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Capturing China’s Culture on Film - Ancient Chinese water town on Polaroid 8x10

2026-01-20 · 14:01 UTC ·In An Instant ·1 min read

Brief

In An Instant: Inside China’s series finale visits Zhujiajiao, Shanghai’s 'Venice,' as a documentary episode documenting cultural preservationists — Peony Pavilion Kunqu performers, young Yue Opera practitioners, and calligrapher Chen Jialing. Director Ben Fraternale and cinematographer Henry Thong photograph subjects using roll film, Polaroid 8x10 and other Western large formats (20x24 Studio Shanghai) to preserve and portrait traditional arts.

Why it matters

Series finale of In An Instant: Inside China (published 2026-01-20) films in Zhujiajiao, the ancient water town nicknamed Shanghai’s 'Venice', to document cultural preservationists.

Key details

  • The episode profiles Peony Pavilion Kunqu Opera artists, young Yue Opera practitioners in central Shanghai, and calligrapher Chen Jialing, highlighting intergenerational transmission of traditional performance and calligraphy.
  • Photographic workflow used roll film, a Polaroid 8x10 and other Western large-format tools (20x24 Studio Shanghai); director/writer/editor Ben Fraternale and cinematographer Henry Thong lead production.
Source evidence

On the series finale of In An Instant: Inside China, we venture into the ancient Chinese water town of Zhujiajiao, the "Venice" of Shanghai. Our mission is to document a series of China's most prominent cultural preservationists who use art to conserve classical touchstones of the country's 5000 year history. We meet the artists of the Peony Pavillion's Kunqu Opera, young practitioners of Yue Opera in central Shanghai, and meet Chen Jialing, a cherished calligrapher who maintains one of China's original artforms. In our adventures we are equipped with roll film, Polaroid 8x10, and bring western formats to capture these ancient forms of culture.

Credits:
Writer/director/editor - Ben Fraternale
Cinematographer - Henry Thong ( @HenryThong )
Translation Support - Rengu Zhang
Production Support - Jesse & Sonja Lin
20x24 Studio Shanghai - @林蔚健

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Channel: In An Instant
Published: 2026-01-20
Video URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f15XdEA-I-U