The first Sino-French International Documentary and Micro Film Exhibition is scheduled to kick off on December 30 at the Beijing Film Academy, organizers announced at a press conference on Wednesday in Beijing.
A forum for film industry experts and scholars from China and France will be part of the exhibition, while screenings will take place in Beijing from January 1 to 10 and then January 25 to February 5 in Paris.
This marks another Sino-French cooperation for film after the co-production of films such as Nightingale and Wolf Totem.
"This is a huge cultural exchange program," said Xu Bolin, general secretary of the China Film Association's CCP Group. Xu's belief that the differences between China and France mean communication is especially important for the two countries.
The birthplace of film, France is regarded as a "Mecca" for many filmmakers in China. A massive number of French films and documentaries are often used as crucial learning tools for film school students.
Wang Yiyan, jury member for the Documentary sections of the Golden Rooster Awards and the Hundred Flowers Awards, expressed how much she appreciated French films and how she traveled to France several times to learn from them.
Although Chinese filmmakers are very familiar with French film, she believes there is still a lot more work that needs to be done when it comes to French filmmakers getting to know Chinese film. As such she believes the screening week in France will be extremely meaningful when it comes to introducing Chinese film to the country.
