Brief introduction of Xiao Yanzhong

Xiao Yanzhong

Xiao Yanzhong, together with Cai Zhizhong, Zhu Deyong, and Ao Youxiang, is known as the four great talents in Taiwan's cartoon industry. He is one of the few single-frame cartoonists in Taiwan. He has published single-frame cartoons since 1988. Since his work "Old Love I", "Times Weekly" has compared him to a comic naughty boy and a short-circuit writer, and according to statistics, he is the most favorite single-frame comic work among young people.

Chinese name: Xiao Yanzhong

Nationality: Chinese

Date of birth: 1965

Occupation: Literary writer

Representative works: "Little Dolphin Looking for Mom", "The Complete Collection of Fairy Tale Short Circuit" and "Lie to Me!" "Magic Mirror"

Main achievements: Director of Chen Sheng's ten-year concert tour

"Lie to me!" "Magic Mirror" won the Academy Award

Introduction

Xiao Yanzhong, a famous cartoonist. Born in Taiwan in 1965, he was often punished for graffiti in class when he was a student. When he grew up, he liked to do crazy things and determined to travel around the world. Xiao Yanzhong, together with Cai Zhizhong, Zhu Deyong, and Ao Youxiang, is known as the four great talents in Taiwan's comics industry. He is one of the few single-frame cartoonists in Taiwan. Since the publication of the single-frame cartoon "Old Love I" in 1988, "Times Weekly" has compared him He is a cartoonist and short-circuit writer, and according to statistics, he is the most popular single-frame comic among young people.

Characteristics

With long hair, goatee, and gold-rimmed glasses, the tall and tall Xiao Yanzhong is full of the temperament of an artist. He speaks softly and calmly, and his eyes are childlike. With curious eyes and during the chat, I felt more deeply his casual and uninhibited personality and open and jumping thinking.

Evaluation

"Bad" Child

"I have been interested in things with images since I was a child." Xiao Yanzhong recalled his childhood, Europe, America, Japan, Korea, and local I copied almost all of the animation books, even the black and white TV images. "When he was in elementary school, Xiao Yanzhong, who always had poor grades, liked to draw and draw using interesting things in class as material. He gradually learned to draw quickly with the simplest lines and passed the completed paintings to his classmates. Because of his study Unfortunately, Xiao Yanzhong rarely received pocket money from his parents, but he was clever and learned to use his wisdom to make various fun things, such as kites. "Back then, poor study meant you were a bad boy, and I was a victim. Children who have been given up by their parents are given the time and freedom to pursue their own interests. "Nowadays, the "bad" kid has become the idol of many people, but he himself has never regretted not having excellent academic performance and a diploma from a prestigious school. "Some of my friends often complain that life is very tiring because Although they go to college, find a job, get married, and have children step by step, they don’t know where their goals are. I am glad that I held on to my dream and grew with it.

Curious Baby

Perhaps due to his personality, Xiao Yanzhong claims to be full of curiosity about all new things. Although he is a cartoonist, he has also served as a stage play director and a TV travel show host. He also acted, sang, played musical instruments, and engaged in creative design. His life was endlessly exciting. Zhu Deyong once said that he is a cartoonist who "does not do his job properly", but Xiao Yanzhong believes that "does not do his job properly" is the source of his material and creativity for creating comics. From "not doing your job", you can absorb life nutrients from different levels and observe people from all walks of life at close range, so that your creative perspective becomes multi-faceted. When the author asked him if he was still so "disengaged", he smiled and said that in the past three years, he has become very well-behaved and his thinking is not as bold as before. He said: "Although comics are my persistent hobby, if I treat it as a career, I will definitely get tired. When I am tired, I will put it aside and do a stage play, and then return to it in three months. Drawing comics is still so easy when I come back." In this way, Xiao Yanzhong switched roles between different industries and gained many different life experiences.

Opinion

Readers are not just children

The degree of development of Taiwan’s animation market is a matter of concern to many animation fans. In this regard, Xiao Yanzhong introduced that in today's Taiwan animation market, about 95% are Japanese comics, and there are very few original things. In Taiwan, comics fans are mainly students, but in mainland China, grandfathers and ladies often come to him for autographs with comic books, which touches him very much. He said that in fact, the animation market is very large, and the age range is also very wide. Comic fans are not just children, adults can also like animation. Readers of different age groups may choose different content. Books with rich storylines are more popular with children, while adults tend to prefer philosophical ones.

Full of expectations for Hefei

Regarding the trip to Hefei, Xiao Yanzhong said that it left a wonderful and deep impression on him. Especially that morning, at the animation carnival where the comic masters signed autographs, he was even more gratified by the enthusiasm of Anhui friends. He said excitedly: "At the autograph session, I finished drawing a pen and my hand froze, because those comic fans were so cute. Seeing them lining up in a long line waiting for me to draw and sign, I I am very touched. I cherish my readers and will try my best to meet their requests. At the same time, I am also very happy." In fact, Xiao Yanzhong and "Hefei Evening News" are also very fateful. As early as 2000, our newspaper's supplement "Xinghua Village" published his works "Fairy Tale Short Circuit" and "A Basket of Stupid Thieves" consecutively, which were widely welcomed by readers. Many readers know, are familiar with and love Xiao Yanzhong and his works through this newspaper.

Xiao Yanzhong said that "Hefei Evening News" has great influence, a wide readership, high readability, and is well run. It is a very good thing that my works can continue to meet comic fans in Hefei through the good platform of "Hefei Evening News".

Creation

"Thief Father"

Two stupid thieves, one fat and one thin, have partnered up to "robbery" for nearly 3 years in the cartoon version of "Beijing News" Over the years, I have gained very little ill-gotten wealth, but I have stolen countless laughter cells from readers. The "father of thieves" Xiao Yanzhong has been constantly wearing down the thieves' "intelligence", amusing the thieves' "business", and destroying the thieves' "arrogance". So far, he has almost 500 cartoons. However, Xiao Yanzhong is determined to fight against the "stupid thieves" for 1,000 width.

Source of creativity

Xiao Yanzhong’s full-color comic series are published by Modern Publishing House. The ones already on the market are "A Basket of Stupid Thieves" and "Plastic BAR". His famous work " Fairy Tale Short Circuit" is also presented to readers. According to feedback from many readers, they like "The Stupid Thief in a Basket" the most. Xiao Yanzhong said that the idea of ??Stupid Thief came from a chat with a friend a long time ago, "Which thief first thought of putting stockings on his head?" ". Xiao Yanzhong thinks this is a very creative idea, because if anyone puts stockings on his head, you can't see his true appearance. He followed this line of thinking and thought about how these people thought of this?

What do they want to do? So since 1993, the cute and stupid thief has been stealing from Xiao Yanzhong's paintings, and will continue to steal, because Xiao Yanzhong "actually developed feelings for the characters in the play."

In terms of comic creation, in addition to "A Basket of Stupid Thieves", Xiao Yanzhong said that he also aims to draw 1,000 drawings of "Plastic BAR". When talking about the subjects of his creations, Xiao Yanzhong showed full confidence. However, when talking about the past lives of Taiwanese local comics, especially this life, he was full of disappointment and helplessness about Taiwan's cultural environment.

Personal works

In 1988

Published a single comic "Old Love I", subverting traditional comics and creating topics again, "Times Weekly"

Reports have compared it to a comic naughty boy and a short-circuit writer, and according to statistics, it is the most popular single-frame comic among young people. He was also invited to give lectures at dozens of colleges and universities.

In 1989,

Published the single-frame comic works "Neural Boundary" and "Animal Abnormalities", which were widely loved.

Go to France to participate in the International Comic Exhibition.

. Participated in the performance of "Three's Company 2_Desolation in the City", served as the director of "The Witch Is Not Home", and the drama director and performer of "Peter and the Wolf".

In 1990

Published single-frame comic works "Crazy Diary I" and "Crazy Diary II".

In 1991

Published the single-frame comic "Old Love II", setting another sales climax.

In 1992

Published single-frame comic works "Fairy Tale Short Circuit III + Movie Short Circuit" and "Short Circuit *** and the Republic of China".

Worked together with the writer Mr. Hou Wenyong to create "The Doctor of Urumqi", pioneering the trend of combining cartoonists and writers, which became a trend and also created outstanding sales results.

In 1993

Published single-frame comic works "A Basket of Stupid Thieves", "Movie Short Circuit II", and "Black and White I & II".

In 1994

Published the four-frame comic "Jungle Heart".

Xiao Yanzhong Archives

Enter the studio for the first time to record the song "Last Oder", which is included in singer Chen Shengzhi's "Kite" album.

1995

"JungleHeart" was the first comic product to be licensed and received support and praise from many manufacturers.

The comic endorsed the "Sleep" watch series of the world-famous brand "Swatch", and was sold in limited quantities in conjunction with the comic works, causing a rush to buy.

The comic endorsed the "Easy Sketch" series of drinks in "Uni-President Food", and published comic works on the beverage packaging, breaking through the space limitations of publishing works, creating topics again, and product sales soared. For the first time, he served as the leading actor in the TV series "Hometown of Hot Spring".

In 1997

The single-frame comic "Black Sheep Club" was published.

The first comic to be expressed with sound, the work "Short Circuit Power Plant" was published as an audio book. Xiao Yanzhong's passionate voice performance is deeply loved by readers.

Real person endorses the "China Airlines" print advertisement.

The comic endorses the public welfare image "Glass Doll", and newspapers have reported on it: a short-circuit cartoonist who is committed to public welfare activities and does not fall behind others.

He published a serialized text column "Graffiti Wall in the Alley" in "Free Times" and became one of the writers.

Served as the host of Super Sun Channel's "Super Traveler" program and started his childhood dream of traveling around the world.

1998

. Invited to serialize a single comic strip in "China News", and collaborated with writer Wu Danru to publish "Someone Asked Me About Love".

Xiao Yanzhong's File

Invited to be the host of the Radio and Television Foundation's "Manhua Comics" program.

Invited to serve as the director of Zhongdu Cartoon Channel.

Performed the gorgeous version of the screen acting troupe's annual drama "Marriage Enlightenment" and was invited to tour New York.

He was hailed as a versatile Taiwanese cartoonist by GQ magazine.

In 1999

The four-frame comic "Little Dolphin Looking for Mom" ??was serialized in newspapers and simultaneously on the Internet.

Performing Green Light Theater Company's annual drama "Marriage?" marry? Desk".

The comic endorses the well-known gold jewelry brand "Jinsheng Gold Jewelry", and the comic style is expressed in gold jewelry, which has become a new trend.

Won the "Taiwan Technical and Vocational Education Celebrity Award", the only cartoonist among the winners.

2000

He hosted the "Super Traveler" program for four consecutive years and was widely loved by the audience. Media reports called him the "Short-Circuit Traveler".

The comic endorses Hexin Telecom-"Electronic Baby".

The comic endorses "SUNMOVIE World Children's Radio and Television Day".

Performing the annual absurd drama "Shamlet" of the Screen Acting Class.

The four-panel comic "NET Family" was serialized in "Liberty Times".

2001

. Published single-frame comic works "The Complete Collection of Fairy Tale Short Circuit" and "Lie to Me!" "Magic Mirror", with its unique humor, is also deeply loved by readers. Especially "Lie to Me!" "Magic Mirror" is a comic that is shared among netizens.

In 2002,

Published the four-frame comic "Little Dolphin Looking for Mom", which was widely praised for its heartwarming and touching plot.

Xiao Yanzhong Archives

Published children's picture books "Mother Is Missing", "Mother's Voice", and "Strange Milk Bottle".

Invited to use members of the baby dolphin family as spokespersons for the "National Maritime Museum".

Invited to design a commemorative card set for Taipei MRT Corporation.

The content of the story "Little Dolphin Looking for Mom" ??was broadcast in the "Fairy Story Box" section of Dongsen Children's Channel. It was the first children's program and was highly recognized by the media.

2003

The work "Lie to Me!" "Magic Mirror" won Taiwan's "Second Comic Awards".

Published in mainland China "Fairy Tale Short Circuit" (Part 1), "Fairy Tale Short Circuit" (Part 2), "Old Love" (Part 1), "Old Love" (Part 2), "Stupid Thief in a Basket", "It's Real" and "Plastic Surgery BAR" have attracted widespread attention from mainland media and readers.

Invited to carry out a series of comic-themed activities and lectures in Beijing and Shanghai, and received exclusive interviews and reports from dozens of print, TV and online media in mainland China.

In mainland China, "Beijing Evening News", "Beijing Entertainment News", "Beijing News", "Southern Metropolis Daily", "Sohu.com", "Daily Business News", "Hefei Evening News" , "Shounen Comics", "Fantasy Story" and other media have opened content columns of different styles.

TVBS magazine serialized "Stupid Thief II" and "Plastic Surgery BAR II".

Established Xiao Yanzhong's toy country, developed "Little Dolphin" peripheral products, and served as the "Ocean Museum" ocean ambassador, the little dolphin - Ree, led the whole family and gradually became the new favorite of readers.

Invited to serve as the director and artistic director of "Chen Sheng Ten Years Tour Concert".

Interviewed

The local comic market is small

Beijing News: Where does the comic nutrition of your generation come from?

Xiao Yanzhong: For example, I grew up watching cartoons on TV, both from Japan and Hollywood, such as "The Pink Panther". For a long time, I sat on a small bench and copied in front of the TV every day.

The Beijing News: In the 1980s, Taiwanese comics had a flourishing period. Who was promoting it?

Xiao Yanzhong: After Taiwan lifted censorship, it was promoted by major newspapers. Out of competition, they rushed to open cartoon columns in newspapers. As a result, a group of cartoonists with different characteristics were produced. But they are all young cartoonists. The old cartoonists who suffered from censorship are old and their thinking cannot keep up with the times. The mainland seems to attach great importance to animation, and animation bases are being established everywhere, while Taiwan has not played a helpful role other than suppressing comics.

It is difficult for Taiwanese comics to enter overseas

The Beijing News: In the mid-1990s, the Taiwanese comics market began to expand overseas. What was the result?

Xiao Yanzhong: Before the mid-1990s, Taiwan did not have a tradition of external promotion. Later, some newspapers and publishing houses consciously took cartoonists to participate in overseas exhibitions, but this situation did not last for a few years. The reason is that Taiwan's comic creation output is not enough and there are not enough comic talents, making it difficult to compete with others. Especially since the introduction of Japanese comics was liberalized, 98% of them are Japanese comics. Local cartoonists cannot persist, and many have switched to computer games. In addition, magazine sales are also declining, and the collapse of a magazine will lead to the disappearance of several cartoonists. "It's okay to say despair" about Taiwan's comics market

The Beijing News: Do you still have a comics column in Taiwan?

Xiao Yanzhong: No more for now. For comics authors, comics editing is very important. Only good editors know how to appreciate good columns. Some editors in Taiwan are too young, and they always ask me if I can draw some cheap, spoof comics, but I don’t want to draw them.

In addition, newspapers in Taiwan are closing one after another, and there are not a few left. Furthermore, in the past, the cultural and life pages of newspapers and periodicals were highly valued, mainly focusing on entertainment, film, television and political content, and the comic columns also became dimmed.

Beijing News: You seem to be very disdainful of young people in Taiwan?

Xiao Yanzhong: Everyone pursues different things. Our group of people still have a sense of mission, are willing to work hard, want to compete with foreign countries, and leave their own traces in history. It is not just about making money. But young people are becoming more and more utilitarian, and unless they are famous cartoonists, their income is not enough, and they are not willing to work hard to draw and make a little money.

Beijing News: Or is it reincarnation? Did your predecessors also look down on your generation?

Xiao Yanzhong: This is indeed the case, but the atmosphere of growing up is different. We grew up in an era that was inspiring and encouraged everyone to become presidents, teachers, and doctors. 80% of people want to be a star. Also, the new generation of cartoonists have a tendency to endure hardships, because maintaining a column requires strong self-discipline, and many children stop drawing after drawing. Our generation is still very self-disciplined.

Beijing News: Are you already disappointed with Taiwan’s comics market?

Xiao Yanzhong: It’s okay to talk about despair. Publishing has declined rapidly in the past seven or eight years, and comic readers have also decreased. When my "Fairy Tale Short Circuit" was published that year, it sold 20,000 copies in one week and sold more than 200,000 copies in total. If it sells more than 10,000 copies, it is considered a good book. In short, the entire environment in Taiwan is not very good. The "Minister of Education" uses the wrong idioms, the culture is worrying, and everyone is concerned about gossip scandals.

Beijing News: Some people say that the four major talents in Taiwan’s comics industry are competing for the mainland market.

Xiao Yanzhong: It makes us so cruel! It should be said that we are here to work with mainland comic creators to move forward internationally and make the cake bigger.

Beijing News: Will you take more care of the mainland readers?

Xiao Yanzhong: I hope that what I see is readers all over the world. I don’t carry the unnecessary baggage of saying that I only draw Chinese comics.

Ambition

Beijing News: What is your biggest ambition for comics?

Xiao Yanzhong: Create Oriental Disney. Disney was originally an animator, but he later became an operator, gathering talented creative forces to build an entertainment empire. Therefore, working alone will ultimately have limited influence.

Beijing News: What’s interesting is that the four great talents of yours basically work alone.

Xiao Yanzhong: If it is industrialized, there will be a burden. The market is too small. If you can’t support yourself, how can you support so many people? When we were most popular, we didn’t have market awareness because we had only a small amount of works at that time. I had been creating for about 10 years, and around 1995 I started to have the idea of ??forming a team.

My personal influence is limited

Beijing News: Why hasn’t it been done yet?

Xiao Yanzhong: Because the status of culture has begun to decline, everyone is playing games online, and the number of readers is losing. The environment in China is still immature. When I went to attend international conferences, I found that foreigners were talking about things two years from now. For example, analysis predicted that horror movies would be popular in two years, so I went to find the best person to draw such comics. Only if you have people, and have planned all peripheral products such as video games before starting operation, will the environment be mature. In short, I am still in the process of planning. This matter cannot be rushed. It must be done naturally. Maybe I will be able to make the cartoon "A Basket of Stupid Thieves" in seven or eight years.