Tianlong Babu Film Studio (Dali)

The Dali Tianlong Babu Film City (Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils Film City) is a large-scale television and film set on the western outskirts of Dali Old Town, at the foot of the Cangshan range. Built primarily as the shooting location for a 2003 small-screen adaptation of Jin Yong's wuxia novel Tianlong Babu (Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils), the complex recreates the architecture of the ancient Dali kingdom and has since been used as a backdrop for numerous other historical productions.

The layout is designed to evoke the imagined capital of the Dali kingdom, with palace halls, city gates, marketplace streets, and martial-arts courtyards arranged along a central axis. The architecture draws on Tang and Song forms filtered through the production designer's imagination — recognizable elements of historic Chinese and Bai architecture, but at a cinematic scale and level of drama that the original archaeological sites rarely achieve. The set is populated with costumed performers, staged combat demonstrations, and market stalls that create a theme-park atmosphere.

For visitors, the appeal depends on expectations. Those familiar with Jin Yong's novel or the popular television series will find the site most rewarding, since the various halls, squares, and gates are keyed to specific scenes and characters from the story. For other travelers, the film city offers a relatively lightweight half-day of wandering, photography, and cultural spectacle, particularly suited to families with children or to wuxia enthusiasts.

The film city is also notable for being the lower station of the Ximatan Ropeway up Cangshan, which makes it an easy stop on the way to or from the mountain. Travelers planning a Ximatan day can build in an hour or two at the film city before or after their cable-car ride, which makes efficient use of the shared location. Morning visits tend to be quieter and cooler than afternoons.