The Story of 51 Grams "Wu Yi" Premiered in Japan
On January 11, 2012 the inspirational documentary “The Story of 51 Grams” made its public debut in more than 30 movie theaters across Japan. “The Story of 51 Grams” follows the first six years of life of a miracle panda cub, that weighed only 51 grams at birth. The cub had the lowest birth weight for any panda cub that went on to survive into adulthood.
The producer of this documentary is Ms. Zhang Yunhui, an overseas Chinese living in Japan. According to Ms. Zhang, this documentary is the first film that is purely Chinese in theme and production to be released in mainstream movie theaters in Japan. Mr. Shiohama Masayuko (left), the director of the film, famous Japanese model Ms. Hasegawa Jun (second from left), the voice actress, the famous calligrapher Shoko Kanazawa (middle), Mr. Deng Wei (right), Press Officer from the Chinese Embassy in Japan, attended the Tokyo premiere.
Weighing only 51 grams at birth, Wu Yi was named after his birth weight. In Chinese 51 is wu shi yi or wu yi. When he was born, the cub was so small that his mother abandoned him. However, scientists at the Chengdu Panda Base did not give up on this tiny creature and he survived to grow into a handsome, adult male giant panda. His survival was a miracle. The film company behind the documentary was inspired by his story and followed him for the first six years of his life. With their documentary they will introduce the story of the miracle panda cub to audiences around Japan.
The tenacious sprit and love demonstrated in this film has garnered encouragement from the people from Sendai, Japan; Sendai was devastated by the 2011 earthquake. On January 6, 2012, the documentary was shown as part of a charity event. 580 people from Sendai were invited to attend the private screening of the film. Dr. Zhang Zhihe, the director of the Chengdu Panda Base, expressed his condolences to the people of Sendai and all earthquake victims in Japan through pre-recorded video. Other attendees included Japanese director Mr. Shiohama Masayuko, the film crew, and the director of the Sendai Zoo.
Source: Chengdu Panda Base
