In the 1990s, a group of students on the campus of the Chinese Southern Academy of Arts are pursuing their studies and preparing to face the world. China is opening up to the West and the students’ lives are a tangle of love stories and friendships, artistic research, ideals and ambitions brought about by new influences. Caught between tradition and modernity, they have to decide who they want to become.

中国传媒大学的动画教室薛燕平制作的《蝉噪林愈静》，历时6年，采访近40位动画创作人员现身说法。其中包括了在行业面临转折的今天，很多观点独到而实际。片中采访的都是一线创作者，包括《泡芙小姐》的创作者皮三，《魁拔》的导演王川，黑匣子动画创始人陈廖宇，万豪天际的制片人陈雷等动画业的中流砥柱。他们对动画是什么，中国动画该如何发展，都有着自己独特的看法。