This Day, That Year

Editor's note: This year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China.

On the evening of Nov 29, 1979, China Central Television broadcast Yugoslavia's After the Enemy, which was the first foreign TV drama aired in China.

After the Enemy starred Pavle Vujisic, Dragan Nicole and Vojislav Brajovic. The play tells the story of Yugoslav guerrillas and German occupation forces during World War II.

In 1980, Man from Atlantis became the first TV series from the United States to be shown in China. It told of the adventures of a man with amphibious abilities.

The following year, Shanghai Television broadcast Sanshiro Sugata, the first Japanese TV series to be shown in China. The drama focused on a man who wishes to learn judo as a path to enlightenment, rather than a mere set of self-defense techniques.

In 1982, The Mayor of Casterbridge was broadcast nationwide, as seen in this item from China Daily. The 1978 BBC seven-part serial was based on the book by the British novelist Thomas Hardy.

In 2000, the South Korean hit TV series, Autumn in My Heart, was all the rage in China, marking the beginning of K-pop culture among the young generation.

Chinese television productions have become popular with foreign viewers in recent years.

The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television said that in China more than 1,600 domestic movies and television productions have been translated into 36 languages in recent years. These include English, French, Russian, Spanish, Arabic and Portuguese, and they have reached more than 100 countries.

The latest success is web series The Longest Day in Chang'an, which premiered outside of China in July via streaming partners.

The series was aired in Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei. The program is currently available in Chinese, English and Vietnamese, with plans to air it in other languages.

In 2017, global streaming giant Netflix purchased the rights to Youku's detective thriller Day and Night.

Last year, Fox Networks Group purchased the foreign rights to basketball reality show, Dunk of China, with plans to produce localized remakes of the show for other markets.