France, Aug. 23 -- In an era of blockbusters and AI-generated videos, Niu Lai ("The Arrival of the Ox") looks like a relic from another age.

Its angular modelling, erratic animation and crude textures recall the computer graphics of the early 1990s. Yet the dreamlike adventures of a shy calf have become a genuine cinema phenomenon thanks to the negative publicity surrounding the film.

Xin Yumeng began the project with a budget of about €13,000, funded by family savings. With no formal training, the former interior designer directed, modelled, animated and voiced the film himself while his mother wrote the screenplay and theme song.

Over five years, the pair created the story of a young calf discovering life through a dream filled...