Dozens of kids were spotted following Tian Ming, the curator of the Film Library Hangzhou Public Library, to recite classic Tang-period poems from the animated film Chang An line by line before the screening. It was a summer-break event, sponsored by the Film Library and the Animation Library, for children to sip the Chinese culture between lines.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the founding of the Film Library. As the only public library in China dedicated to films, it houses a broad collection of film archives and literatures. It has evolved over the past decade from a simple archive into a multifaceted cultural facility for film screening, reading, and education. Meanwhile, The new dedicated reading zone on the fourth floor of China Animation Museum in April this year, set by the Animation Library, is an expansion to its public culture service portfolio. The collaboration between the two is a fine example of how we are celebrating traditions in modern public spaces.

Some classic poems featured in the film, such as Seeing Meng Haoran Off from Yellow Crane Tower, On the Frontier, and Leaving the White Emperor Town at Dawn, were recited before the screening, line by line, and verse and verse. Though voices were young, the kids were tremendously focused on the stage. Their parents and the visitors were equally immersed - some gently followed, some recorded it with their phones, and some even clapped to the rhythm of the poems. 

As the film began, the stories of poets, like Li Bai and Gao Shi, echoed the verses the children had just recited, bringing the abstract words to life on the screen. Like a parent said, “my kid might see memorizing poems as a clumsy homework, but it was different today. Reciting poems by the big screen made her feel that the verses are ‘alive’ - something to take pride in.”