At the artistic performance of the 15th National Games opening ceremony, a nearly 30-meter-long giant "Ao fish" installation made a stunning appearance, slowly "flying" from outside the venue into the center of the stage. The moment its lights lit up, it emitted a dazzling and colorful dreamlike radiance, with its agile and stretching swimming posture resembling a mythical creature descending to the human world, becoming one of the most viral "iconic moments" of the evening.
The "Ao fish," integrating traditional Lingnan culture with a cyberpunk style, is both full of classical charm and possesses a sci-fi tension. It was highly praised by netizens on trending searches as a "masterpiece of Cyber Lingnan aesthetics." How was this thrilling scene of the "Ao fish" swimming across the sky and sea actually achieved?
In legend, the Ao fish is the transitional form before a carp "leaps over the dragon gate" and transforms into a dragon. In the Classic of Mountains and Seas, the Ao fish is a mythical creature that "carries the fairy mountain on its back," symbolizing stability and auspiciousness. In the folk culture of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao region, the Ao fish also carries auspicious meanings.
Shang Tianbao, the chief art designer of the opening ceremony, is the main creator of this "iconic moment" of the fish swimming across the sky and sea. The opening ceremony team for the National Games spent eight months visiting 12 intangible cultural heritage workshops in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao region before finally achieving the combination of the traditional Ao fish lantern's form with modern mechanical technology.
"It involved combining traditional lanterns with large-scale aerial floating technology, using multi-segment shaped airbags and bionic technology to display the elegant state of the fish leaping across the sky and sea. By leveraging the randomness of helium buoyancy, we redefined the boundaries of flying art installations in a disruptive way," said Shang.
Airbags with scientifically proportioned helium
It might not be obvious, but this large "Ao fish" is actually made of balloons, with its interior composed of multiple airbags. These airbags are distributed in the fish's head, body, fins, and tail, with space left between them for movement. The bionic segmented structure allows it to "swim" more flexibly in the air. To present the effect more vividly, the design also extensively uses lightweight soft gauze to achieve the agile and graceful effect of the "fish swimming across the sky and sea."
How to make the balloon hover in mid-air while being lifelike?
"It's filled with helium and air, but the ratio needs to be very scientific. If the buoyancy is too great, it will pull away the people holding the lines; if the buoyancy is too little, it can't achieve the effect of hovering in the air," explained Wang Ruixiang, the opening ceremony's chief producer. To perfect this segment of the performance, the creative team conducted numerous experiments to determine how to proportion the helium in the balloon, ensuring the Ao fish could remain suspended in mid-air for a long time without falling or flying away.
Whether the audience experienced it live and immersively or watched remotely via TV broadcast, they could only see the giant "Ao fish" gracefully hovering and swimming agilely above the stage, completely free from the "clumsy and rigid" feeling often associated with traditional large performance props. It turns out the technical team developed an invisible track system, with the track hidden in the water body beneath the venue, completely undetectable to the naked eye. Simultaneously, the Ao fish's body consists of 128 independently controllable scales, each equipped with LED beads and sensors that can change color and angle according to the music rhythm and on-site atmosphere. When the Ao fish "flew" out of the water, the scales reflected the light, making it appear as if it were truly glowing.
Furthermore, to align with the 15th National Games' philosophy of "Innovation, Coordination, Greenness, Openness, and Sharing," the Ao fish's body was constructed using recyclable, eco-friendly materials, allowing it to be disassembled and reused after the performance.
Youths behind the performance
The Ao fish's swimming trajectory on site was actually achieved by 20 young martial artists from a martial arts school in Foshan, Guangdong, who controlled it via ropes. Overcoming the challenges of the installation's large size and high operational difficulty was part of their daily training. The explosive power needed at turns and the deep red marks left on their palms by the ropes became their most unforgettable memories.
There's a saying, "A minute on stage takes ten years of practice off stage." Due to the Ao fish's massive size, the youths needed to expend great physical strength when pulling the ropes. One student, recalling the training experience, admitted that the most memorable part was the instant burst of explosive power required at corners. To present the Ao fish's most agile posture at the opening ceremony, the youths put in extraordinary effort. In their view, being able to stand on the National Games opening ceremony stage, under the spotlight, made all the hardship worthwhile.
This "Ao fish" carries not only the beautiful meaning of the "carp leaping over the dragon gate" from Lingnan traditional culture but also the ardent hope for the young generation to courageously scale new heights and pursue their dreams. The selection criteria for the youths were also unique; the lead teacher revealed that, besides solid physical fitness and teamwork skills, greater importance was placed on the youths' "patriotic heart" and "drive to strive forward."
(Source: Wen Wei Po; Journalist: Huang Baoyi; English Editor: Darius)
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