By day, Zheng Hong, a 48-year-old native of Anime village in southwest China's Yunnan Province, works as a mason. By night, he picks up his camera to assist with photography at the village's song festival.

After two decades working in construction and a brief stint as a truck driver, Zheng has now embarked on a new career path.

Photo shows a view of Anime village, Pingpo town, Yangbi Yi Autonomous County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Yin Xin)

"Anime" means "a place where even birds won't come" in the Yi language. Perched at an average altitude of 1,600 meters, this small mountain village was once largely abandoned by its young people.

"In the past, the land in front of and behind our houses was barren. Every swing of the hoe struck nothing but rock," Zheng recalled. Like many others, he spent years working away from home.

In 2018, musician Li Yongkang returned to his hometown and founded the Anime 007 Art Farm. He encouraged fellow villagers to embrace art and promote Anime's music culture through short videos and other means.

Tourists pose for group photos in front of the stage for the song festival of Anime village, Pingpo town, Yangbi Yi Autonomous County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Yin Xin)

The following year, the village began transforming with support from a fund dedicated to the Shanghai-Yunnan pairing assistance program. Infrastructure gradually improved, creative tourism facilities were built, and cultural activities began to thrive, putting Anime on the map.

Since May 2024, the village has been exploring a development model that brings together the local Party branch, cooperatives, businesses and farmers to boost its rural industries. This approach has supported the opening of eight restaurants and hillside bed-and-breakfasts while converting idle land into 44 commercial spaces.

Villagers' per capita disposable income has grown from 8,000 yuan (about $1,100) in 2018 to 28,000 yuan today.

Photo shows a restored dwelling in Anime village, Pingpo town, Yangbi Yi Autonomous County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Yin Xin)

At the end of May this year, Anime officially launched its song festival, drawing singers from across the country.

Yang Jianming, who once ran a company in south China's Guangdong Province, rushed back home upon hearing that Anime planned to create a music festival. He now serves as the festival's operations supervisor and host.

Last year, Zheng returned to the village and joined a local photography team with an average age of 40.

Photo shows a view of Anime village, Pingpo town, Yangbi Yi Autonomous County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Yin Xin)

"I didn't even know which button to press when I first picked up a camera, and I couldn't get the focus right," Zheng admitted. But he refused to give up. He attended every free training session attentively and continued to study online in his spare time. After several months of learning, Zheng became one of the main stage photographers.

So far, more than 4,000 people from 26 provincial-level regions nationwide have registered online for the song festival. After auditions, 255 contestants have performed on stage in Anime. "We've held 95 offline competitions so far, and the oldest singer is 71," Yang said.

Photo shows a view of Anime village, Pingpo town, Yangbi Yi Autonomous County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province. (People's Daily Online/Yin Xin)