“Briefing on Going With Uncle to S.C.O. and BRICS,” an animated short about President Xi Jinping of China’s trip to Russia this week.
Before heading to Russia this week for summit meetings with leaders of the so-called BRICS countries and members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, President Xi Jinping of China made what is now becoming a regular appearance as a cartoon.
The three-minute animated short explains to viewers the significance of the BRICS — the grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, which encompasses about 40 percent of the world’s population and an economic output nearly equivalent to that of the United States — and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which includes China, Russia and four Central Asian countries.
The cartoon, titled “Briefing on Going With Uncle to S.C.O. and BRICS,” shows Mr. Xi and eight other leaders riding together on a single bicycle. Mr. Xi says that “realizing flourishing mutual development is the goal.” A few seconds later the narrator says, “Not like some people, always treating the world as their own personal property, making themselves the head of the household, rushing to others’ doorways to show off their muscles at the slightest provocation.” (In case you did not already realize, the narrator is describing the United States.) Then, a Superman-like figure appears in the cartoon and flexes his biceps, but his suit begins to rip.
Later scenes show Narendra Modi, the selfie-loving prime minister of India, photographing the leaders with a phone on a selfie stick. “There’s increasing mutual trust, discussion of cooperation and the signing of agreements,” the narrator says. “Is it interesting? I think it’s very interesting!”
Mr. Xi and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia are later shown walking side by side in a show of amity. “China-Russia relations have been very warm recently,” the cartoon says. “Some people support it; others throw bricks. Attitudes are different because mentalities are different. Cold War thinking is already out.” With those words, the brick thrower finds himself surrounded by opposition.
Shortly after Mr. Xi assumed China’s top leadership positions in 2012 and early 2013, he was rendered in an animated short that compared the selection process for leaders in several countries. Such an effort to humanize China’s leader had hardly been seen before, and Mr. Xi’s predecessor, Hu Jintao, never overcame his famously wooden image. But over the past two years, it has become increasingly common to see Xi Dada — a nickname that means Uncle Xi or Daddy Xi — in a cuter cartoon form.
The animations were produced by Fuxing Lushang Studio (复兴路上工作室), a name that translates to On the Road to Rejuvenation. Before Mr. Xi’s visit to Moscow in May, the same group produced a video of interviews with Chinese citizens who were asked about their thoughts on Russia. The responses were broadly positive and reflective of the Chinese government’s positions, including some needling about issues like the prices Russia charges China for natural gas.
Little is known about the studio. “The more popular the videos are, the more mysterious the group behind them seems,” Chutian Metropolis Daily, based in the central province of Hubei, said in May.
The widespread coverage of the videos by state news media outlets is considered an indicator that they have been endorsed by the authorities and possibly even produced by state propaganda organs.
The name is also taken as a clue. The road to rejuvenation is a theme associated with Mr. Xi, as well as the name of a street in Beijing where many central government bureaus are.
Follow Austin Ramzy on Twitter at @austinramzy.