Liu Cixin | |
|---|---|
 Liu in 2017 | |
| Native name | 刘慈欣 |
| Born | (1963-06-23)23 June 1963 (age 62) Beijing, China |
| Occupation |
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| Alma mater | North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power |
| Period | 1989–present |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Notable works | Remembrance of Earth's Past |
| Notable awards | Galaxy Award;Hugo Award |
| Liu Cixin | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 刘慈欣 | ||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 劉慈欣 | ||||||||||||||||
| Hanyu Pinyin | Liú Cíxīn | ||||||||||||||||
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Liu Cixin (Chinese:刘慈欣;pinyin:Liú Cíxīn,pronounced [ljǒʊ tsʰɹ̩̌.ɕín]; born 23 June 1963)[1] is a Chinese computer engineer andscience fiction writer. In English translations of his works, his name is given asCixin Liu. He is sometimes called "Da Liu" ("Big Liu") by his fellow science fiction writers in China.[2]
He is a nine-time winner of China'sGalaxy Award, and has also received the 2015Hugo Award for hisnovelThe Three-Body Problem, as well as the 2017Locus Award forDeath's End. He is also a winner of the ChineseNebula Award.[3] He is a member of the China Science Writers Association and the vice president of the Shanxi Writers Association.[4]
Liu was born on 23 June 1963 inBeijing. He grew up inYangquan,Shanxi,[2] where his parents had been sent to work in the mines.[5] Due to the violence of theCultural Revolution he was sent to live in his ancestral home inLuoshan County,Henan.[6] Liu graduated from theNorth China University of Water Conservancy and Electric Power in 1988. He then worked as a computer engineer at a power plant inShanxi province.[7]
A 1990s computer program called "Electronic Poet" (电子诗人) can be found online.[8] It appears to be alanguage model, capable of generating works in the style of 1980sMisty poems.
Liu cites English authorsGeorge Orwell andArthur C. Clarke as important literary influences.[9] He was labeled the firstcyberpunk Chinese author after his novelChina 2185 was released in 1989.[10] Liu's most famous work,The Three-Body Problem, was first published in 2006.[11] It is the first book in theRemembrance of Earth's Past trilogy. American authorKen Liu's 2014 translation (published byTor Books) won the 2015Hugo Award for Best Novel, and the book sold 1,200,000 copies in China before it won.[11][12] Liu Cixin thus became the first author from Asia to win Best Novel.[13] The German translation (which included some portions of the original text not included in the English translation) followed in 2016.[14] Ken Liu also translated the third volume ofThe Three-Body Problem series,Death's End, in 2016.[15]Death's End was a 2017Hugo Award for Best Novel finalist and won a 2017Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.
Liu'sRemembrance of Earth's Past trilogy has been a sensation of Chinese science fiction literature within Chinese territory and internationally. In 2012, the winner of the Nobel Prize of Literature,Mo Yan, acclaimed the remarkable originality of Liu Cixin.[11] Liu's fiction focuses primarily on problems such as social inequality, scientific development and ecological limitations that impact humanity.[16]
Chinese video platformTencent Video releaseda series based onThe Three-Body Problem in January 2023.[17]
A cinematic adaptation ofThe Three-Body Problem has been filmed, but its release has been indefinitely postponed.[18] In March 2018,Amazon was rumored to be negotiating for the rights to the project.[19][20] However, YooZoo Pictures released a statement in response stating that it was the "sole owner of the rights for film and TV series adaptations."[20] Although it "was originally scheduled to be released in 2017," the project "was postponed indefinitely due to the company's internal shuffling and the rumored 'bad quality' of the film's first cut."[20] In June 2019, it was reported that work had begun on an animated adaptation,[21] and in 2020, October Media announced another adaptation in the works.[22]
Thecinematic adaptation of his short storyThe Wandering Earth was released in China on 5 February 2019,[23] which became thesecond highest-grossing film in the Chinese box office within 2 weeks.[24]
The science-fiction comedy filmCrazy Alien, adapted from his science fiction short storyThe Village Teacher, had grossed 2.2 billion at the box office, making it the fifteenth film in Chinese film history with a box office exceeding 2 billion.[25]
US streaming platformNetflix announced in September 2020 that it had ordered an English-language series based on Liu's trilogyThe Three-Body Problem. Liu would serve as a consulting producer on the project.David Benioff andD.B. Weiss were named as writers and executive producers. Other members of the creative team included executive producerRian Johnson,Ram Bergman,Bernadette Caulfield, Nena Rodrigue, Lin Qi, andRosamund Pike.[26] TheNetflix television adaptation started production in early November 2021, and was released on 21 March 2024.[27]
Chinese video sharing websiteBilibili released aseries exploring the science of Liu Cixin's science fiction in November 2022.[28]
| Year | Work | Type | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | The Wandering Earth | Movie | Original, Executive Producer |
| 2019 | Crazy Alien | Movie | Original |
| 2021 | Earth Rescue Day (末日拯救) | Movie | Screenwriter |
| 2022 | Rendezvous with the Future | TV series | Main Interviewee |
| 2023 | Three-Body | TV series | Original |
| 2023 | The Wandering Earth 2 | Movie | Executive Producer |
| 2024 | 3 Body Problem | TV series | Original, Consulting Producer |
Liu is married and has a daughter.[29]
In a June 2019 interview published inThe New Yorker, interviewerJiayang Fan found that Liu "prefers to avoid" talking about politics. In the same article, Liu stated that democracy was not appropriate for modern China. When probed by Fan about "individual liberty and freedom of governance", Liu said that this is "not what Chinese people care about", adding "If you were to loosen up the country a bit, the consequences would be terrifying." He expressed support for policies such as theone-child policy andChina's Xinjiang policies, saying "Would you rather that they be hacking away at bodies at train stations and schools in terrorist attacks? If anything, the government is helping their economy and trying to lift them out of poverty."[30]
Nevertheless, Liu's works (including some of his adaptations) contain various subtle and plot-wide criticisms of the actions of theChinese Communist Party (CCP). In one such case, Liu moved a brutalstruggle session that was common during theCultural Revolution from the middle of the book to the beginning ofThe Three-Body Problem's English translation when suggested by his translator,Ken Liu. In response to the prominently placed plot point, Liu Cixin replied, "That is how I wanted it originally!"[31] TheNetflix adaptation, where Liu Cixin was also aconsultant, also starts with the struggle session.[32] Liu Cixin's Chinese publisherschose to place the politically charged scene in the middle of the book instead of the beginning, in order to get pastgovernment censors.[31][32]
Polish science fiction criticWojciech Orliński argued that Liu's works such asRemembrance of Earth's Past andThe Wandering Earth represent "endorsement of concepts ofworld government,consequentialism" as well as "tacit approval" of "China'ssurveillance andcontrol society".[33]
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| Year | Title | Award | Category | Result | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 带上她的眼睛 | (With Her Eyes) | Yinhe (Galaxy Award (China)) | Awarded[34] | ||
| 2005 | 赡养人类 | (Support Human Beings) | Awarded | |||
| 2006 | 三体 | (The Three-Body Problem) | Awarded | |||
| 2015 | 赡养上帝 | (¿Quién cuidará de los dioses?) | Ignotus Awards | Foreign Short Stories | Nominated[35] | |
| 三体 | Hugo Award | Best Novel | Awarded[36] | |||
| (The Three-Body Problem) | John W. Campbell Memorial Award | — | Nominated[37] | |||
| Locus Award | Best SF Novel | Nominated[38] | ||||
| Nebula Award | Best Novel | Nominated[39] | ||||
| Prometheus Award | — | Nominated[40] | ||||
| 2017 | Canopus Awards | — | Nominated[41] | |||
| (Die drei Sonnen) | Kurd-Laßwitz-Preis | Best Foreign SF work | Awarded[42] | |||
| (El problema de los tres cuerpos) | Premio Ignotus | Foreign Novel | Awarded[43] | |||
| (Le Problème à trois corps) | Grand prix de l'Imaginaire | Foreign Novel | Nominated[44] | |||
| 死神永生 | (Death's End) | Dragon Award | Best Science Fiction Novel | Nominated[45] | ||
| Hugo Award | Best Novel | Nominated | ||||
| Locus Award | Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel | Awarded[46] | ||||
| 2018 | — | — | Arthur C. Clarke Award for ... | — | Awarded[47] | |
| 2019 | 圆 | (The Circle) | Seiun Award | Best Translated Short Story | Awarded[48] | |
| 2020 | 三体 | (The Three-Body Problem) | Best Translated Long Work | Awarded[49] | ||
| 2021 | 三体II 黒暗森林 | (The Dark Forest) | Best Translated Long Work | Awarded[50] | ||
| 2023 | 流浪地球 | (The Wandering Earth) | Best Translated Short Story | Awarded[51] | ||
