China's world of anti-Japan war films

China's world of anti-Japan war films

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Actors get ready during the filming of an anti-Japanese World War II movie in Hengdian Film City - the site of the world’s biggest film lot and a major production centre for the vast number of anti-Japan war movies that have long been churned out of China.

The never-ending on-screen battle plays into wider geo-political tensions as, for Chinese audiences, the films are a constant reminder of Japan's brutal 14-year occupation.

. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Old tensions over the events of the Second World War, forever replayed on set, are a combustible ingredient in the current territorial dispute between China and Japan over a group of rocky islands in the East China Sea – the most serious row between the two Asian powers since Japan's 1945 defeat.

In Hengdian Film City, an actor wearing a Japanese military cap highlights the issue, holding up a flag demanding the return of the islets known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.

. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Actors in Japanese military uniforms watch a replay of a scene during the filming of an anti-Japanese World War II film.

Decades of officially sanctioned hatred for Japan in China has limited Beijing's room to negotiate or step back now that both sides are circling in a potentially deadly standoff.

Tensions and propaganda go far beyond the current spat. Underneath it all lies a struggle for power and influence in Asia between China and Japan - and political struggles within China itself. Many China watchers believe Beijing's leaders nurture anti-Japanese hatred to bolster their own legitimacy, which is coming under question among citizens livid over problems ranging from official corruption to rampant environmental pollution.

. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

The state administrator approved 69 anti-Japanese television series for production last year and about 100 films. Reports in the state-controlled media said up to 40 of these were shot at Hengdian alone. State television reported in April that more than 30 series about the war were filming or in planning by the end of March.

According to culture critic and professor at Shanghai's Tongji University Zhu Dake, war stories make up about 70 percent of drama on Chinese television.

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Slideshow

Statues of Chinese Red Army soldiers stand in Hengdian Film City.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Statues of Chinese Red Army soldiers stand in Hengdian Film City.

Actors, one wearing a Japanese military cap, pose for a photo.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Actors, one wearing a Japanese military cap, pose for a photo.

More actors in Japanese military uniforms take pictures of each other while holding a flag demanding the return of uninhabited islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China during the filming of an anti-Japanese war film.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

More actors in Japanese military uniforms take pictures of each other while holding a flag demanding the return of uninhabited islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China during the filming of an anti-Japanese war film.

Actors in Japanese military outfits take pictures of each other during a film shoot.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Actors in Japanese military outfits take pictures of each other during a film shoot.

An actor in a Japanese military uniform checks his mobile phone.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

An actor in a Japanese military uniform checks his mobile phone.

Actors line up during the filming of an anti-Japanese war movie.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Actors line up during the filming of an anti-Japanese war movie.

Others in Japanese military uniforms stand on set.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Others in Japanese military uniforms stand on set.

Actors in costume walk past an equipment truck.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

Actors in costume walk past an equipment truck.

A group of actors eat dinner.
. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

A group of actors eat dinner.

. Hengdian, China. REUTERS/Aly Song

A flag waves on the set of an anti-Japanese World War II film in Hengdian.