The Comparative Study On Chinese Sitcom And American Sitcom

Situation Comedy, usually referred to as sitcom, was very popular with all TV audiences on a global scale because of its short form and humorous content. Originated in the U.S., Sitcom has gone through more than a decade since its introduction to China in the 1990s. With the hard work of a number of sitcom directors represented by Ying Da, Chinese sitcom has gone through the process from mimic to independent, the domestic audience knows sitcom from the initial unfamiliar to familiar and loved.Sitcom both in China and the United States is the same type of TV programme, there are many inevitable similar characteristics. This article will trace to its beginning and summarize the development history of both Chinese sitcom and American sitcom based on the defining of sitcom. In this paper, the author will elaborate the commonalities embodied in the theme of the subject, character setting, narrative strategy, comedy elements both in China and the United States. Of course, in different social and cultural backgrounds, China and the United States produced sitcoms also show a number of different characteristics. This article also dissertates and analysis the differences from the narrative approach, class perspective, the industrial environment of production and so on. Chinese sitcom has made encouraging progress after a period of development, but there are still many shortcomings compared to the original United States. No doubt localization, brand promotion and industrialization would be the direction and strategy of the development of Chinese sitcom industry.