Directed by Liu Jian, a professor at China Academy of Art’s School of Animation and Games, and produced by a team of teachers and students over a span of five years, the Chinese animated film Art College 1994 will world premiere in Competition section in the 73rd Berlinale.

Art College 1994 is a unique 2D hand-drawn animated film with aesthetics that exhibits distinctive Chinese elements combined with its detailed art, realism, and comfortable pacing.

Art College 1994 tells a story that takes place in an art school in the 1990s. Amidst the clash of idealism vs. reality as well as tradition vs. modernity, a group of youths live their lives to the fullest as they pursue art and their dreams, form strong friendships and fall in love.

The early 1990s marked the advent of the modern arts in China, when new artistic ideologies flooded the minds of young people who were passionate about the arts, inspiring and confounding them alike. Seeming naive and childish, their relentless quest for and attempts to gain answers are nevertheless rooted in authenticity and earnestness that move us. Art College 1994 is a “song of youth” that is dedicated to all artists. The art education themes that are explored in the film remain relevant today.

Watch the first trailer for Film Art College 1994.