One of the most anticipated films this summer, The Bravest – based on real-life stories of firefighters – will open across the Chinese mainland on Aug 1.

Led by actors Huang Xiaoming, Du Jiang and actress Tan Zhuo, the film by Hong Kong director Tony Chan is adapted from a non-fiction book about an oil pipeline explosion at a port in Dalian, in Northeast China's Liaoning province, in July 2010.

Penned by ethnic Mongolian author Bao'erji Yuanye, the book with the title Zuishen De Shui Shi Leishui (Tears Are the Deepest Water) records more than 2,800 firefighters' death-defying efforts to extinguish the fires caused by the explosion in 15 hours.

At a recent media conference, the writer recalled that he had spent more than two months to interview a number of firefighters who had then risked their lives to enter the hazardous area, covering around 60,000 square meters, to rescue trapped people and put out the fire.

Actor Huang says that the actors had undergone a one-month-long training to master firefighting skills before they began filming.

"I still feel a bit scared when recalling the firefighting scenes. And it makes me respect Chinese firefighters and their bravery," says Huang.

A life-size replica of the oil tank storage area in Dalian port was built for the main firefighting sequences.