Wang Zhongyi (right) receives the award for Best Elementary Movie at the New Image•Mobile Movie Project in Xiamen, southeast China’s Fujian Province, on November 27 (COURTESY PHOTO) 

Under the control of aliens, a human man here on earth was charged with a mission to destroy the planet. In the end, he was unable to complete his mission due to being quarantined for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).  

This scenario is the plot of new mobile movie, Safeguarding The Earth. This lighthearted and humorous "mobile movie," was shot in portrait mode with the front camera of a Huawei smart phone. According to the film’s director, Wang Zhongyi, the film was created to "take a more relaxed approach to COVID-19 and the quarantine situation." 

With shaky camera work, rough editing and very simple special effects, this "mobile movie" won the Best Elementary Movie award despite its amateurish appearance. The award was given as part of the New Image•Mobile Movie Project, held on November 27 as a side event of the 33rd China Golden Rooster Awards, and organized by the China Golden Rooster Awards in partnership with telecommunications giant Huawei.  The project aims to encourage more people to use smart phones when turning their ideas into films. 

Wang Zhongyi, a teacher at Tan Kah Kee College of Xiamen University in southeast China's Fujian Province, said the award took him by surprise. In his spare time, Wang loves making short videos of cooking his favorite dishes, and has over 1.8 million followers on short video platforms. Owing to the difficulty of assembling a crew during the pandemic, Wang completed every step of production for Safeguarding The Earth by himself in two months. 

"Smart phones have provided a very convenient way to record our life," Wang said. "Mobile movies can approach stories from a different angle, not with the fast-food style of the short videos pouring onto social media, nor as fancy or formal as a traditional film."

Xu Zheng, a film director and member of the Movie Project judge panel said one of the advantages of using smart phones in shooting is that it doesn’t require a large crew. This makes actors less nervous, especially when the actors are amateurs.  

At the award ceremony, Li Changzhu, Vice President of Handset Business of Huawei Consumer Business Group, said he believed the future of smart phone film industry was bright. "With the rapid sophistication of cameras attached to the smart phones, I’m sure there will be more possibilities for integrating mobiles phones with the film industry in the future," he said.