Peppa Pig fans rejoice. Your favorite heroine is preparing to hit the big screen in 2019. The film, titled Peppa Celebrates Chinese New Year, will premiere during next year's Spring Festival, reports China Daily.
Developed by Entertainment One and China's Alibaba Pictures Group, the movie is set to release on the first day of Chinese New Year, which falls on February 5, 2019. Coincidentally, next year will also be China's Year of the Pig.
As the title suggests, the plot will focus on Peppa and her family who are joined by the 'Panda Twins,' two new characters specially designed for the film. Together, they will explore and experience the traditions of Chinese New Year, including dragon dancing and dumpling making. Surprisingly, the film will feature live-action scenes along with traditional animation.
"It's a great opportunity to boost the cultural change between China and the West," Zhang Wei, CEO of Alibaba Pictures, told China Daily. "We are thrilled to share our own culture and customs with the rest of the world. At the same time, we hope our family film will become an attempt at promoting the development of films for young audiences."
Image via Peppa Pig/IMDb
"We are well aware of the huge fan base for Peppa Pig in China, and we are excited to release the franchise’s first-ever movie here," says Olivier Dumont, president of Entertainment One. "By collaborating closely with Alibaba Pictures, we believe the storyline of the movie and the culture behind it will resonate with Chinese audiences."
As Dumont suggests, since its Chinese debut in 2015, the hit British-animated series has taken hold of the country's collective hearts. Not only are kids crazy for the animation, but the cartoon character has also become a 'street culture icon' among young people, which even led to a crackdown on Douyin, a popular Chinese video app.
With so many obsessed with the show, there is no doubt the film will be a competitive contender during the Spring Festival box-office season; the most lucrative in China cinema sales.
Fascinating as it sounds, netizens seem to be more curious about the plot of the film. Many have pointed out on Weibo that it would be hard for Peppa and her family to have a taste of the genuine culture of Chinese New Year since one of the essential traditions is eating pork.
[Cover picture via 1905.com]