Chinese film industry aims to challenge Hollywood

[Nomenclature]

Soft power is definitely tied to hard power, you can not become a soft power without hard economic backing. It will be hard for any country to aspires to Chinese culture, value, lifestyle etc when 700+ million Chinese are still living in poverty.

That's another reason why I think the real story of Chinese soft power will only begin in 20 years time. Economically, China is at the stage as Japan in 1960 and South Korea in 1980. Japanese pop culture didn't come to world preeminence til late 70s/early 80s and the Korean wave only began in late 90s and early 00s. China so far has followed closely the Japanese and Korean roads of development and I'm confident with the right policy and environment (which of course must include 'less censorship') we can expect Chinese soft power to rise dramatically in early 2030s.

 

[CardSharp]

Another interesting point does soft power matter? Take the case of Iran, teenagers there may drink coke and wear designer jeans but they will also go to mosque to hear anti-American clerics.

Soft power is definitely tied to hard power, you can not become a soft power without hard economic backing. It will be hard for any country to aspires to Chinese culture, value, lifestyle etc when 700+ million Chinese are still living in poverty.

That's another reason why I think the real story of Chinese soft power will only begin in 20 years time. Economically, China is at the stage as Japan in 1960 and South Korea in 1980. Japanese pop culture didn't come to world preeminence til late 70s/early 80s and the Korean wave only began in late 90s and early 00s. China so far has followed closely the Japanese and Korean roads of development and I'm confident with the right policy and environment (which of course must include 'less censorship') we can expect Chinese soft power to rise dramatically in early 2030s.

I believe this may come sooner as I have already seen traces of it. Especially in the context of "China rising, get aboard if you're smart". Many business people Jim Roger and I know of others are teaching their children Chinese and parents are increasingly thinking of learning Chinese as a good investment. (can't recall exactly but I've read that Chinese has displaced German as the 3rd or 4th most studied second language in American k-12)

 

[Chinese-Dragon]

Another interesting point does soft power matter? Take the case of Iran, teenagers there may drink coke and wear designer jeans but they will also go to mosque to hear anti-American clerics.

Good point, American soft power is spread all over the world, but so is anti-American sentiment.

Like you said, there are many teenagers in Iran who drink Coca cola, watch American movies, and speak Americanized English... they still manage to hate America to a level that is almost unbelievable.

Which is why hard power (economy/military) is always the best bet.

 

[justanobserver]

off topic but I'm curious

then South Korea

What cultural influence does South Korea have on the world? (it's not there in India at least)

Only thing that comes to my mind are fat teenage kids playing computer games 24/7

 

[siegecrossbow]

Biggest obstacle to Chinese softpower is western ridicule on subjects like Tibet and HR. This ridicule can only grow stronger as the west is more and more afraid of China's rise.

I'm sure we can make counter propaganda films, or better, video games, in the future. Imagine a FPS where you could play as the Chinese sniper Zhang Tao Fang. As long as the game is fun I think a lot of American kids will be playing it.

 

[CardSharp]

I'm sure we can make counter propaganda films, or better, video games, in the future. Imagine a FPS where you could play as the Chinese sniper Zhang Tao Fang. As long as the game is fun I think a lot of American kids will be playing it.

All I see is one mistake after another when Western media and Chinese media clash on the topic of Tibet and Xinjiang. Chinese netizens actually do a more effective job at presenting the Chinese side than the government.

And I'd like to smack the official that came up with the 50 cent scheme. It's undermined the credibly of people who defend China's policies in the public. A very standard retort is "oh you're just a 50 center"

 

[Chinese-Dragon]

Biggest obstacle to Chinese softpower is western ridicule on subjects like Tibet and HR. This ridicule can only grow stronger as the west is more and more afraid of China's rise.

The best way to beat that is to just ignore it.

The CCP has a reputation for "not giving a damn" about other people/countries criticising them.

Plus, there is a lot of anti-American sentiment (Iraq/Guantanamo) and anti-Japanese sentiment (ww2) in the world at large, but they still manage to create a lot of soft power.

 

[CardSharp]

The best way to beat that is to just ignore it.

The CCP has a reputation for "not giving a damn" about other people/countries criticising them.

Plus, there is a lot of anti-American (Iraq/Guantanamo) and anti-Japanese (ww2) sentiment in the world at large, but they still manage to create a lot of soft power.

That's the thing. Ignoring it is just not an option for so many reason. While we personally can shrug it off, it's not an option for government. You can't let those people like Tibetan exiles dictate the discourse.

 

[siegecrossbow]

All I see is one mistake after another when Western media and Chinese media clash on the topic of Tibet and Xinjiang. Chinese netizens actually do a more effective job at presenting the Chinese side than the government.

And I'd like to smack the official that came up with the 50 cent scheme. It's undermined the credibly of people who defend China's policies in the public. A very standard retort is "oh you're just a 50 center"

There is the 50 (American) cent nickname too and their existence has been confirmed.

 

[Chinese-Dragon]

What cultural influence does South Korea have on the world? (it's not there in India at least)

Only thing that comes to my mind are fat teenage kids playing computer games 24/7

Buddy, those guys are dangerous, don't underestimate them.

Well there are a lot of South Korean films and TV shows in China, I'm not sure how much Korean media there is in the rest of the world... but there is a lot of it over here.

 

[Chinese-Dragon]

That's the thing. Ignoring it is just not an option for so many reason. While we personally can shrug it off, it's not an option for government. You can't let those people like Tibetan exiles dictate the discourse.

Fair enough. I'm not sure what can be done though, even America with all their soft power, could not stop all the anti-American sentiment that sprung up in the world recently, from issues like the Iraq war.

 

[siegecrossbow]

Buddy, those guys are dangerous, don't underestimate them.

Well there are a lot of Korean films and TV shows in China, I'm not sure how much Korean media there is in the rest of the world... but there is a lot of it over here.

Korean soap is strictly an East Asian phenonmenon. The only thing about South Korea that most Americans know about is Starcraft.

 

[Chinese-Dragon]

Korean soap is strictly an East Asian phenonmenon. The only thing about South Korea that most Americans know about is Starcraft.

Really? Hmm I always thought South Korean film/TV was quite widespread in the world, but I guess it's only East Asia...

 

[CardSharp]

There is the 50 (American) cent nickname too and their existence has been confirmed.

Interesting. Source?

This has only highlight the power of uncontrolled and non-traditional types of media. While the Chinese government might have had to right idea with the 50 cent party, they're execution is absolutely horrible and a complete backfire. What they should have done is fund organizations not individuals.

A good example is some of the jewish/pro-israeli organizations out there. They have the ability to pressure and pull unfavorable media from publishers and even places like youtube.

 

[CardSharp]

Really? Hmm I always thought South Korean film/TV was quite widespread in the world, but I guess it's only East Asia...

Nope outside of the East Asians students here no one knows about K-pop.