Sky Hunter is a Chinese war film directed by Li Chen. It is Li's directorial debut. The film is produced in collaboration with the People's Liberation Army Air Force and is China's first aerial warfare film. It was released on 29 September 2017.[3]

Sky Hunter
Simplified Chinese空天猎
Directed byLi Chen
Written byChen Li
Zhang Li
Produced byLu Jianmin[1]
StarringLi Chen
Fan Bingbing
Wang Qianyuan
Li Jiahang
Leon Lee
Guo Mingyu
Ye Liu
CinematographyDanny Chen
Music byAndrew Kawczynski
Production
company
Spring Era Films
Release date
  • 29 September 2017 (2017-09-29)
CountryChina
LanguagesMandarin
English
BudgetCN¥200 million
Box officeCN¥317.28 million[2]

Synopsis

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The plot centers on an elite group of Chinese soldiers whose mission is to thwart a terrorist plot and to resolve a hostage crisis.[1]

Cast

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Production

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The film had the full support of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), with it being the first time that a film crew was allowed access to the military bases by the People's Liberation Army Air Force for shooting. Military experts and trainers serve as advisers for the movie's script, which is primarily written by air force Lieutenant Colonel Zhang Li.[1]

Filming

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The film features various front line combat aircraft, including the Y-20 airlifter, the J-20 stealth fighter, the J-11, the H-6, and the J-10 multirole combat aircraft.[4][5] Scenes were shot in various parts of China and Kazakhstan.

Casting

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Director Li’s then-girlfriend and top Chinese actress Fan Bingbing was cast as the female lead, playing a PLA pilot.[1] Fan reportedly received no wage for her appearance.[6]

Music

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The score was composed by Andrew Kawczynski and recorded at Synchron Stage Vienna in Austria. Hans Zimmer served as the executive music producer.[7] Chinese singer and actor Lu Han lent his vocals for the film's ending theme song "Chasing Dream With Childlike Heart".

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Recipients Result Ref.
2018 9th China Film Director's Guild Awards Best Film Sky Hunter Nominated [8]
Best Director Li Chen Nominated
23rd Huading Awards Nominated [9]
Best New Director Won [citation needed]
25th Beijing College Student Film Festival Students' Choice Award for Favorite Director Won [10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "China gets its answer to 'Top Gun' with latest patriotic blockbuster 'Sky Hunter'". CNN. 28 September 2017.
  2. ^ "空天猎". Cbooo (in Chinese). Retrieved 11 November 2017.
  3. ^ "China finds its own Top Gun and Rambo in wave of patriotic movies". The Guardian. 24 September 2017.
  4. ^ "Upcoming "Sky Hunter" Movie Featuring PLAAF Combat Aircraft Exposes Chinese Version Of The Star Wars Canyon". The Aviationist. 1 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Chinese J-20 Stealth Fighter Jet To Feature in "Sky Hunter" Movie". www.defenseworld.net.
  6. ^ "Fan Bingbing plays in Sky Hunter for free to support director boyfriend". MSN. 9 August 2017.
  7. ^ "Sky Hunter - SynchronStage Vienna". www.synchronstage.com. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  8. ^ "电影导演协会2017年度入围名单揭晓 吴京入围最佳导演". ifeng (in Chinese). 27 February 2018.
  9. ^ "第23届华鼎奖提名:《战狼2》、《芳华》双雄逐鹿". Sina (in Chinese). 20 March 2018.
  10. ^ "大影节冯小刚获最佳导演 杨幂拿下最受欢迎女演员". Sina (in Chinese). 6 May 2018.