Blockbuster series charts principal's course

TV drama explores extraordinary dedication of renowned educator to her rural students in Yunnan, Xu Fan reports.

In remote and rugged mountains, Zhang Guimei, a determined middle-aged rural teacher, makes her way wearily toward a dilapidated village home. The mission she faces is challenging, as she needs to prevent a 14-year-old girl from making the misguided decision to abandon her education.

The girl's father, an alcoholic, is trying to coerce her to support the family by marrying a stranger in exchange for a dowry of 30, 000 yuan($4, 245).

This poignant scenario takes place in the acclaimed TV series She and Her Girls, which has earned a remarkable score of 9. 4 out of 10 points on the popular review aggregator Douban, making it the highest-rated Chinese drama on the platform this year.

With Song Jia playing the lead role of Zhang, the biographical drama is adapted from the real-life experiences of the female middle school principal, a trailblazing educator who founded the Huaping Senior High School for Girls in Lijiang, Yunnan province, in 2008.

As China's first public all-female high school to offer free education and financial assistance for living expenses, the school has helped more than 2, 000 girls from impoverished rural backgrounds to enter colleges.

In 2021, Zhang—who was born in Heilongjiang province in 1957—was awarded the July 1 Medal, the highest honor bestowed by the Communist Party of China upon outstanding members.

Preparations for the TV series began in June 2020, and went through three years of script writing, shooting, and post-production, seeking to bring Zhang's self-sacrifice and steadfast determination to the screen.

In the belief that teenagers without acting experience would be able to more convincingly portray rural students, the producers chose 100 girls to take part in a three-month training program before the official start of filming.

Veteran scriptwriter Yuan Zidan, who is known for popular TV dramas like the Ode to Joy franchise, tells China Daily that she felt stressed and nervous when she was first approached to write the biographical account in early 2021.

"Zhang's story has received a lot of coverage, and many of the most touching narratives are well-known to the public. As a scriptwriter, the challenge lay in striking a balance between staying true to reality, and coming up with an engaging and dramatic plot, "she explains.

Yuan's initial apprehension dissipated swiftly following her first encounter with Zhang, who proved to be more talkative, humorous and open than the writer had anticipated.

During the crew's first visit to the school, Yuan clearly remembers being struck by the journey. Following a four-hour flight from Beijing to Kunming, the capital of Yunnan province, they embarked on a wearying six-hour car ride, arriving at the school almost at 10 pm.

The following morning, Yuan was surprised as she observed Zhang employ a distinctive method to aid a student grappling with concentration issues in class.

The principal asked the student to sweep up fallen leaves around the campus. This tranquil task gave the student the opportunity to contemplate life. Zhang then reassured the student that she could bring her medical bills to the school the next day, and that the institution would cover the expenses, alleviating the student's concerns.

"I was deeply moved. Zhang's kindness, generosity and distinctive teaching methods have left a deep impression on me, "Yuan says.

"She is very protective of her students and advised us not to interview them directly to avoid disrupting their daily routine and focus on learning. However, she acknowledged our need for more stories for inspiration, and gave us a pamphlet containing interviews with around 100 girls whose fates have been altered by the school and education, "Yuan adds.

For director Fei Zhenxiang, whose filmmaking career spans over 20 years, the new drama is his first foray into shooting a biography, making the creative process a cherished memory.

Fei says that the crew adopted a tactic to maximize conversations with Zhang, who maintains a morning routine of singing with the students, doing fitness exercises with them, and discussing the latest developments in their lives.

"Zhang is not in good health and has many chores, so we used the 30-to 60-minute break after her morning routine to talk, which enabled us to hear more stories about the school and its students, "Fei says.

One of the most notable stories is Zhang's commitment to trek deep into the mountains to visit the village homes of her students during vacations, and offer them and their families encouragement, which she has been doing for over 10 years. Despite pain and disease, she walked more than 110, 000 kilometers and reached over 1, 500 families between 2008 and 2020, according to the Guangming Daily.

In a bid to uncover deeper insight and broaden their understanding, Yuan and the team retraced many of Zhang's routes and over the span of a year, interviewed her friends, former students and their families.

"The aspect of Zhang that engenders the most respect is her demonstration of how an ordinary individual can maximize the realization of their dreams through perseverance, fearlessness and effective problem-solving, "Yuan says.

Although the esteemed principal has become a well-known figure since receiving the medal and making headlines, Yuan says that Zhang continues to care for each of her students.

During a later visit, Yuan was surprised to hear Zhang referring to the previous year's college admission cutoff scores, and carefully reviewing the mock exam results of senior students.

"It impressed me to see how well she grasped each girl's traits and learning circumstances, and the sincerity of her desire for a brighter future for each of them, "Yuan says emotionally.

The 23-episode series, which aired on China Central Television's CCTV-1 and is still available on the streaming site Tencent Video, continues to make waves online, with related topics attracting more than 350 million views on the popular social media platform Sina Weibo.

Song Huan, director of the Institute of Teacher Education at Beijing Normal University, says that the drama is not just a tribute but also demonstrates China's decades-long dedication to helping underprivileged families through education.

"We need more educators like Zhang. Consistently producing exceptional teachers is crucial for a country to shape future generations. We want more outstanding and dedicated teachers, as well as more popular films and television shows telling their stories, "says Song Huan.