Drama brings Hubei revolutionary heritage to screen

Guo Guangjun, vice-chairman and secretary-general of the Hubei Television Artists Association, said the drama's popularity has given a strong boost to the local film and television industry, while also showing that Hubei has a wealth of revolutionary resources to draw upon.

Director Bai Tao said that the production team conducted multiple rounds of in-depth interviews with the descendants of the historical figures and revised the script several times. Shooting took place across four provinces — Hubei, Henan, Hunan and Zhejiang — at dozens of revolutionary sites, including Wuhan University and the former site of the 1911 Revolution.

Bai added that more than 50,000 props and 30,000 costumes were tailored, along with large-scale props such as passenger ships. CGI technology was also used to create scenarios featuring Japanese fighter planes and B-25 bombers.

Screenwriter Li Jiuhong said the idea of using bullet wounds to mark the protagonist's growth was inspired by historical records. "During the revolutionary period, more than 140,000 people from the region (Hong'an county in Hubei province) sacrificed their lives. Sixty-one founding generals and more than 200 senior officers came from this area," Li said.