The film featured all the top actors in Shanghai, a testament to the influence and magnetism of the comic character. [Photo provided to China Daily]

This year, Shanghai Century Publishing Group plans to hold a special exhibition of Zhang's comic works at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany, the largest event of its kind in the world, Wang says.

"Excellent Chinese comic works such as Sanmao need to be shared with more readers outside China. There's no reason why Sanmao cannot be the next Tintin."

Wang Longji, the actor who played the role of Sanmao in the movieThe Winter of Three Hairsin 1949, says the film featured all the top actors in Shanghai, a testament to the influence and magnetism of the comic character. The filming of the movie took place between 1948 and 1949, during which civil wars forced production to halt several times.

"All the big names of the time, such as Zhao Dan, Huang Zongying, Wu Yin and Shangguan Yunzhu, were in the movie. These established movie stars played small roles such as a doorman or a lady in a party just to support me, an eight-year-old nobody in the movie industry, simply because Sanmao deeply touched them.

"Because of my role, I got close to Zhang Leping and many actors and artists. I later found out that so many of them did not work for money and fame, but for love for children. It is this great love that crosses boundaries and time."

In 2015, the French version of the book, San Mao: Le Petit Vagabond, beat 10 other contenders to win the Heritage Award at the 42nd Angouleme International Comics Festival in France.

The event organizer said it had awarded the accolade to the comic because of its portrayal of optimism and kindness.

Seeing how the comic has touched the lives of so many people, Zhang Weijun now plans to turn Sanmao into an ambassador for charity.

"I hope that Sanmao will soon be able to step out of the comic books to attend more charity events."