Synopsis
Director Intent
Many teenagers are curious about the mysterious Eastern culture and Chinese Kung Fu. There are also many unanswered questions, such as the high and mysterious Tai Chi Chuan. Its movements look soft and graceful, but how powerful is it? Is it true that practicing Tai Chi Chuan can give you superpowers? And what is the legend behind it?
Our main character, born in contemporary North America, has the same curiosity and questions as above. At the same time he is also experiencing the restlessness and confusion of adolescence. And the Chinese Taoist Kung Fu culture contains just the right amount of positive power that can help teenagers grow up inside.
Through this story, I want to let the young audience experience a great adventure through time and space. Following Zhang Sanfeng, the Taoist kung fu master, as he travels around ancient China, fighting for justice, eliminating evil and promoting good. Thus, to better understand the meaning of responsibility, morality and conscience in life.
Tai Chi Time Traveller
Synopsis :
Daniel is born in a quiet town in Eastern Canada and grows up listening to his grandfather’s legends about China. His grandfather ran a business in China when he was young, and his family accumulated a collection of exquisite, mysterious Chinese antiques—including vases, thread-bound books, and, amazingly, a copy of an imperial decree written by Emperor Zhengde during the Ming Dynasty. All this instills in Daniel a fascination with, and yearning for, the mysterious East.
During high school, Daniel spends a lot of his time studying the Chinese language and striking up conversations with Asian-Canadian girls. He often visits martial arts studios in Chinatown, hoping to find a Kung Fu master to take him on as a student. This leads to many jokes, and he is repeatedly turned away.
One snowy winter night, while looking through his grandfather’s collection, Daniel finds a copy of a secret qigong text entitled Wu Gen Spell Book. He learns to sit in cross-legged meditation from the book. While meditating, Daniel can feel his dantian energy field, and is able to hold onto this feeling. He soon falls asleep.
Daniel feels cold all over. Upon opening his eyes, he finds himself standing in a snowy field. After a while, he eventually realizes that he has somehow traveled 900 years back in time to the Song Dynasty. Even stranger, his appearance has been transformed to that of a Chinese boy. With no other option, he takes refuge at a nearby inn where he supports himself by doing various odd jobs. Daniel goes from place to place asking people how he can return to the future, but everyone around him thinks that he is just spouting a bunch of crazy talk.
An elderly beggar with white hair sleeps outside the inn. Daniel feels sorry for him, and often secretly brings him food and wine. During breaks between his work, Daniel goes to chat with the old beggar. To Daniel’s surprise, he actually believes Daniel’s story and tells Daniel that he can take him home. As it turns out, the man is none other than Zhang Sanfeng, the legendary creator of Tai Chi.
Daniel realizes that he has met a true Kung Fu master and decides to learn the martial art from him. From then on, he embarks on an amazing journey, following Tai Chi master Zhang Sanfeng throughout the land. After all of his adventures, Daniel returns home… but finds that he is back in the present day, at the very moment he “left.” It seems everything
Daniel experienced was all a vivid dream, but he knows that he now understands the true meaning of Chinese Kung Fu and the truth about ancient Eastern culture.
