Intermodal complementarity and cross-cultural adaptation in children’s animated movies: a multimodal analysis of globalized narratives

Abstract Current research on cross-cultural animated narratives predominantly analyzes individual modalities, neglecting how multimodal complementarity mediates the negotiation between cultural specificity and global accessibility. This gap is critical to address, as animation increasingly serves as a vehicle for intercultural dialogue in globally connected societies. Grounded in systemic functional linguistics and socio-semiotics, this study employs a multimodal analytic framework to compare how Ne Zha: Birth of the Demon Child (2019) and Coco (2017) utilize intermodal strategies to balance cultural authenticity and accessibility. The analysis reveals three core mechanisms: synchronization (strict audiovisual alignment), complementarity (semantic reinforcement across modes), and contradiction (juxtaposition of conflicting cultural codes). Findings demonstrate that (1) Coco (2017) naturalizes Mexican Día de los Muertos rituals through synchronized sensory anchoring and universal theme embedding, (2) Ne Zha (2019) sustains Daoist mythological complexity via staggered symbolic layering and contradiction-driven tension, and (3) both movies scaffold cross-cultural empathy through rhythmically distinct yet complementary multimodal orchestration. The study concludes that intermodal complementarity is a central mechanism for cultural adaptation, offering a dual-path model for globalized storytelling. This model comprises the “immediate sensory harmonization” strategy observed in Coco (2017) and the “contemplative symbolic layering” strategy of Ne Zha (2019), illustrating distinct yet effective approaches to harmonizing cultural locality with global universality.