Modernizing Chinese Mythological IP: A Defamiliarization Analysis of "Nezha: I am the Destiny"

Abstract

The connection between Chinese animation and mythology has existed since the beginning of its development. Mythological thinking is free and has a strong national color. This attribute provides sustained and long-term content productivity for Chinese animation creation. However, the limitations of traditional texts and the solidification of character images tend to deprive films of freshness. Excessive adaptation and innovation also make films deviate from the original cultural intention. Therefore, how to coordinate the relationship between tradition and innovation and maximize the advantages of both has become a key issue to be considered in the process of mythological IP adaptation. In the twentieth century, Russian formalism put forward the theory of "Defamiliarization" (отстранение), which was used to break down the conceptual understanding of literature. It requires things to constantly appear in a new perspective. Break the inherent understanding of art and pursue defamiliarization in the process of artistic expression. This study used the literature research method and comparative research method to gain a deeper understanding of the theoretical connotation of defamiliarization, combining the extension of defamiliarization theory by other scholars and the analysis of the current practice of defamiliarization theory in the animated film industry. The results showed that defamiliarization theory can be well extended to the field of animation film to balance the problem of the ration between tradition and innovation. With the help of the case analysis method, it showed that Chinese animated films can use the defamiliarization theory to express the contemporary characteristics of traditional texts from three aspects: artistic language, character image, and narrative theme. It hopes to provide some reference for the IP creation of animated films adapted from Chinese myths.