Eternal Spring

Eternal Spring combines animation with documentary footage to reconstruct the 2002 television signal hijacking in Changchun, China. Adapted from the work of Chinese comic artist Daxiong (Guo Jingxiong) and directed by Canadian filmmaker Jason Loftus.

On 5 March 2002, 32 cable channels in Changchun, Jilin Province were interrupted for nearly 50 minutes by broadcasts exposing the suppression of religious freedom. More than 100,000 residents saw it. Within an hour the authorities launched a mass crackdown; an estimated 5,000 people were unlawfully detained, and 18 of those involved were tortured, some to death.

Daxiong, whose artwork anchors the film, was forced to flee to North America. Loftus faced repeated pressure and threats during production, but held firm: if he could not tell the truth while living in freedom, he said, he would regret it later.

The film premiered at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival in March 2022 and went on to win the Audience Award and the Rogers Audience Award at Hot Docs. It was Canada’s submission for Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards — the first Chinese-language film ever to represent Canada in that category.

Screenings of this film