In celebration of this year’s zodiac calendar and the upcoming Year of the Dog, we look into the use and treatment of household pets and other animals in China’s production industry.
辞旧迎新，在狗年即将到来之际，我们为大家呈现汪星人和其他小动物在中国广告制作中的故事。
The value of pets is rising in middle class Chinese families. Advertisers are paying attention to this cultural shift. How these animals are treated during the production process is another issue.
中国的中产阶级家庭越来越重视宠物，这种文化转变也吸引了广告界的注意力。但是，在广告制作中，人们到底是如何对待宠物的呢？答案恐怕跟你想的不太一样。
Who let the dogs out?
宠物犬回来了？
Brown haired poodles with pink-lace tutus on the sidewalk highlight the resurgence of pets in modern China. Pet-keeping disappeared under Mao Zedong’s rule from 1957-1967 due to the economic impracticality but today the popularity of pets has come back in a hurry as China opens up economically.
棕色卷毛狗穿着粉色蕾丝裙，走在中国的小路上，这正是现代中国宠物热潮复苏的画面。1957到1967年毛泽东当权期间，提出养狗是一种非常不切实际的经济行为，所以宠物在中国逐渐消失，但现如今，中国经济更加开放，宠物热潮卷土重来。
In China’s wealthier cities some joke dogs and cats have taken the place of children under China’s once strictly enforced one child policy. Pet extravagance is already well documented in the US where companies are pinching the pockets of pet owners by marketing specialty craft beer for dogs and now China is catching up fast as pet owners in Shanghai have the option to cure their pets’ ailments with acupuncture specifically catered to their furry darlings.
以前在中国开展严格独生子女政策时，人们有时候会开玩笑说，在富裕的大城市，小猫小狗就是家里的小孩儿。宠物在美国过着奢侈生活，有一些公司为了让宠物主人掏腰包，还推出了专门为狗狗打造的原浆啤酒。现在，中国也紧随其后，在上海，如果小宠物生了病，主人可以带它们去做专门针对宠物的针灸治疗。
Pet Fair Asia, hosted in China, is already in its 20th year. The estimated size of the pet food market in China was already 1.37 billion USD in 2015 (petfoodindustry.com). Pets are undoubtedly regaining popularity in middle and upper Chinese society. It’s not surprising then to see advertisers picking up on this trend and featuring cats, dogs, and other animals more prominently to win over the hearts and minds of consumers.
第20届亚洲宠物展在中国举办。据估计，2015年中国宠物食品市场已经高达13.7亿美元(petfoodindustry.com)。无疑，中国中上层社会越来越重视宠物，所以我们看到广告商也纷纷顺势而行，广告中不断上演猫猫狗狗还有其他的小动物，目的就是满足中国消费者，博人眼球，赢得人心。
How to procure a pet
动物无法出境
Creatives in China may be more eager to utilize animals in marketing tactics, however, the process of finding and training an animal on set is still a huge obstacle for producers. Singaporean native Lorna Chua, founder of a boutique China production company, Fat Fat Cat, laughed that she sometimes turns away storyboards with animals because it can be difficult in China to safely and easily procure an animal for a spot.
创意广告公司一片热忱，想要把宠物融入市场营销战略，但是要想找到训练有素的宠物，能上得了片场，还是很大的挑战。Lorna Chua来自新加坡，是一家技艺精湛的中国制作公司Fat Fat Cat的创始人，有时候看到广告创意想找宠物出演时，她不得拒绝这样的做法，因为在中国找宠物出演广告，从安全角度和便利角度来讲还是很有难度的。
New Life Films Senior Producer Mao Jie Bing has shot with all sorts of animals in China from alpacas and elephants to household dogs and cats. Working with an animal can make a shoot more complicated he admitted, but also shared that the “lack of a formal system” is uniquely challenging when working with animals in China. If a storyboard calls for a lion, dog, or goldfish there is not a directory or list of agencies that producers can call on to assist in this process of finding and training the animal on set.
New Life Films高级制片人Mao Jie Bing就在中国拍过各种各样的宠物广告，包括羊驼、大象、小猫小狗。他坦言，广告拍摄动物确实很复杂，但是中国特有的挑战其实是中国“缺乏正规的体系”。如果广告故事板有狮子、小狗、金鱼，他们找不到哪家广告公司能提供协助，帮助制片人找到合适的动物，能够在片场训练动物。
This humorous spot featuring a pet duck Afa was produced in 2014 by New Life Films for a Tencent QQ product called Caibei | 这部以小鸭子为主角的搞笑广告由New Life Films于2014年为腾讯QQ彩贝打造
In fact, even though animals are popping up more in storyboards, a Malaysian freelance producer based in Shanghai shared from her experience, because there is no formal system, spots with animals are more often shot outside of China. To find exotic animals for a shoot in China a producer from Gwantsi said they resort to the Circus, the Shanghai Zoo or Wild Life Park on the outskirts of Shanghai.
一位来自马来西亚的独立制片人现居上海，以她的经验看来，实际上，虽然故事板上有越来越多的动物形象，但是由于中国没有正规体系，往往人们都要到海外拍摄。包括观池制片人在内的很多人都表示，在中国要想找动物拍广告，往往要求助马戏团，或者上海动物园，或者位于上海市郊的野生公园。
For cats or dogs, which are needed more frequently, producers generally would have a special contact or connection to a dog training school. Mao Jie Bing from New Life Films shared one of his contacts is a retired police officer who owns several well trained dogs. This man also acts as the trainer on set, which takes away some of the headache from the production team. A side effect of a booming pet industry means that individual pet owners are also promoting their pets on social media channels and this becomes another way for producers to find well-trained, famous dogs and cats.
猫狗的出镜率更为频繁，制片人往往会找到宠物训练机构的人。来自New Life Films的Mao Jie Bing推荐了这么一个人，此人是一名退休警察，有好几只训练有素的狗狗。同时，他也会来到片场，训练其他的狗狗，这样也给制作团队省去不少麻烦。另外，随着宠物市场不断壮大，很多宠物主人也都在社交媒体平台上贴出自己的小宠物照片，这样也可以帮助制片人找到一些训练有素、有名气的猫猫狗狗。
Dog training centers are the most reliable source but the producers are limited to the particular breeds available at the training center at the time of their request. A certain level of skill along with a trainer that accompanies and trains the dog before and on set is at least a guarantee with this option.
狗狗训练中心也很可靠，但是问题是制片人往往只能选择训练中心现有的一些品种。但起码可以保证狗狗已经有了一些技能，并且训练师也会在拍摄前或者是拍摄现场负责狗狗的训练，这样起码也可以保证拍摄质量。
Dogs are front and center in this ad for VW produced last year by Possible Films | 大众汽车广告以狗狗和主角，由Possible Films于去年打造
Several producers shared the lack of a formal system does make it more expensive to shoot with exotic animals or even household pets. There are no standard prices or respect given to the animals and this makes each time shooting with an animal a bit of a wild ride in China.
几位制片人提到，中国缺少正规的系统，所以去找一些野生动物，甚至是日常宠物，都是一笔高昂的费用。由于没有标准收费定价，也没有标准的宠物待遇，所以每次拍摄都是标准不一。
American Comparison
美国情况一览
In the US, compared to China, there is more of a tried and true method established for agencies and producers to find animals and trainers for a shoot. There are around 50 animal agencies across the country, with most clustered either near L.A. or New York City to meet the industry demands of Hollywood and Broadway, respectively. It would be unheard of to go to the local zoo or simply call a friend with a well trained cat. The animals used on set or the stage generally belong to animal rep agencies.
同中国相比，美国已有了一些行之有效的做法，广告公司和制片人往往可以找到拍摄所需的动物，也会有训练师。全国范围内已有将近50家动物机构，多数都集中在洛杉矶和纽约，以满足好莱坞和百老汇的拍摄需求。一般没有人会直接去当地动物园，也不会找朋友，即使他们也有训练有素的猫咪。片场和舞台上的动物一般都来自动物经纪公司。
Bill Berloni, who founded his own rep agency, Theatrical Animals, has been an animal trainer and animal behavioralist for over 40 years in New York. He got his start when he was tasked with finding and training the famous dog who starred as Sandy in the hit Broadway musical Annie. The agency’s services include hiring an animal with a trainer from anything to horses, chickens, and cows to iguanas, butterflies and cockroaches. He has eight handlers who work for him and one assistant that helps with the training at home before the animal is called on set. His trainers are people who “love animals and have no previous training experience so [he] can train them in [his] method and not have to undo other methods”.
Bill Berloni成立了自己的动物经济公司，名叫Theatrical Animals，40多年来，在纽约，他一直担任动物训练师，同时也是一位动物行为主义者。最初走上这条路，是因为他曾接到了一个任务，要为70年代百老汇热映音乐剧《孤女安妮》找到一只小狗扮演沙子Sandy，因此他训练出了一只非常著名的小狗。该公司的服务就是寻找动物和动物训练师，比如马、鸡、牛，甚至还有鬣鳞蜥、蝴蝶和蟑螂。他的团队共有8名训练师，还有一个助理，帮助他在家训练即将进入片场的动物。他的培训师都是那些“热爱动物，但是却没有驯兽经验的人，所以他可以用自己的方法培训这些驯兽师，这样就不会有其他方法的干扰”。
Even though pets are held in high esteem in American society, Berloni’s experience has shown him that animals, even man’s best friend dogs, are not treated with the proper respect they deserve on set in the US. During a shoot he often feels “pets are put in situations that babies, children, or adult actors would not be expected to perform”.
虽然在美国社会动物地位很高，但从Berloni的经验来看，任何动物，即使是人类最好的伴侣小狗，在片场也没有得到应有的尊重。拍摄期间，他经常觉得“动物的一些场景安排，往往是演员（婴儿、儿童、成人）不会去演的”。
Beloved at home or not, the treatment of animals on film sets is a concern the advertising industry at large should take more seriously. “People treat animals badly all around the world” Berloni bemoans. This doesn’t excuse China’s current system or lack of animal protection laws. In film productions in the US, American Humane Society representatives are sometimes hired to give a stamp of approval that the animals hired are treated fairly on set. And while this is more regularly done by large brands to protect themselves against lawsuits, to date the practice is unheard of in China.
不论宠物在家里能否享受主人的宠爱，在广告拍摄片场，动物所受到的对待还是很令人堪忧的，这一点应该得到更多人的重视。“世界各地很多人都没有善待动物，” Berloni悲伤地说道。但是中国不能以此为借口，为现有情况和缺乏动物保护法找说辞。在美国制作电影时，一般都会雇一些美国人道协会代表盖章批准，证明片场的动物得到了公平对待。很多大公司一般都会这样做，免得吃官司，但目前为止，还没有听说中国有这样的做法。
Producers all over the world are always looking for ways to cut costs, and Berloni is witness to the fact that animals and their trainers receive a much smaller pay check than their human sidekicks. “There is no union for animal trainers or formal contracts unless it’s a huge Hollywood-type production” Berloni continues. He aptly points out that the dog trainer is listed below the caterer on the credits list.
世界各地的制片人总是想法设法削减成本，Berloni也看到，实际上，动物和动物训练师得到的报酬要比演员少很多。“除了大规模的好莱坞式的制作，不会有动物训练师联盟，也没有正式的合同”，Berloni如是说。同时他还指出，在制作名单上，训犬师只是列在服务提供者的名单内。
Mafeng Wo (蚂蜂窝) gives human personalities and traits to dogs in this spot, adding a little light-heartedness to otherwise obnoxious human characteristics | 蚂蜂窝给狗狗赋予了人的性格特征，让人的性格不再那么令人讨厌，反而博人一笑
Evolution or devolution?
进步还是退化？
As China’s long history of pet-keeping continues to resurface it’s only natural to see the use of pets and animals in Chinese advertising increase.
在中国养宠物由来已久，随着宠物热再次涌现，自然而然，电视广告中宠物和各种动物的出镜率也在不断增加。
A peek back at animal treatment in advertising, movies, and tv shows in the US reveal a less formal system only a couple decades ago. China itself is certainly on the road to a more organized method for securing and training animals for film production. There is no guarantee this will lead to more animal protection laws or proper treatment of animals on set, however.
回过头来看美国广告影视节目对待宠物的方式，我们看到几十年前美国的体系还不太正规。中国自身的影视制作中，保证动物的权益，如何训练动物，也在不断走向正规，变得更有规划性。即便这样，也并不能确保动物保护相关法律将会出台，无法保证人们在拍摄片场善待动物。
The value of animals in a society doesn’t necessarily equate to proper treatment in production. It’s up to diligent producers and the advertising industry at large to not view animals as a prop or a way to reduce their budget but as an opportunity to put animals on equal footing.
动物在社会中越来越重要，但是这并不意味着在制作片场人们也会合理善待动物。关键要取决于制片人和广告界人士，要多费苦心，不要把动物当做道具，也不要利用动物来节省预算，而是要通过广告，让动物也有机会享受同等的权利。
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