
| A．The Red Detachment of Women. | B．Dunhuang Dream. |
| C．Confucius. | D．Princess Zhaojun. |
| A．They had more than one act. | B．They were staged by the same theatre. |
| C．They were well-received home and abroad. | D．They were adapted from true historical events. |
8 . After a months-long rest due to the COVID-19 pandemic, cinemas in low-risk areas started to reopen on July 20th. Here are 4 films on the screening schedule.
A First Farewell
Set in the scenic Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the story unfolds between a farm boy Isa and his friend Kalbinur. Isa’s mother, deaf and mute（哑的）, relies on her son to look after her.
Kalbinur, though a smart Uygur girl, finds the Chinese language hard to master at the village school. That winter, Isa’s father decides to send his wife to a nursing home, and Kalbinur’s family makes plans to leave the village. Isa will soon experience farewell.
The film won the Asian Future Best Film Award at Tokyo International Film Festival in 2018 and a Crystal Bear at the 2019 Berlinale.
Sheep without a Shepherd
Li Wejjie and his wife, A Yu, have lived in Thailand for 17 years and raised two daughters. At the age of 40, Li runs an Internet company and is well-liked by the townspeople. However, the family’s bright prospects are suddenly interrupted by an unexpected guest. In this borderland town filled with smuggling（走私）and drug trafficking, justice comes to a critical testing moment.
Coco
This Disney-Pixar production offers a heart-warming comedy integrating fantasy, music, family values and charming Mexican culture. Miguel, a little boy from a family of shoemakers, dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz. On the way to his dream, he meets trickster Hector and they set off on an extraordinary journey.
Since screened, Coco has brought home two Oscars, one Golden Globe and one BAFTA Award.
The Pursuit of Happyness
This film is based on a true story about a man named Christopher Gardner. Gardner has invested heavily in a device known as a “bone density scanner”. However, the devices do not sell well. As Gardner works to make ends meet，his wife leaves him and he loses his apartment. Forced to live out on the streets with his son, Gardner is taken for an unpaid stockbroker, with slim chances for advancement to a paid position.
1. What can we learn about Isa?| A．He is disabled. | B．He looks after his mother. |
| C．He can speak Chinese well. | D．He plans to leave the village. |
| A．Coco. | B．A First Farewell. |
| C．The Pursuit of Happyness. | D．Sheep without a Shepherd. |
| A．Miguel. | B．Kalbinur. | C．Gardner. | D．Li Weijie. |
