Revival and Transformation in the Early Stage of the Reform and Opening-Up (1977–1986)

After 1976, China’s film industry gradually began to recover and regain vitality. The Chinese animation industry restored and developed exchanges with the international animation community. The art, technology, and management of animation all improved significantly through these exchanges, and Chinese animated works won awards at major international animation events, having a significant impact on the global animation production field. During this period, the creative thinking in Chinese animation art saw great advancement and development. The themes, forms, and subjects of the works eagerly sought recognition, and research into creative theory reached a certain depth of understanding. The field of animated film production began to face the rise and competition of media, searching for new methods of collaboration in this new era. During this period, education in Chinese animation saw initial development, with new creative and production talents continuously joining the industry. 2D animation, stop-motion animation, and film special effects technologies developed rapidly, continuously improving the efficiency and quality of animation production.