A brave calling

Zhu Lexian, executive producer of the documentary, says the reason for picking the subject was to let more people know about the country's firefighting system and firefighters' work to keep communities safe.

"Reality is the biggest charm of a documentary. All the stories featured in the documentary are real-life incidents, and will help the audience obtain more knowledge about how to do basic first aid and handle injuries," he adds.

In one episode of the documentary, a father and his adult son are seen throwing baijiu, or white liquor, on each other and then igniting it in a bitter family dispute. The father suffered severe burns. The firefighters, on arrival, tried hard to persuade the elderly man not to touch anything to avoid infection. The father ignored them, leaned against a wall, and even had his back on the ground while scolding his son.

"We were very shocked to know that the father died three days after he was admitted to hospital because of a fatal infection," says director Wu, adding that she also hopes the documentary will show people that circumstances can sometimes get out of control.

Sometimes, a firefighter's job can turn into a psychological battle.

In one incident, shot in Chongqing, an online influencer is seen standing on the edge of a roof of a tall building holding a knife after the plastic surgery to reshape her nose went wrong. Standing there for several hours to persuade her in the scorching summer to return from the edge, two firefighters finally succeeded to distract the crying woman, grabbing the knife from her and taking her to safety.

"The documentary wants to praise the heroic firefighters, but also seeks to serve as a kaleidoscope to show some aspects of real life in our society," says Wu. "We wish the audience will cherish the significance and value of life more, which is what we expect to get out from this work as well."