The past is prologue
By rediscovering meaningful retro artifacts from the past, young people are reconnecting with emotional bonds and memories.
At Moyu Office, a photo studio in Beijing, 20-year-old store manager Liang Jiaqiu from Fuxin, Liaoning province, captures moments using a Polaroid Big Shot camera. Guests hold their breath for a minute and a half as the image develops, eagerly peeling apart the film with delight.
This peel-apart instant film, a now-discontinued photographic paper, has recently gained popularity among young people for its distinctive color tones and nostalgic shooting experience.
According to Liang, since the store introduced its Polaroid service last October, it has become a major hit — especially after celebrities like Ouyang Nana and Ju Jingyi shared their experiences online.
This interest in instant photography is just one example of a broader trend — a wave of nostalgia sweeping through the lives of many young people. From newspaper-style wedding announcements to childhood snacks, toys, and millennial-era aesthetics, retro culture is making a strong comeback.
On May 23, Ma Xiaochen, a groom from Changchun, Jilin province, published a wedding announcement in a local newspaper. The message read: "With a promise of growing old together, written on this paper" — a gesture that recalls a ritual once popular during the Republic of China period (1912-49).
