Dating to the 1960s, this Chinese propaganda film shows the construction of a series of dams along the Yellow River in Shandong Province. This project was part of the so called Great Leap Forward of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a economic and social campaign by the Communist Party of China (CPC) from 1958 to 1962. The campaign was led by Chairman Mao Zedong and aimed to rapidly transform the country from an agrarian economy into a socialist society through rapid industrialization and collectivization. However, it is widely considered to have caused the Great Chinese Famine.
The film was made in 1961 during the tail end of the Great Leap Forward. The people featured in the film are Chinese citizens of Shandong province and members of the Communist Party of China (CPC). The film starts out explaining the vastness of the Yellow River floodplain in northern China’s Shandong province. There are many smaller rivers that flow into the Yellow River. The Yellow River eventually flows into the Yellow Sea which is on the coast of Shandong. Although, at some places along the Yellow River within China, it is as vast as a sea.
The film then goes on to describe how this will help the farmers of this region. Of course this is in the government’s best interest as farming was collective and owned by the state. Details are brought up on the high expenditures that will be spent on the project and how everyone will benefit from the building of the Sanmenxia Dam.
Next, the Dam is examined in detail. The Sanmenxia Dam is a concrete dam on the Yellow River near Sanmenxia Gorge in Henan province. The dam is multi-purpose and was constructed for flood and ice control along with irrigation, hydroelectric power generation and navigation. The film details how this dam will improve the people’s livelihoods. The production has just been completed.
The final part of the film has a song. This is a kind of workers’ anthem for the good of all people in China, everyone must work and do their part! The heart of the worker is strong, and it is a powerful message in the song. Everyone coming together and China will become number one through hard work and collectivization. In return, the CPC will always look after the People of China for that is why it is called the People’s Republic of China.
The Sanmenxia Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the middle-reaches of the Yellow River near Sanmenxia Gorge on the border between Shanxi province and Henan Province, China. The dam is multi-purpose and was constructed for flood and ice control along with irrigation, hydroelectric power generation and navigation. Construction began in 1957 and was completed in 1960. It is the first major water control project on the Yellow River and was viewed as a major achievement of the new People’s Republic of China. Subsequently, its image was printed on the country’s bank notes. However, due to sediment accumulation in the reservoir, the dam later had to be re-engineered and renovated. The effects from sediment, which include flooding upstream, have placed the dam at the center of controversy and criticism-related arrests by the Chinese government.
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