A Story About Fire燃比娃 | Midnightblurfilms

A Story About Fire

燃比娃

China | 2025 | Animation, Fantasy, Adventure | 85 min

Director: Wenyu Li

Screenwriter: Wenyu Li

Producer: Chen Bo, Wang Anyi, Su Donghai

Cinematographer: Weeny Li

Animation: Wenyu Li

Editor: Wenyu Li

Art Director: Weeny Li

Sound Design: Huang Lei

导演: 李文愉

编剧：李文愉

制片人：陈波、王安忆、苏东海

摄影指导：李文愉

动画：李文愉

剪辑：李文愉

美术指导：李文愉

声音设计：黄磊

Synopsis

AWUBAJI, the chief of the human tribe, went to the Holy Mountain to find the secret of “warmth” in the Ice Age. However, she died from severe wound after bringing back a baby monkey RANBIWA and a White Stone.

After growing up, Ranbiwa was sent to the Holy Mountain, companied with a female wolf named “DOGGIE”. There were beast and monster, maze and moat, frost and other crises along the way. As time goes by, Ranbiwa learnt how to walk upright and got the profound mystery of the fire. Finally, he arrived at the cave in the Holy Mountain. There were White Stones floating in the flames, he was aware of the secret of "warmth" at that moment. Suddenly, the monster in the cave woke up and attacked him. Doggie sacrificed her life for saving Ranbiwa. Ranbiwa rose up from the ashes and evolved into human being.

Festival&Award

2025 Berlinale Generation Kplus Competition

Director's Note

This film is a humorous and witty 2D hand-drawn animation based on the ancient Qiang myth Ranbiwa Steals Fire. While the original story follows a traditional narrative style, I wanted to reimagine it with a modern twist, using a multi-threaded narrative structure. The art style takes cues from traditional Chinese painting, blending poetic visuals with a sense of mystery. The storytelling leans on animation’s authentic language, aiming to create a film that embraces the true essence of animation—a pure and authentic animated experience.

Wenyu Li

Wenyu Li graduated from Peking University (China), where he was mentored by Kexuan Ma. He is currently a professor specializing in Animation and Digital Art at Sichuan University. His animated short films have won numerous international awards, including those from the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, Warsaw Film Festival, and other iternational events. His works have also qualified for the Academy Awards.