Cai Xukun’s Music video is extremely relevant for Entertainment Lions because it shows the journey of an artist to the international stage in the most visually compelling way possible. This is one of the first major productions of a Chinese artist singing for an international audience.The work comprises of mixing two distinct cultures Chinese and Western culture and molding them into one viewing experience. Kun sings in English but still has distinct Chinese cultural characteristics. We wanted to show the original Chinese artist’s journey to international stardom. Also thousands of years of Chinese art gave us inspiration to film.

Kun’s music video represents a coming of age story in two different cultures. The idea was a collaboration between Cai and the Los Angeles team. We wanted to tell the story of Kun to international recognition. The story and idea is about finding the creative voice and identity amongst two major cultures representing Kun East and West.

The story and idea is about finding the creative voice and identity amongst two major cultures representing Kun East and West. The Chinese paintings are powerful images representing Kun’s cultural and historical ties to the awesome cultural dimensionality of Chinese artists. We needed to show him breaking through the traditional mode into the 21st century. Everyone goes through the journey of identity but not everyone finds their true self. This led to the idea of the ocean and the jellyfish. Cai Xukun walks/swims through the ocean amongst Jellyfish, which became the metaphor for some people who float through life but we show him fighting against the current to reach the self actualization. He enters the city and then a boxed environment and eventually breaks through.

The strategy was to film the best video possible for a man caught in a city being unnoticed and finding his voice amongst the masses. We set out to film in Los Angeles with all the technical expertize and production capabilities. We knew most of the video will be shot on a green screen but it was necessary to find the beauty of Chinese art and futuristic cities. Getting models in traditional makeup was key to show the beauty and majestic awe of Chinese culture. Collaboration was a major part in filming this venture with Chinese and American perspectives. The main objective was to tell the story of often competing and blending cultures but not make it too confusing or over bearing. Both American and Chinese teams work in symbiotic relationship to create a powerful music video to tell the story.

Implementation went very well. The only rough patch was helping KUN understand how his movements will be conceptually displayed in the world of Chinese art, which is difficult to fully understand without seeing the final effect first. We shot in Los Angeles and used green screens for most everything except the models. The actual props were important to help visualize the experience. By using a full studio with all the technical expertize it was easier to place him in a moving environment. It took a few days to film and about two months post production to capture the visually captivating scenes. We think the execution of both American and Chinese ideas helped fuel an international artists vision.

The impact and reach is intended for Chinese and Western audiences. We want to show the video and the lyrical composition for people in both cultures. The outcome was to tell a story of an artist and journey navigating the city and finding his desire to be someone. We believe we captured this in the most elegant and stunning video exploring themes of history, cultural, and multiple identities.

The official video was released on Weibo and earned over 1 million interaction and over 1 million exposure(weibo can only calculate up to 1 million) in 2 days.