It’s the Year of the Monkey after Chinese New Year (so, not quite yet), and in anticipation, Pepsi has launched a viral video. To anyone growing up with Chinese TV channels in the ’80s, the subject is instantly familiar: it’s from Journey to the West, a massively iconic tv show based off one of the Chinese classics of the same name. Via Adage:
The video is part of PepsiCo’s annual Spring Festival integrated campaign for China, “Bring Happiness Home,” which has run for five years. It tells the true story of a boy who came from a family of performers that has reenacted the legend of the Monkey King for generations. The performer Zhang Jinlai, commonly known as the “Sixth Little Master,” wasn’t supposed to have the part; his older brother was groomed for it, but he died of leukemia. To play the athletic role for TV, Mr. Zhang had to overcome challenges including nearsightedness.
Some Background
Journey to the West is a Chinese classic published in the 16th century during the Ming Dynasty, and has been attributed to Wu Cheng’en. It is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese Literature, along with Water Margin, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and Dream of the Red Chamber. It is an extended and fantastical account of the Buddhist monk Xuanzang’s journey to the ‘Western regions’ (Central Asia and India) to obtain sacred texts.