The grassroots animated film *Niu Lai*, made by a post-90s mom and daughter with their own savings, unexpectedly became a hit, proving sincere love for creation can be seen.
The film *The Ox Has Come* grossed only 342 yuan on its opening day.
With no trailers, no promotional tour, and no accompanying marketing efforts, its cumulative box office revenue stood at just over 7,000 yuan in the nine days leading up to its release. As it looked set to be pulled from theaters without fanfare, cinema chains were even unwilling to set aside a consistent number of screenings for it.
No one expected that on August 14, a sudden surge of online posts criticizing the rough visuals of *The Ox Is Coming* would actually pique audiences’ curiosity, prompting many to head to the theaters out of a desire to see something different.
The number of screenings jumped from single digits to over a thousand, and within three days of its release, *Cow Comes* had already surpassed 9 million yuan in total box office revenue.
Few people know that this animated feature film, *The Ox Comes*, with its simple, rustic art style, was created by a mother and son from Dalian, both born in the 1990s.The lead creator, Xin Yumeng, was formerly the owner of a home renovation store. She had run the business alongside her mother, Sun Lifang, for many years, and invested most of their savings into this film, which took a full five years to complete.The mother and son funded the entire production out of their own pockets—without bringing in outside capital or deliberately hyping the project. Even after the film went viral, they did not capitalize on the buzz to exploit their audience; instead, they proactively announced plans to end its theatrical run.
*Niu Lai*, a grassroots film created by ordinary filmmakers, unexpectedly went viral, shattering the public’s preconceived notions about filmmaking and proving that film production need not be monopolized by capital and professional teams.
There’s
no need to wait until all the conditions are perfectly in place; the genuine passion hidden deep within your heart possesses the power to break through any obstacle. A sense of sincerity and authenticity,
untarnished by the influence of capital, will ultimately be recognized by the public.
In today’s creative landscape, the very choice to give your all for the sake of your passion is, in itself, deeply moving.
