Ma Kexuan, a veteran animator and a director for Shanghai Animation Film Studio, made the classic and influential Chinese animation feature "Havoc in Heaven." (File photo/China Daily)
The veteran Chinese animation guru Ma Kexuan died in Shanghai on Monday morning. He was 76 years old.
Several animation industry insiders verified the news to China.org.cn, and many verified accounts of individuals and enterprises on China's microblog site Weibo.com have already begun mourning Ma's loss.
Ma, a veteran animator and a director for Shanghai Animation Film Studio, China's biggest animation studio, made or participated in making several of the most classic and influential Chinese animation features in history, including "Havoc in Heaven," "Nezha Conquers the Dragon King," "Feeling from Mountain and Water," "Three Monks," and "Baby Tadpoles Look for Their Mother." These films were animated in a style typical of Chinese ink paintings with an artistic, aesthetic approach. Tens of millions of Chinese young people grew up with Ma's animations.
His work has also won many domestic and international awards. For example, "Feeling from Mountain and Water" won the top prize at the 1st Shanghai International Film Festival in 1988, Best Animated Film at the 9th Chinese Golden Rooster Awards in 1989, the Courage and Beauty Prize at the 1st Moscow International Film Festival for Children and Youth, the Excellent Film Award at the 6th Varna International Animated Film Festival in Bulgaria and Best Short Film at the 14th Montreal International Film Festival in Canada in 1990.
Ma was also a member of the International Animated Film Association, a council member of the China Animation Association, a professor at Jilin Animation Institute, and a professor at the School of Software and Microelectronics at Peking University.
