Huayu Entertainment: The Birth of a Succubus Top Star

On the eve of National Day, Gu Zhiyan took a short leave from the crew of "Love Letter to Grandma" and headed to Nanjing, where she successfully met up with Gao Ye and Jiang Peiyao to attend the main premiere of "Nanjing Photo Studio".

The film has been officially moved up to a nationwide release date during the National Day holiday. After the premiere, Gu Zhiyan will also join the main creative team for a joint roadshow in multiple cities including Nanjing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Changsha, Xi'an, Jinan, and Chengdu.

The autumn day in Nanjing was serene and solemn, and the theater was packed to capacity for the premiere.

As the screen faded, a long silence enveloped the entire theater for several seconds. Intermittent sobs could be heard softly in the auditorium. After a moment, the entire audience stood up in unison, and applause continued unabated.

Gu Zhiyan, dressed in a dark, plain formal suit, slowly walked onto the stage without any extra embellishment, her expression solemn and restrained.

When the host invited him to share his creative experience, his voice was calm and deep: "What touched me most about the whole movie is that there are no born heroes in the film. The ordinary people in the photo studio initially only wanted to survive in the chaos of the world. They were fearful, hesitant, and wavering, but in the end they were willing to risk their lives to preserve evidence of crimes on film."

The most difficult aspect of historical fiction is balancing emotions. We chose a narrative style that leaves room for interpretation, hiding the suffering in the minutiae of detail. I believe this is far more powerful than deliberate exaggeration.

Film will eventually yellow and fade, but the evidence left by history can never be erased.

An elderly man from Nanjing stood up in the audience. His elders had personally experienced that dark period and choked up several times while recounting the past.

Gu Zhiyan leaned down slightly, listening quietly with a solemn expression.

This scene was captured by the media on site and quickly became a trending topic that night.

With the premiere over, the nationwide roadshow officially began, creating countless unforgettable highlights along the way.

At Nanjing Station, descendants of Nanjing Massacre survivors made a special trip to watch the film, and when they went on stage, they brought out old photos treasured from their homes.

He admitted that he couldn't sleep all night after watching the film and thanked the production team for bringing the story of ordinary people standing up to the screen.

Gao Ye's eyes reddened as he nodded repeatedly in greeting; Gu Zhiyan stepped forward steadily and solemnly shook hands with him.

【Film as witness, never forget Nanjing】Quickly went viral online.

A special film screening for 1,000 university students in Wuhan was held. After the screening, one student stood up and asked, "Historical films continue to face various controversies. Do creators ever feel discouraged?"

Gu Zhiyan calmly replied: "Controversy is inevitable, but remembering history does not mean breeding hatred. When we look back on our suffering, our ultimate goal is to cherish the peace we have today. Everyone can have different viewing experiences, but historical nihilism must never be tolerated."

The full Q&A live stream clip quickly went viral, and applause resounded throughout the theater.

At Xi'an Station, several veterans of the War of Resistance Against Japan came to watch the film. After the film ended, the veterans slowly stood up and gave a standard military salute, and all the main creators on stage stood up and bowed in return.

Many audience members were moved to tears, and this group photo became the most widely circulated scene from the roadshow on the internet.

At the Changsha station, an audience member directly asked a question, discussing the numerous online whistleblowing controversies and polarized opinions.

Director Shen Ao candidly responded to the original intention of the creation, and Gu Zhiyan added at the right time: "Artistic creation has its own limits and boundaries. This film has made a lot of use of blank space and avoided direct and bloody scenes. Rational criticism and suggestions are worth listening to, but organized malicious attacks and mass reporting have long exceeded the scope of normal film reviews."

The atmosphere at Jinan Station was exceptionally warm, with countless movie fans spontaneously bringing old photos to the venue. After the screening, everyone turned on their phone lights, transforming the theater into a sea of ​​shimmering stars.

The entire creative team bowed deeply in gratitude, and Gu Zhiyan softly remarked that the creators' long-term dedication would eventually be seen by a sincere audience.

After the film's release, it sparked a heated debate across the internet.

Numerous mainstream official media outlets have published commentaries praising the film for its micro-perspective of ordinary people, its reinterpretation of the Nanjing Massacre, its rejection of empty and grandiose preaching, and its focus on the awakening of conscience in ordinary people.

Memorial halls, primary and secondary schools, and universities across the country have been organizing group film screenings.

A large number of film critics gave it high marks, praising the film's powerful atmosphere and the lingering sense of oppression that remained long after leaving the theater. Many viewers spontaneously watched it two or three times to uncover hidden details in the shots. The film's box office performance defied the trend and remained firmly at the top of the box office during the National Day holiday.

At the same time, the controversy has never stopped.

Some viewers felt that the narrative pace in the middle of the film was too slow and lacked dramatic conflict; many parents reported that the overall tone of the film was depressing and had a strong psychological impact, making it unsuitable for young children.

Two main viewpoints continue to debate online: some believe that history itself is cruel and should not be deliberately downplayed; others are calling on cinemas to add age warnings for moviegoers.

Throughout the entire roadshow period, the whistleblower controversy continued to escalate.

Some ordinary parents submitted their requests through official channels, hoping that cinemas would issue viewing reminders to protect the mental health of minors.

After receiving the request, the regulatory authorities did not issue a notice to stop the screening, but coordinated with cinemas nationwide to post friendly viewing tips.

Along with legitimate demands came large-scale, organized malicious whistleblowing and online smear campaigns.

After the video gained popularity, a large number of complaints with the same template appeared online, spreading rumors that the video "trafficking in national pain and profiting from human suffering" and "distorting historical facts."

On overseas social media platforms, some right-wing accounts coordinated to spread historical denials. Some netizens exposed screenshots of online part-time job groups, showing that some people were funding the recruitment of online trolls to flood the screen with negative reviews and mass complaints against videos.

State media promptly issued an article setting the tone: respect the audience's genuine viewing experience and be tolerant of objective and rational film reviews; resolutely resist organized malicious reporting and cyberbullying, and be vigilant against the infiltration of historical nihilism.

During the roadshow, several reporters asked the creators about the whistleblower controversy.

Gao Ye sighed: "We knew before filming started that touching on this history was bound to cause controversy from all sides, but the entire film is based on historical materials, and all of us have a clear conscience."

Gu Zhiyan calmly stated, "Works that tell stories of national trauma naturally need to carry diverse voices. We need to distinguish between constructive suggestions and malicious suppression. Creators should uphold their creative bottom line, and the rest is up to the audience and time."

The seven-day National Day holiday has come to an end. "Nanjing Photo Studio" has grossed over 15 billion yuan, achieving a clean sweep of four categories during the 2025 National Day holiday: box office, attendance, occupancy rate, and word-of-mouth. It has broken the record for realistic films during the National Day holiday in the past six years.

With a stable score of 8.9 on Douban and consistently ranking among the top films of the year on two ticketing platforms, it has become a well-deserved phenomenon and a national masterpiece of the year.

With the box office topping the charts, public opinion across the internet has completely reversed, and all the previous doubts and smears have been completely drowned out by a massive amount of sincere positive reviews.

The “plain and restrained” style that was once criticized has ultimately been hailed by the entire internet as the “highest level of historical reverence.”