Won the Feitian Award for "All Creatures" and "Sea and Sky Eagle", director Liu Jiacheng: Creation must return to the land

China News Service, October 13. On October 9, the 35th Chinese TV Drama "Feitian Awards" and the 29th National Television Arts "Starlight Awards" award ceremonies were held in Yantai, Shandong. Director Liu Jiacheng won the Outstanding Director Award for his two dramas "All Creatures" and "Sea and Sky Eagle". This is the first time he has won the honor six years since he was nominated for the award for "Love in the Courtyard" in 2020.

According to reports, the Feitian Award is sponsored by the State Administration of Radio and Television, which always emphasizes "strengthening the awareness of quality products, adhering to the unity of profound thinking, exquisite art, and excellent production, and always putting social benefits first." In this year's Feitian Award, Liu Jiacheng was recognized by the judges for his successful control of two works with very different themes, "Life of All Things" and "Sea and Sky Eagle". From the hometown of Lunan to the aircraft carrier deck, from the struggle of farmers and the land to survive to the death of a carrier-based aircraft test pilot, the two works span period dramas and military dramas, demonstrating his ability to grasp different themes.

In August 2025, Liu Jiacheng wrote an article in "People's Daily", systematically expounding the creative concept of "Birth of All Things". He wrote in the article: "It is my philosophy to create close to the soil." In his view, "It is very difficult to create something new. To achieve a breakthrough, you have to dig deeper." What "Birth of All Things" explores is "the relationship between land and Chinese culture, which is the core issue of where Chinese culture comes from and where it is going." He further said, "If you don't understand the history before and after the founding of New China, and the relationship between farmers and the land for thousands of years, you can't understand today's China." This kind of exploration of the national roots allows "All Things" to add historical thickness and cultural thinking on the basis of period dramas. As Liu Jiacheng said in the article: "When I made "All Things Born", I wanted to convey vitality, hope and warmth, so that we will always have the courage and strength to overcome obstacles and move forward."

In terms of narrative techniques, Liu Jiacheng always adheres to the creative principle of "not selling misery". The "diligence and resilience" embodied by the farmers in the drama "All Creatures" is regarded by him as "the reason why the Chinese nation continues to thrive and thousands of years of history continues to this day." In terms of character creation, he strives to "have a prototype for each character, without distorting or facializing artistic processing. Real characters are always the most contagious." On the basis of realism, he also tried to incorporate romantic expression: "The scene of Xiu Xiu Niang's funeral allows the real Xiu Xiu and the illusion of Xiu Xiu Niang to meet. The finale of the play breaks the boundaries of time and space, making the realist expression more contagious."

Strict control over details is also crucial. In order to photograph the true appearance of rural areas in southern Shandong, Liu Jiacheng did a lot of homework, went to local rural areas to experience life in depth, invited local farmers to serve as consultants, and carefully considered various details. The crew filmed the whole process in real locations, spending nearly one million yuan to rent dozens of acres of wheat fields to fully present the changes in farming in the four seasons. "Today's young people rarely come into contact with the land. The more we shoot the original smoke of fireworks, the more fresh it will be for them." Some young viewers reported, "It is the first time I smell the aroma of earth in the camera." This dedication to reality gives "Life of All Things" a strong sense of substitution and vitality.

The same rigorous attitude also runs through the creation of "Eagle of the Sea and Sky". In order to film this first military drama about aircraft carrier-based aircraft in China, after Liu Jiacheng came into contact with the script in 2018, he boarded the aircraft carrier Liaoning to collect information and interviewed many carrier-based aircraft pilots. He did a lot of interviews from flying conditions to emotional life; in order to understand the real life conditions of the ground staff, he even lived directly in the military compound, lived with the ground staff, and gained a lot of first-hand information through in-depth exchanges. He incorporated his experiences and experiences into the story, "The meals on the aircraft carrier are divided into flight stoves and ground service stoves. The political commissar cannot fly, so he cannot enter the flight stoves." These real details add a sense of life to the work. In terms of character creation, Liu Jiacheng focused on exploring the ordinary aspects of being a parent and a husband in the image of soldiers, allowing the audience to experience the courage and responsibility of soldiers through "empathy".

With solid artistic quality, profound ideological connotation and broad social influence, the two works have won the recognition of judges and audiences - "All Things" set a ratings record in the past three years since its launch, with total broadcast volume exceeding 2.842 billion. The audience accounted for more than 50%; "Eagle of the Sea and Sky" continued to be the TOP1 in CVB prime time ratings during the broadcast, with the highest single-day ratings reaching 3.322% and the highest single-day ratings share of 14.107%, reflecting the vitality of realist creation.

Another work "Good Times" that was released on the Yangtze River Prime Time during the Spring Festival in 2026 became the first drama to have a single-day ratings of more than 4 that year, setting a new high in the ratings for a prime-time premiere of the Yangtze River in the past ten years. The drama was also nominated for the 33rd China TV Golden Eagle Award for Best TV Drama, along with "All Creatures" and "Sea and Sky Eagle".

After more than 40 years in the industry, from "Iron Teeth and Bronze Teeth Ji Xiaolan" to "Beijing Taste Trilogy", from "The Little Woman at the Zhengyang Gate" to "Eagle of the Sea and Sky", to "All Creatures" and "Good Time", Liu Jiacheng has continued to break through himself with works that focus on life and reflect the times. He said: "All my hard work will not be in vain. I will continue to walk on the road of self-breakthrough, insist on returning to the land, return to humanity, return to the true nature of art, and strive to create more outstanding works that show the growth of ordinary people in the tide of the times, and repay the love of the audience."