The 17th China International Comics Festival (CICF) kicked off on Wednesday in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, attracting hundreds of ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) IPs, more than 1,000 cosplayers, and over 10,000 animation enthusiasts.
During the opening ceremony, the winners of the 21st China Animation & Comic Competition (CACC) Golden Dragon Award were announced, with a total of 51 awards presented. The most highly anticipated prizes in both comics and animation went to works from Guangdong.
The Best Story Comic Award was awarded to Chu Wu (The Crow), which follows the adventurous tale of a food delivery worker who enters another world. In animation, Luo Fanchen (Into the Mortal World) took home the Best Animated Feature Film Award, featuring a fantasy story centered on a descendant of China's classic mythological figures – the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl.
Japanese artist Fujimoto Tatsuki won the Overseas Animation & Comic Award for his comic work Goodbye, Eri. This year's competition saw a record-breaking 800 submissions from overseas participants.
Encouraging local artists to illustrate the beauty of Chinese stories, the committee introduced The Best Splendid China Special Award for the first time. Art pieces featuring Chinese cultural heritage, such as lion dances and the Silk Road, were nominated.
Since its launch in 2004, the CACC Golden Dragon Award has been recognized as the 'Chinese Academy Award for animation and comics,' serving as the official competition of the CICF. The animation industry in China has seen remarkable growth, with its total output value soaring from 88.2 billion yuan (about $12.6 billion) in 2013 to 221.2 billion yuan (about $31.5 billion) in 2020, according to Xinhua.
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Winners of China's top comic and animation award revealed in Guangzhou
cgtn.com
