IN the first half of 2025, China’s cultural landscape has been energized by a striking confluence of creativity, confidence and a renewed sense of identity. From box office records and AI innovation to collectible toys and grassroots football tournaments, a diverse set of new icons is speaking volumes about how cultural relevance is being redefined in the China of today, according to observers. The runaway success of animated fantasy epic “Ne Zha 2” was the first major cultural event this year to have grabbed the headlines. Released during the Chinese New Year, it quickly broke multiple records, becoming the highest-grossing film of all time in China in just eight days, then the top-grossing film in any single market, and eventually the world’s highest-grossing animated movie. It went on to surpass US$2 billion in earnings, entering the ranks of the five highest-grossing films in global box office history. “Ne Zha 2” retells the myth of the rebellious boy-god Nezha, a tale deeply rooted in Chinese folklore. Yet its appeal transcends cultural boundaries, thanks to a modern narrative that explores fate, prejudice and personal transformation. The film resonates with younger audiences grappling with pressure and identity, as well as older viewers seeking emotional catharsis. “It reminded me that my potential is limitless,” one teenage fan said. The film is also a technical marvel, boasting nearly 2,000 special effects shots and input from more than 130 animation studios. The production highlights the growing scale and sophistication of China’s animation industry. Its global release — across North America, Europe and Southeast Asia — underscores its appeal as a culturally distinctive, non-Hollywood story. While “Ne Zha 2” pays tribute to the past, DeepSeek looks to the future. Developed by a Hangzhou-based startup, this open-source large language model has made waves in the global AI community by rivaling its top Western counterparts, despite being trained on fewer computing resources. Unveiled at this year’s World Economic Forum, DeepSeek-R1, the company’s then latest model, quickly topped Apple’s free app charts, even surpassing OpenAI’s ChatGPT in popularity. “DeepSeek’s rise underscores China’s resolve to forge its own path in the field of tech, particularly amid U.S. restrictions on chip exports,” said Ming Jinwei, a Beijing-based commentator and widely followed blogger. More than just a technological feat, DeepSeek signals a cultural shift in how AI is developed and shared. While OpenAI began as an open-source initiative before shifting to a closed model, DeepSeek has deliberately chosen another route. “We won’t choose closed-source,” founder Liang Wenfeng said, stressing that building a robust technological ecosystem — one that invites collaboration and innovation — is the priority. Meanwhile, in a very different realm of culture, Labubu — the snaggle-toothed, wide-eyed toy figure created by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung — has become an unlikely global ambassador for China’s creative industries. Marketed by Chinese collectibles giant Pop Mart, the gothic-cute character blends Nordic folklore with East Asian aesthetics and has captivated Gen Z collectors from Paris to Bangkok. A mint-green Labubu figurine recently sold for over 1 million yuan (US$139,000) at a Beijing auction, underlining the toy’s cult status. More importantly, Labubu is part of a broader story: rebranding the “Made in China” label from manufacturing to imagination. Pop Mart’s global footprint illustrates the country’s growing ability to export cultural intellectual property, not just consumer goods. In a time of rising geopolitical tensions, the charm of Labubu reminds the world that Chinese creativity, too, can be intimate, idiosyncratic, and incontrovertibly cool. It is rare for a comic or toy IP to break the culture wall and be embraced by both Asian cultures as well as mainstream Western pop stars and sports stars, according to Jessie Xu, an analyst at Deutsche Bank. Labubu’s rise marks more than a viral toy trend: it signals a broader shift in China’s role on the global stage. No longer just a manufacturing hub, China is emerging as a source of original cultural exports. “Labubu’s success marks China’s transition from ‘world factory’ to ‘global creative center’,” noted a recent commentary on the website of China’s Qiushi Journal, the flagship magazine of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, reflecting on the nation’s economic evolution beyond low-cost production. Completing this quartet of cultural landmarks is a surprising phenomenon: the Su Super League, a provincial amateur football tournament in eastern China’s Jiangsu Province. Despite featuring mainly amateur players — more than 65% of whom have day jobs — the league has attracted remarkable public attention. Attendance figures have rivaled professional leagues, and related content has amassed 4.98 billion views on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok, as of the past weekend. Running from May to November with 13 city-based teams, the league is a grassroots celebration of local identity. Regional dialects, cuisines and customs all find expression in match-day festivities. Including elements ranging from Yangzhou’s art of paper-cutting to Wuxi’s laser light shows, matches are as much cultural events as they are athletic contests. The league’s community-driven ethos has struck a chord. Originally priced at just 5 to 20 yuan, some tickets have been resold for as much as 620 yuan, reflecting the league’s surging popularity. Some cities have bundled match access with tourism packages, transforming football fervor into a local-economy driver. Summed up neatly in the words of one fan: “I came for football and received a gift from the whole city.” Taken together, these phenomena across cinema, tech, design and sport reveal an increasingly confident China that is telling its own stories in its own way, according to Shi Anbin, director of the Israel Epstein Center for Global Media and Communication at Tsinghua University. “These four new icons of Chinese culture and creativity are not the result of top-down, state-led campaigns, but rather a dynamic expression of a nation that is becoming more diverse, imaginative and outward-looking.” In a world grappling with polarization and fragmentation, China is offering something different: a synthesis of tradition and modernity, and a dialogue between local creativity and global engagement. Beyond the cultural sector, a number of Chinese brands have made inroads into the world-class IP categories. Data from China’s General Administration of Customs shows that China sustained its growth momentum on exports of new energy vehicles, with the volume of pure electric car exports topping 2 million units for the first time in 2024.(Xinhua) | 