出红海记Red Sea Odyssey
Six centuries ago, Zheng He's fleet sailed from Taicang and Changle on China's coast for Arabia and the coast of East Africa. Now we're setting out again on the same sea road. Four themes open the voyage. You write the stories, and you choose where we sail next.
Red Sea Odyssey is an open cultural IP. Along the old sea road linking China, the Red Sea and East Africa, we invite creators everywhere to write its next chapters, with AI and the crafts they know best.
An open mother IP
We look after the world and its framework. Co-creators write the stories.
Told in chapters
Each chapter is one theme, and the chapters can go on without end.
Co-created with AI
AIGC lowers the bar, so a single creator can tell a place well.
Three characters, one journey.
To set out. Chinese stories heading into the world, and creators heading for the lands on both shores.
The Red Sea, between Asia and Africa: Arabia on the east shore, Ethiopia and East Africa on the west, joined for millennia by sea lanes and trade routes.
A travel record. It borrows the chapter form of Journey to the West: one place, one story, per chapter.
One sea road, three nodes.
From China's coast, across the Red Sea, to East Africa.
01Origin · where the content is madeChina's coast
Quanzhou, Guangzhou and Ningbo were great ports of the Maritime Silk Road, and Zheng He's fleets set out from Taicang and Changle. Today, partners along this coast make Red Sea Odyssey's content together.
- 02Main stage
Red Sea · Saudi Arabia
The Red Sea, AlUla, the Incense Road: the destinations are ready. The stories that bring them to life aren't, yet.
03Opposite shore · depthEthiopia
An ancient civilisation on the Red Sea's west shore: Aksum and the old port of Adulis, a homeland of frankincense and of coffee. It is the other half of the story, and runs through every chapter.
Four themes. Just the beginning.
These aren't four finished chapters. They're four open doors. Every chapter is open to co-creation: what you tell, how you tell it and where it leads are up to you.
Ethiopia isn't a chapter of its own. It runs through all of them: the old ports of the west shore, a source of frankincense, the home of coffee.
Setting sail: a first sight of the Red Sea
What does the coast Zheng He's fleet once reached look like today? A reef, an old port, a veteran sea captain: any of them could open this chapter.
- Coral reefs
- Old ports
- Navigation
DestinationsAl-Balad, Jeddah · Al-Wajh old town · Aksum
Into the sand sea, to a city of stone
Two thousand years ago, the Nabataeans carved a city into sandstone. Whose stories does the stone keep, and who will walk in under tonight's stars?
- Rock carvings
- Oases
- Night sky
DestinationsAlUla · Hegra
Camel bells on the road where sea meets land
Frankincense and myrrh travelled north from southern Arabia. The caravans, markets and scents along the way are waiting to be retold.
- Caravans
- Markets
- Scent
DestinationsKafa coffee forest
One breath, one dive, one pearl
Pearl divers went down on a single breath. One pearl can hold a family history, a trade or a legend.
- Pearl divers
- Harbours
- Legends
DestinationsFarasan Islands
From a theme to an official chapter.
Red Sea Odyssey is unfinished, and we don't mean to finish it alone. We're inviting creators from China, both shores of the Red Sea and East Africa to take up these four themes in film, images, words and music, or to open a chapter of their own.
- 01
The mother IP sets the frame
CIV Middle East looks after the world, the visual identity and the library of themes.
- 02
Open a theme, write it on
Start from an existing theme or propose a new one. Use any tools; we share reference material.
- 03
Selected work becomes a chapter
After review, work joins Red Sea Odyssey as an official chapter, credited to its creator.
- 04
Licensing and spin-offs
Films, guided tours, exhibitions and products are developed on a one-project, one-agreement basis.
- Credit always stays with the creator
- Clear, layered rights between the mother IP and spin-offs
- Digital assets registered and traceable
- Respect for source communities
Formats
- AIGC shorts and series
- AR guides and digital streets
- Digital and virtual exhibitions
- Words, images, music and interactive
- Brand collaborations and products
Audiences
- Chinese travellers and young audiences online
- Audiences in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf
- Audiences in Ethiopia and East Africa
- Creators across the Global South
Tell us which chapter you'd write.
Dates and prizes for the creator competition and bootcamp are coming soon. Register now and you'll be the first to hear.
We'll only contact you about Red Sea Odyssey, and we never share your details.
Six ways into the next chapter.
Studios, tech companies, destinations, brands, investors and schools can all develop new chapters with us.
See partnership optionsConnecting China and both shores of the Red Sea.
CIV Middle East is registered in Hong Kong, with a team based in Saudi Arabia. We develop cultural IP, train AIGC creators and digitise heritage. We also help Chinese companies enter the Middle East, and bring Middle Eastern stories to China. Red Sea Odyssey is our first original IP.
Destinations, brands, platforms and investors are welcome to develop new chapters with us.
Who can take part?
Creators from China, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, Ethiopia and East Africa, and across the Global South, as individuals or teams, from any background.
Do I have to pick one of the four themes?
No. The four themes are just the opening. Any theme tied to the Red Sea shores is welcome.
Where does Ethiopia fit in?
Ethiopia is the opposite shore and the other half of the story. Rather than a chapter of its own, it runs through all of them: Aksum and the old port of Adulis, frankincense, the home of coffee, the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela.
Do I have to use AI?
No. AIGC is encouraged, and work that mixes live footage, drawing and AI is just as welcome.
Who gets credit, and how is work licensed?
Credit always stays with the creator. Rights in the mother IP and in derivative work are kept separate and agreed project by project. Full terms will be published with the competition rules, and we will never use your work without your written consent.
Do I need to travel to Saudi Arabia?
No. Reference material is shared online. Field trips are being planned and will be announced separately.
How can organisations get involved?
Studios, tech companies, destinations, brands, investors and schools each have a way in. See the partners page, or choose “I’m with an organisation” in the form above. See partnership options →