The Reunion Journey

The Reunion Journey (Chinese title 团圆令) is an animated feature directed by Ma Teng, presented by its producers as China's first whole-process AI-generated animated feature to reach theatrical quality standards. It is co-produced by Beijing Shrub Culture and Technology Co, Ltd (chaired by chief planner Li Guanyu) and Beijing New United Films; Chinese reports also list China Media Group among the producers. No runtime is given in the pages read. It opened in mainland Chinese cinemas on 28 February 2026, and a trailer is on YouTube.

The team built a self-developed full-process AI production platform. Global Times reports the workflow was split into AI technology R&D, setting AI aesthetic standards and AI execution; the roles of director, screenwriter and art designer remain, with humans keeping the creative side while AI executes it. A Sohu report says the platform runs character modeling, scene layout, rendering and micro-expression capture in parallel, that custom models trained on giant panda footage kept the characters consistent, and that some scenes combine AIGC with Unreal Engine. Ma Teng claims the system controls character performance and micro-expressions to 99 percent accuracy. These are the makers' own claims, and no page read names the underlying AI models.

Li Guanyu says costs came to about one-fifth of comparable traditional films and production took five to six months, against two to three years of traditional work, per the Sohu report. Other English coverage (SAYS) instead cites a one-year development cycle against the three to five years it calls typical. Chinese tech coverage says Asus ProArt laptops were used in production (a sponsored feature).

A press screening took place in Beijing on 22 December 2025 (BiaNews), when a New Year's Day release was planned; SAYS dates the test screening to 20 December. The film then reached mainland cinemas on 28 February 2026, per Xinhua, which photographed a public viewing event on 1 March. A Far East Films trailer lists Zhao Shuang, Chen Shiyu, Gu Jiangshan and Guo Zhengjian as cast. Producers said part of the box office would go to public welfare initiatives supporting national reunification. The trailer on YouTube had 6,947 views when read on 11 October 2026.

On reception, SAYS quotes moviegoer Wang Wenbo saying he did not expect AI to reach such detail, and Sohu reports attendees praising the facial animation, fur and lighting; Ma Teng said the team was still refining hair texture, transitions and lighting. No box office or critic review figures were found in the pages read. The pages present it as evidence that AI can greatly shorten animation production, and Li Guanyu argues that cheap, fast production could allow sequels within months and a 'theatrical series' model.