Stills from Crossing the Yalu River, a TV series and a film: war hero Yang Gensi (second from right) on the frozen battlefield at Lake Changjin during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53).  (PHOTO / CHINA DAILY)

It took Director Dong Yachun more than a year to research the Chinese People's Volunteers in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53) for his project Crossing the Yalu River, a 40-episode TV series and a 150-minute film.

The first feature-length drama presented by China Media Group, the country's largest broadcaster, Crossing the Yalu River unfolds from the perspective of Peng Dehuai, commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Volunteer forces, to chronicle the five most pivotal campaigns fought on the Korean Peninsula

"If I pile up all the books that I have read, it might reach the height of an adult," says the veteran filmmaker, stretching his hands to indicate the height just such a "pile "might achieve, during an interview with China Daily earlier this month.

One year on from the first run of the TV series, which has obtained a score of 8.5 points out of 10 on the popular review aggregator Douban, the film－shot simultaneously with the series－was released domestically on Dec 17.

The first feature-length drama presented by China Media Group, the country's largest broadcaster, the movie unfolds from the perspective of Peng Dehuai, commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Volunteer forces, to chronicle the five most pivotal campaigns fought on the Korean Peninsula. Each of the five campaigns has a 3D-animated map to show the Chinese strategy.

From the battle on Songgu Peak, where Chinese soldiers, vastly outnumbered 20-1, stopped the enemy advance, to the frozen battlefield at Lake Changjin, also known as Chosin Reservoir, the epic film recounts how the fearless Chinese People's Volunteers "created a miracle" to assist the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and, at the same time, safeguard the newly founded People's Republic of China, says Dong.

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Aside from filming the major scenes, which were shot simultaneously with the TV series in Beijing and Tianjin, as well as Hebei, Heilongjiang and Liaoning provinces, it took several months to add heavy visual effects to the movie, which account for 60 minutes, or 40 percent, of all the scenes.

"At the very start, we decided to shoot a movie and a TV series at the same time. But the movie's perspective is more international and its scale is bigger," says Dong.

Stills from Crossing the Yalu River, a TV series and a film: Commander-in-chief Peng Dehuai (front). (PHOTO / CHINA DAILY)

He adds that the creators also wished to revisit the history from an objective point of view.

Featuring a sizable cast of more than 300 characters, the film brings to life historic figures like Chairman Mao Zedong and then US president Harry S. Truman, and war heroes such as Yang Gensi and Huang Jiguang, both conferred with the title of "Special-Class Hero", the highest honor for Chinese soldiers.

"For the audiences who have limited time, the movie is like a condensed encyclopedia entry, helping them to quickly learn the history," says Dong.

And the film chooses to recount events primarily from the perspectives of the decision-makers, he adds, as this gives a clearer insight into the campaign.

A Beijing native born in 1960, Dong has helmed a number of military-themed projects, including the award-winning TV series The Eighth Route Army (2005) and the World War II film Ballet in the Flames of War (2015).

Stills from Crossing the Yalu River, a TV series and a film: war hero Yang Gensi (second from right) on the frozen battlefield at Lake Changjin during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53).  (PHOTO / CHINA DAILY)

But his interest in shooting a film about the war on the Korean Peninsula, fought 71 years ago, was ignited in 2000, when August First Film Studio pulled out all the stops to produce such an epic, but the project－which recruited Dong as a major creator－was canceled.

Defining Crossing the Yalu River as a "duty", finally carried out more than two decades later, Dong says he intends it as a tribute to the martyrs and veterans of the Chinese People's Volunteer forces, and hopes that the movie will help audiences understand more clearly their courage and sacrifice.

Currently grossing an overall box office of nearly 60 million yuan ($9.41 million), the film has also won plaudits from critics and industry insiders.

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Zhang Dexiang, deputy chairman of the China Literature and Art Critics Association, says that the film narrates the whole picture of the war through a panoramic scope, and has gone beyond most similarly themed movies in terms of the ideological value and artistic quality.

Contact the writer at xufan@chinadaily.com.cn